Soloists for Measure for Measure
Ara Berberian
Ara Berberian attended the University of Michigan
and was a member of the Men's Glee Club and Novelaires
Quartet (with
m4m Baritone Dick Frank). Mr. Berberian just completed
his 19th consecutive season with the Metropolitan Opera Company.
He has performed with major opera companies and symphony
orchestras throughout the world. Mr. Berberian's repertoire
includes over 150 different operatic roles. He is especially
noted for his interpretations of Osmin in Mozart's The
Abduction
From the Seraglio, and Don Basilio in Rossini's The Barber
of Seville.
Mr. Berberian was a featured soloist at Measure for Measure's 1996 Spring Concert in Ann Arbor, Michigan, where he delighted the 900 in the audience with Handel's "Ombra Mai Fu" and "The Willow Tree" by Amber Roobenian.
Glenda Kirkland
Soprano Glenda Kirkland is Professor of Voice at Eastern
Michigan University. She has woven her expressive spells
in many appearances with opera companies, oratorio societies,
symphony orchestras, and at recitals throughout the United
States. Her frequent guest appearances with the Detroit Symphony
Orchestra and other notable ensembles have included performances
at Carnegie Hall, the Kennedy Center and the Meadowbrook
Music Festival.
Ms. Kirkland has appeared with Measure for Measure on three occasions, including a special presentation at the Midwest Conference on Music Education. In 1997, she joined M4M for performances of "The Omnipotence" by Schubert and L'Enfant Prodique" by Debussey.
Jennifer Larson
USA
Today has described Jennifer Larson as possessing a "golden voice." Recent highlights of her career
as a concert soloist include performances of the Poulenc
Gloria with the Utah Symphony under the baton of Robert Page,
Mozart Requiem with the Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament
Choir, the Utah Symphony, and Ballet West, Mozart Missa Solemnis
in C (KV337) with the Cathedral of the Madeleine Choir, and
Beethoven's Ninth Symphony and Missa Solemnis "Gloria" under
the direction of Robert Shaw. On the stage this season she
has performed the title role in Stravinsky's Le Rossignol,
Marguerite in Gounod's Faust, and the Governess in Britten's
Turn of the Screw. Last February, Ms. Larson was named a
National Finalist at the Metropolitan Opera National Council
Auditions in New York City.
A favorite soloist with many contemporary music organizations, Ms. Larson has been featured on several compact disc recordings of original works. This years she will perform and record composition for horn and voice with William Barnewitz of the Milwaukee Symphony, including a piece composed expressly for these performers. Other upcoming engagements include Violetta in Verdi's opera La Traviata, and Mahler's Second Symphony ("Resurrection") with the Illinois Symphony Orchestra.
Ms. Larson appeared with Measure For Measure in 1998 at the Michigan Theater in Ann Arbor. She was accompanied by Dr. Riccinto on O Mio Babbino Caro by Giacomo Puccini and Glitter And Be Gay by Leonard Bernstein. She then captured the hearts of the entire audience with Maurice Golman's arrangement of Rossini's La Danza, accompanied by Measure For Measure under the direction of her husband, Assistant Conductor Scott Larson.
Ms. Larson also is a guest soloist on Measure For Measure's 2000 holiday CD "A Celebration of Christmas", in which she performs Gesu Bambino, Mary Had a Baby, and O Holy Night, together with soprano Carrie Wilson.
Carrie Wilson
Soprano Carrie Wilson is an acclaimed vocalist in a wide
variety of genres including opera, oratorio, musical theater,
and jazz. As a voice-over artist, Ms. Wilson has been heard
throughout the United States and Canada in commercial and
industrial recordings. She also maintains a private voice
studio in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Ms. Wilson's first official appearance as a guest soloist with the group is on Measure For Measure's 2000 holiday CD "A Celebration of Christmas", in which she performs Gesu Bambino, Mary Had a Baby, and O Holy Night, together with soprano Jennifer Larson.
