Dame Kiri Te Kanawa’s Final Farewell Tour at the Kimmel Center October 24
October 12, 2007
"The sheer beauty is still there, her pianissimo singing is as ravishing as ever..." —musicweb.uk
Legendary soprano Dame Kiri Te Kanawa gives a "Farewell Tour" performance at Philadelphia’s Kimmel Center Verizon Hall on Wednesday, October 24 at 8pm. The New Zealand bred native linked to Maori aristocracy began her career at the age of 20 when, after winning the major vocal prizes in the South Pacific, she began her recording career. Thereafter, Dame Kiri mastered a large repertoire ranging from the classics of opera to the art songs of French, German and British composers, and a great wealth of contemporary popular music. One of her most memorable solo performances was at the wedding of HRH Prince Charles and Princess Diana in St. Paul’s Cathedral in 1981, when she faced one of the largest direct telecast audiences—over 600 million people—of any singer in history. For her final goodbye, the operatic singer teams up with pianist Warren Jones to perform works by Mozart, Strauss, Duparc, Poulenc, Heggie, Britten, Copland, Wolf-Ferrari, and Puccini.
This concert is the first in the Master Musician Recital Series scheduled for the 2007/2008 season. The next concert in the series will be Yo-Yo Ma on Tuesday, November 13, 2007 at 8pm.
Tickets for Dame Kiri Te Kanawa are $34, $44, $53, $60, $68, and $81 and can be purchased by calling 215-893-1999, online at www.kimmelcenter.org, or at the Kimmel Center box office open daily from 10am to 6pm and later on performance evenings. (Additional fees may apply). For group sales call 215-790-5883.
A limited number of $10 tickets are available for every Kimmel Center Presents performance at the Kimmel Center. Tickets go on sale the day of the event and can be purchased at the Kimmel Center box office beginning 2.5 hours prior to curtain time and 11:30am for matinees. Limit one ticket per person.
Dame Kiri Te Kanawa became an international success after her official debut as the Countess in Le Nozze di Figaro at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden in 1971. Since then, she has teamed up with the world’s major orchestral ensembles including the Chicago Symphony, Los Angeles Philharmonic, London Symphony and the Boston Symphony; and has traveled around the globe to perform in nearly every prestigious opera house including Covent Garden, the Metropolitan Opera, Chicago Lyric Opera, Paris Opera, Sydney Opera House, the Vienna State Opera, La Scala, opera houses in San Francisco, Munich and Cologne.
A versatile singer, Dame Kiri has released countless albums in several different genres. She has recorded everything from distinguished arias in French, Italian and German, to concert arias of Mozart, Strauss, Beethoven, Handel and Brahms, to popular American songs by Gershwin, Porter and Kern. In addition to her devotion to music, Dame Kiri also dedicates her efforts through The Kiri Te Kanawa Foundation, a charity that aims to gives support to talented singers and musicians in New Zealand. Since the launch of the charity in 2004, Dame Kiri has organized and appeared at concerts and galas to raise funds for this foundation, as well as the Friends of the Kiri Te Kanawa Foundation in the United Kingdom.
Dame Kiri’s poise and talent have helped her to gain worldwide recognition and honor. In 1982, she was created a Dame Commander of the British Empire. She has also received honorary degrees from the Universities in Cambridge, Oxford, Dundee, Durham and Nottingham, just to name a few. In 1990, she was invested with the Order of Australia, and in 1995 she was awarded both the Order of New Zealand and the Queen’s Birthday Honors List.
The past year has been a successful one for Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, recently honored the opportunity to sing a Happy 80th Birthday tribute to the Queen at the Opening Ceremony of the 18th Commonwealth Games in Melbourne. Soon after, she released her latest album, Kiri Sings Karl (2006), in collaboration with composer Karl Jenkins. In April 2007 she was honored by the Metropolitan Opera Guild at their 72nd annual tribute luncheon.
Kimmel Center Presents 2007/2008 season is sponsored by Citi. Support for the Mellon Jazz Series comes from The Bank of New York Mellon. The Great Orchestra Series is supported by ARC Wheeler. Additional support is provided by the University of Pennsylvania Health System and Deloitte. American Airlines is the Official Airline of Kimmel Center Presents. Toyota is the Official Vehicle of Kimmel Center Presents Mellon Jazz, Mellon Jazz Up Close and World & Pop. NBC-10 is a Media Partner for Kimmel Center Presents, and additional media sponsors include WDAS, WRTI, WJJZ, Afro-Pop, WXPN and WXPN's Kids Corner 20th Anniversary.
The Kimmel Center also receives support from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, The William Penn Foundation, The Wachovia Foundation, Verizon Foundation, PNC Foundation, The Philadelphia Chapter of the American Guild of Organists, and the Philadelphia Music Project and Dance Advance, Initiatives of The Pew Charitable Trust administered by The University of the Arts.
Free in the Plaza programming and subsidized tickets offered to the community and social service groups for $10 are made possible through the Wachovia Gateway to the Arts Community Access Program, supported by a generous grant from Wachovia Foundation.
KIMMEL CENTER PRESENTS SPONSORED BY CITI
Wednesday, October 24, 2007 | 8pm
Verizon Hall
Master Musicians Recital Series
Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, soprano
Warren Jones, piano
MOZART: Kantata: Die ihr des unermesslichen Weltalls (k. 619)
STRAUSS: Ständchen, Op. 17, No. 2; Die Nacht, Op. 10, No. 3; All mein Gedanken, Op. 21, No. 1; Morgen, Op. 27, No. 4; Zueignung, Op. 10, No. 1
DUPARC: La vie antérieure; Chanson triste; Phidyle
POULENC: Voyage á Paris; Hôtel; Les chemins de l’amour from Valse Chantée
HEGGIE: Final Monologue from Masterclass
BRITTEN: Evening
COPLAND: Why do they shut me out of Heaven?
WOLF-FERRARI: Rispetto I, Quando ti vidi a quel canto apparire, Op. 12, No. 1;
Rispetto III, E tanto c’é pericol ch’io ti lasci, Op. 11, No.3
PUCCINI: Sole e amore from Mattinata; Morire?
FREE AT THE KIMMEL EVENT:
Wednesday, October 24, 2007 | 6:15pm
Commonwealth Plaza Stage
Gloria Galante Harp and Brianna Leary Violin Duo
Acclaimed harpist, Gloria Galante and violinst Brianna Leary will perform selections by Vivaldi, Handel, Bach and Mozart prior to the Dame Kiri Te Kanawa performance in Verizon Hall.
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