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Shepherd School of Music Faculty Recital - Susanne Mentzer and Brian Connelly

Presented by Rice University - Shepherd School of Music at Rice University - Alice Pratt Brown Hall - Duncan Recital Hall

September 21, 2010

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Rice University Shepherd School of Music presents a Faculty Recital, Tuesday, September 21, at 8pm

Featuring:
Susanne Mentzer, (pictured) mezzo-soprano
Brian Connelly, piano

From an introduction to opera as a teenage usher at the Santa Fe Opera American Susanne Mentzer has become one of today's foremost mezzo-sopranos. Recognized for her generous vocal and interpretive gifts, she is widely admired for her versatility, from the recital and concert stage to the operatic arena. She specializes in the music of Rossini, Strauss, Mozart, Berlioz and Mahler. Performances in the current and upcoming seasons include Larina in Eugene Onegin with the Pittsburgh Opera, Teavee/Josephine in Peter Ash’s The Golden Ticket with the Opera Theater of St. Louis, and Jade Boucher in Jake Heggie’s Dean Man Walking and Marcellina in Le Nozze di Figaro, both with the Houston Grand Opera. Her exciting orchestral appearances include a Mahler 3 with the Florida Orchestra, Mahler 2 with the Indianapolis Symphony, and a performances of Bernard Rand’s Now and Again with the renowned chamber group the Eighth Blackbird.

Susanne Mentzer first began her career with opera and has appeared with the great opera companies, orchestras and festivals in North America (Metropolitan Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, San Francisco Opera, Houston Grand Opera, Ravinia and Tanglewood Festivals), and Europe (La Scala Milan, Royal Opera Covent Garden, Vienna State Opera, Cologne Opera, Opéra de Paris, Teatro Liceo Barcelona, Salzburg Festival), as well as the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires, and on tour to Japan with the Metropolitan Opera, Mostly Mozart and the Bavarian State Opera. As a specialist in trouser roles, most notably for her portrayals of Cherubino (Le Nozze di Figaro), and Strauss’ Der Komponist (Ariadne auf Naxos) and Octavian (Der Rosenkavailer), she is also noted for her bel canto style, lauded for her performances of Bellini’s Romeo in “I Capuleti ed i Montecchi”, Adalgisa in “Norma”, Jane Seymour in Donizetti’s “Anna Bolena” and Rossini’s heroines in “Barbiere di Siviglia” and “La Cenerentola”. To her list of many Mozart roles (Idamante, Cheribino, Zerlina, Sesto, Annio, Dorabella) she recently added the role of Despina in Mozart’s “Cosi fan tutte” first with Santa Fe Opera, then at Florida Grand Opera and in April 2009 with the Colorado Opera. Other interesting projects operatically have been Verdi’s early opera “Un giorno di regno” at Royal Opera Covent Garden, Massenet’s “Don Quixote” (Lyric Opera of Chicago), Mélisande in “Pelléas et Mélisande” at the Opéra de Paris and Dido in Purcell’s “Dido and Aeneas” with Chicago Opera Theater.

She recently sang the title role in Ravel’s “L’enfant et les sortileges” with the New York Philharmonic (Maazel) at Carnegie Hall, and appeared on the Metropolitan Opera 125th Anniversary Gala (her 19th year there). In 2006-07 she created the role of Mother in the world premiere (and the 2008 reprise) of Tan Dun’s “The First Emperor” with Placido Domingo, directed by Zhang Yimou at the Metropolitan Opera, broadcast live to movie theaters around the world as part of the MET's series of high definition broadcasts and now available on DVD.

Ms. Mentzer enjoys a significant concert and recital career, with a particular interest in chamber music, and is known as an interpreter of the vocal works of Mahler, Berlioz and a proponent of women composers. In demand as a recitalist, Susanne Mentzer has appeared at Lincoln Center, in Carnegie Hall's Zankel Hall and Weill Hall, Town Hall NYC, the Kennedy Center, Schubert Club in St. Paul and others in collaboration with guitarist Sharon Isbin, pianist Leon Fleisher, the Orion and American String Quartets, violists Paul Neubauer and James Dunham, Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, Chicago Chamber Musicians, Rembrandt Chamber Musicians, Aspen Music Festival, Music from Angel Fire, Sun Valley Symphony, Pulitzer Series in St. Louis, Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival and the Sejong Solists.

A respected interpreter of the music of Berlioz, Ms. Mentzer participated in the recent bicentennial celebrations with performances of “Roméo et Juliette” and “Béatrice et Bénédict” with the New York Philharmonic under the batons of Lorin Maazel and Sir Colin Davis. She sang the role of Marguerite with Charles Dutoit in concert performances of Berlioz's “La Damnation de Faust” with both the New York Philharmonic and the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra (to be continued this season with the Chicago Symphony and Toronto Symphony) and “La Mort de Cléopâtre” with the National Arts Centre Orchestra, Pinchas Zuckerman, and “Huit scenes de Faust” with the St. Louis Symphony. She also appeared as Mary in L'enfance du Christ” with the Boston Symphony Orchestra and Dresden Philharmonie (deBurgos) and the Los Angeles Philharmonic (Salonen) and sang “Les nuits d'été” with the Orchestre de Paris (Eschenbach), Pittsburgh Symphony (A. Davis), the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra (Nelson), the IRIS Orchestra (Stern), Houston Symphony (Eschenbach), and the Philadelphia Orchestra (R. Abado).

As an interpreter of Mahler, Ms. Mentzer recently appeared with the Ft. Worth Symphony Orchestra as part of their Mahler Festival under the baton of Miguel Harth-Badoya. She also has performed the “Rückertlieder”, “Lieder eines Fahrende Gesellen” and “Des Knaben Wunderhorn” and Das Lied von der Erde” (Schoenberg arr.) and “Kindertotenlieder”, with Kurt Masur and the New York Philharmonic, and the Houston Symphony Orchestra (Hans Graf), Aspen Festival Orchestra and Julius Rudel, Rotterdam Philharmonic (Conlon) and with New York Festival of Song as well as in recital with Christoph Eschenbach. Ms. Mentzer appeared in Mahler's Symphony No. 2 "Resurrection" with San Diego Symphony, Aspen Music Festival, Ft. Worth Symphony and helped celebrate the 75th anniversary of the famed Riverside Church in New York in a special performance of the "Resurrection" with Neeme Järvi and an orchestra composed of principal players from the Philadelphia Orchestra, the New York Philharmonic, the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, the Detroit and New Jersey Symphonies. The concert was filmed as part of a documentary on Gustav Mahler and has been released on DVD by Video Artists International.

Continuing her interest in new works, last year Ms. Mentzer premiered a work by the American composer Daniel Brewbaker for mezzo, percussion and children’s choir at Chicago’s Millennium Park in May ‘09. In October ’08 she sang the American premiere of Italian composer Matteo D’amico’s “Stabat Mater” based on the Mafia murder of an anti-mafia judge chronicled in the book “Lo Spasimo di Palermo”, by Consolo. Other new works she has debuted (and recorded) are two song cycles by Libby Larsen; “Love after 1950” and “Sifting through the ruins” based on texts taken from the outpouring of tributes after September 11, 2001. She premiered a monodrama by Carlisle Floyd called “Citizen of Paradise” based on letters and poems of Emily Dickinson. She also recorded songs by David Garner based on “Spoon River Anthology”. Ms. Mentzer has also performed some rarely mounted 20th c. works including Schoenberg’s “Book of the Hanging Gardens”, and a song cycle of Messiaen “Harawi” in Houston as part of a 100th anniversary retrospective of the composer’s works.

Several important recent appearances include: a nationwide broadcast on PBS's Live from Lincoln Center to open the 40th anniversary season of the Mostly Mozart Festival, Beethoven 9th Symphony with Leonard Slatkin and the National Symphony Orchestra, Ravel’s “Shéhérazade “with the St. Louis Symphony (Robertson) and Britten’s “Spring Symphony” with the San Francisco Symphony and Robert Spano.

Ms. Mentzer has recorded two recitals she often performs in concert: “The Eternal Feminine”, a recital of music by women composers (Koch International Classics) pianist, Craig Rutenberg; and her personal favorite, “Wayfaring Stranger” (Erato), a collection of international folksongs arranged for voice and guitar with Grammy Award winner Sharon Isbin. Her extensive discography also includes two Haydn rarities, the opera “L'Isola Disabitata” and the dramatic cantata “Arianna a Naxos” (Arabesque); “Le nozze di Figaro” with Sir Charles Mackerras and “Faust” with the Welsh National Opera (Teldec); “Idomeneo” with Sir Colin Davis, Rossini's “Petit Messe Solenelle” and “Il Turco in Italia” conducted by Sir Neville Marriner (Philips); “Don Giovanni” with Riccardo Muti and “Il barbiere di Siviglia” (EMI); “Anna Bolena” with Joan Sutherland and Richard Bonynge (Decca); “Hansel and Gretel” with Andreas Delfs (Avie) and the Grammy nominated recording of Busoni's “Arlecchino” with Kent Nagano (Virgin). Susanne Mentzer has appeared on PBS broadcasts Live from the Met in productions of “Le Nozze di Figaro”, “Così fan tutte”, “The First Emperor” and on the James Levine 25th Anniversary Concert. She was featured as Artist of the Week on the A&E Network series Breakfast with the Arts. She can be seen on DVD in “Don Giovanni” from Teatro alla Scala and “Les Contes d'Hoffmann” from the Opéra de Paris, and “The First Emperor” from the Met.

In addition to her active performance career Ms. Mentzer has an interest in the development of young singers. She is Professor of Voice at Rice University's Shepherd School of Music in Houston and has served on the faculty of the Aspen Music Festival and School and the DePaul University School of Music. She frequently gives master classes throughout the country, adjudicates competitions, has worked with young singers associated with the George London Foundation, and is a board member of the William M. Sullivan Foundation awarding study grants to young singers

Born in Philadelphia and raised in Maryland and New Mexico, Ms. Mentzer began her studies in music therapy at the University of the Pacific and later transferred to the Juilliard School where she received her Bachelor and Master degrees. She honed her craft in the Houston Grand Opera Studio and studied voice with Norma Newton. From 1991-2006 Susanne Mentzer organized the annual Jubilate benefit concert featuring stars of the opera and dance world to support Chicago's Bonaventure House, a residence for people living with AIDS.

Pianist BRIAN CONNELLY’s performances span an unusually broad range of historical and modern repertoires. Born in Detroit, he attended the University of Michigan, where he studied with pianists Gyorgy Sandor and Theodore Lettvin. Mr. Connelly has premiered works by a host of contemporary composers such as William Albright, Karim Al-Zand, Derek Bermel, William Bolcom, Paul Cooper, David Diamond, Ross Lee Finney, and many others. He is a frequent guest with new-music groups such as the Pittsburgh New Music Ensemble and the Chicago Contemporary Players, and he was recently featured in the Carnegie Hall series Making Music in a tribute to composer William Bolcom.

Known for his affinity for the works of Olivier Messiaen, Connelly’s recent performances include Messiaen’s Vingt Regards sur l’Enfant-Jésus and Catalogue d’Oiseaux for piano, the complete songs cycles with soprano Carmen Pelton and mezzo-soprano Susanne Mentzer, all of the chamber music, the Oiseaux exotiques with chamber orchestra, and the Trois petites liturgies de la Présence Divine with conductor Donald Runnicles at the Grand Teton Music Festival.

Mr. Connelly is also widely respected as a scholar and performer of historical instruments, appearing in the U.S. and Europe on 18th- and 19th-century pianos by Walther, Rosenberger, Graf, Pleyel, Bösendorfer, and Streicher. He has for 13 years been a member of the renowned ensemble Context; his recent recordings with that group—of music by Robert Schumann and Prince Louis Ferdinand—has received exuberant praise.

Mr. Connelly has appeared with many of today’s most respected instrumentalists, such as violinist Sergiu Luca, cellists Roel Dieltiens, Gary Hoffman, and Lynn Harrell, flutist Carol Wincenc, clarinetist Charles Neidich, and pianists Ian Hobson and Andre-Michel Schub, and he has shared ragtime recitals with jazz pianist Marcus Roberts. He teaches piano performance and chamber music.

Scheduled Program:
Songs by Bachicha, Falla, Strauss, and Schubert.