CANCELLED
Does anyone ever really need an excuse to listen to beautiful music? Yeah, we didn't think so either.
Take a break from your day-to-day routine and give yourself a well-deserved reminder of what it's like to enjoy the finer things in life. Sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride as we indulge in some of the most beautiful selections of all time for the soprano and tenor voice.
Music is a gracious gift from above endowed with the magical ability to heal many a broken heart and weary soul. We count ourselves blessed to share these works with you.
Performers
Sarah Joyce Cooper, soprano
Francis Rogers, tenor
Michael Strauss, piano
Commended for her "meltingly beautiful" (Opera News) singing, Boston-based soprano Sarah Joyce Cooper performs year-round throughout the US. Recent performances include Pamina in Die Zauberflöte (CoOPERAtive), Countess in Le Nozze di Figaro (Savannah Voice Festival), Micaëla in Carmen (Martina Arroyo’s Prelude to Performance), Violetta in La Traviata (New York Opera Studio/ Elizabeth R. and Co.), Mimi in La Bohème (Opera Theater of Cape Cod), and Zerlina in Don Giovanni (Boston Opera Collaborative). Ms. Cooper has also appeared as a soloist with the Eastern Connecticut Symphony Orchestra, the Maryland Lyric Opera Orchestra, Convergence Ensemble, and the Radcliffe Choral Society. In 2016, she was a first-place winner of the Coeur d’Alene Symphony Young Artists Competition and the Westminster Choir College Voice Scholarship competition. Ms. Cooper also received the 2017 Colleen and Edward Carducci Encouragement Award at the Metropolitan National Council Auditions in Columbia, South Carolina. In 2018, she earned first place in The American Prize Competition’s Opera and Operetta division and Second Place in the International Talents of the World Competition in New York City. As a TOW competition prizewinner, she made her Carnegie Hall debut in a Maria Callas tribute concert. In 2019, Ms. Cooper appeared as a finalist in the George London Competition and was nominated for a Sara Tucker Study Grant from the Richard Tucker Foundation. Ms. Cooper also performed as a soloist with the Du Bois orchestra in the historic world premiere of Florence Price’s long-lost cantata, Abraham Lincoln Walks at Midnight. Most recently, Ms. Cooper made her debut with Maryland Lyric Opera as La Charmeuse in a production of Massenet’s Thaïs.
American tenor Francis Rogers has distinguished himself among lyric tenors with “acting chops on par with a luscious tenor voice that stole the show every time he opened his mouth” (Schmopera). Francis has performed on some of the biggest stages for international audiences with groups such as the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Odyssey Opera, and the Boston Pops. Recent credits include Rodolfo in La Boheme, Don Ottavio in Don Giovanni, Don José in Le Tragedie de Carmen, Ramiro in La Cenerentola, and Ruggero in La Rondine. Francis’ oratorio and concert work include solo recital performances at Boston’s Symphony Hall, Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, Mozart’s Requiem and Puccini’s Messa di Gloria. In addition, Francis is a regular Star Spangled Banner soloist for Boston’s major sports teams (Celtics, Patriots, Red Sox), performing live for audiences of over 70,000 and international television audiences of over 14 million.