The Santa Fe Pro Musica Orchestra (SFPMO) presents ‘Season Finale: Haydn’s The Creation’ Saturday, May 1 at The Lensic Performing Arts Center. Courtesy/SFPM
SFPMO News:
SANTA FE — The Santa Fe Pro Musica Orchestra (SFPMO) presents ‘Season Finale: Haydn’s The Creation’ under the baton of conductor laureate Thomas O’Connor, the Santa Fe Pro Musica Orchestra, vocal soloists, and Polyphony: Voices of New Mexico join to perform a spectacular masterpiece of classical music at 7 p.m. Saturday, May 1 at the Lensic Performing Arts Center, 211 W. San Francisco in Santa Fe.
From literal truth, to inspiring prose, to a rip-roaring tale, Haydn’s oratorio The Creation is cinematic in its imagery—truly a grand finale!
These performances are generously underwritten by Johnanna McLaughlin and Melody Maureen McLaughlin, in memory of Charles McLaughlin.
TICKETS: $30-$95
Contact the Santa Fe Pro Musica Box Office at 505.988.4640; sfpromusica.org; Lensic.org
COVID-19: The health and safety of the audience, staff and artists are of the highest priority. For orchestra and string quartet concerts at the Lensic Performing Arts Center, Santa Fe Pro Musica continues to require that everyone (ages 12+) provide proof of full vaccination—or the recent results of a negative COVID test — plus a photo ID for admission to the theater. Face masks also are required at all times for those ages 2 and up.
Artist Biographies:
- Thomas O’Connor, conductor laureate: Santa Fe Pro Musica’s music director emeritus and conductor laureate, O’Connor has nurtured the vision and managed the mechanics of Santa Fe Pro Musica for over 40 years. Originally from Los Alamos, he had a successful career performing in orchestras and music festivals across the U.S. and Canada as a Grammy nominated oboist, baroque oboist, and English horn player.
- Clara Rottsolk, soprano: Acclaimed for her “pure and shining” voice (Cleveland Plain Dealer), Rottsolk has had solo performances with Atlanta Baroque, American Bach Soloists (San Francisco), American Classical Orchestra (New York), Bach Collegium San Diego, Colorado Bach Ensemble, San Francisco Early Music Society, Seattle Baroque Orchestra, Pacific MusicWorks, Trinity Wall Street Choir, and at many festivals including Berkeley Early Music, Boston Early Music, Carmel Bach, Indianapolis Early Music, and Philadelphia Bach. http://clararottsolk.com/
- Brian Giebler, tenor: Acclaimed for his “most impressive, bright, clear tone and lively personality” (The New York Times), Giebler performs with GRAMMY Award–winning Conspirare (Texas), GRAMMY-nominated Seraphic Fire (Florida), the Handel & Haydn Society (Boston), Cleveland Orchestra, Apollo’s Fire (Cleveland), and Carmel Bach Festival. In New York he has performed with the American Classical Orchestra, Trinity Baroque Orchestra, Clarion Music Society, and Trinity Wall Street Choir. https://www.briangiebler.com/
- Andrew Garland, baritone: Garland is noted for his “exceptional dramatic focus” (WQXR Operavore). He has sung with the opera companies of Seattle, Minnesota, New York City, Boston Lyric, Philadelphia, and others; with the orchestras of Colorado, Atlanta, National, Houston; and baroque ensembles including Boston Baroque, Handel & Haydn Society, and Emmanuel Music. His latest solo CD, “American Portraits,” was listed No. 1 on Amazon Best Sellers in Classical.
- Polyphony: Voices of New Mexico: Under the artistic leadership of Maxine Thévenot, Polyphony: Voices of New Mexico is a professional choral ensemble of highly trained vocal artists who reside in New Mexico. Founded in 2007, the Albuquerque-based ensemble is committed to performing not only the great works of the past, both sacred and secular, but also works by contemporary American and Latino composers. They perform the full-spectrum of choral music, from a cappella to large-scale orchestral-choral works, and have collaborated with New Mexico’s finest orchestras, including Santa Fe Pro Musica, the New Mexico Philharmonic, and Performance Santa Fe.
- Maxine Thévenot, choral director: Originally from Saskatchewan, Canada, Thévenot currently lives in Albuquerque. She is the founder and director of the professional choral group Polyphony: Voices of New Mexico, on the music faculty at the University of New Mexico, and is the director of music at the Cathedral of St. John. She studied at the University of Saskatchewan, the Manhattan School of Music, and is an Honorary Fellow of the National College of Music, London, U.K. Locally she has served as chorus master for Pro Musica (Haydn’s The Creation), Performance Santa Fe, the New Mexico Philharmonic, and others. Thévenot is also a recording artist, composer, and award-winning organist.
