Tonight’s the night! I debut a new recital program here in Madrid at the Teatro de la Zarzuela, and I’m terribly nervous and wonderfully excited! The task of getting nearly 2 hours worth of music up and running in front of a hungry public without the benefit of stage techs and dress rehearsals as we have in the world of opera feels a bit daunting at this moment, especially since nearly all the music is brand new for me. But then the prospect of singing these wonderful songs and sharing an evening of divine music with that beloved public reminds me of how very fortunate I am!!

Just over a year ago I was sat in various dressing rooms at the MET sifting through piles and piles of music, trying to sort out an interesting, cohesive, inspired program for this tour. (Talk about daunting!) What began to take shape was an exploration of over 3 Centuries of Italian Canzone, primarily focused on love: love celebrated, rejected, mourned, exhilerated, and perhaps ultimately laughed at. I have tried to find a good balance of sincerity, enlightenment, humor, and celebration, and we’ll see tonight if I found the right combination!

There are several reasons I have enjoyed working so hard on this program. The first is that I think it really represents much of who I am as an artist: I have a heavy concentration of Italian repertoire under my belt, with Italian perhaps being my best foreign language (although my atrocious grammar must surely give me away!). Secondly, I have a passion for all things “ancient” and all things “new”, having built a career on music from Handel to Heggie, so it feels appropriate to bring so many centuries of music to the stage in one night. And perhaps most of all, I’m madly in love with an Italian, myself, and it’s rather fun to celebrate his country and his culture’s take on this thing called “love”.

**I believe the recital will be broadcast on Spanish radio on the 21st – I’ll post details later here, if it happens!

Off to revel in “Amor”!!!