Are you a lover of arias? Looking for some first-class singing instruction? Look no further than the Carnegie Hall 2016 schedule, which offers a rare opportunity to see opera singer Joyce DiDonato's master classes (from January 8th-10th). These classes, which are public events (at a modest ticket price of $15) follow upon the success of last season’s classes, which were held from February 21st-23rd and are now available on medici.tv. Further into the season, a Mitsuko Uchida piano workshop event will be held (from February 24th-25th) -- this time only open to workshop participants. Each event, the Mitsuko Uchida piano workshops and the Joyce DiDonato master classes, will take place in the Resnick Education Wing of Carnegie Hall.
Joyce DiDonato, a Grammy award-winning soloist, has toured with the world’s leading opera companies and specializes in interpreting Handel, Mozart, and Rossini. Receiving the 2012 Grammy Award for Best Classical Vocal Solo, DiDonato has had a long history of recording and knows what it takes to give a performance that goes above and beyond. The press release for the Carnegie Hall 2016 events (available on Broadway World) quoted Joyce DiDonato’s comments on the idea to open the classes to the public: “I think that in these classes, opera lovers can see behind the gloss and the glamour to the profound amount of work it takes to give a polished performance-not to mention a performance that just might transcend. These young singers are so brave to open themselves up to this kind of adventure, and I love that the public can come along for the ride.”
February’s events, the Mitsuko Uchida piano workshops, are different from the Joyce DiDonato master classes in that they aren’t publicly available -- most likely due to the concentration required for developing a performance in real-time. They are, however, free events for all participating pianists (of whom are accepted). Applications, which closed in November, only required $10 to be reviewed. Mitsuko Uchida, a Japanese-born pianist naturalized in Britain, is just as versed as DiDonato, with the added distinction of being appointed a Dame Comander of the Order of the British Empire. With numerous awards attached to her own discography, participants in the Mitsuko Uchida piano workshop will have their work cut out for them in what is sure to be a rigorous exercise.
The two programs on the Carnegie Hall 2016 schedule --- the Mitsuko Uchida piano workshops and the Joyce DiDonato master classes --- are specifically aimed toward young musicians, with participants’ ages ranging from 18-35. In this narrow range, the intent seems clear: to cultivate the next generation of top-tier musicians, either in or out of the public eye.
