Songs from the Parisian belle époque with French lyrical soprano Laetitia Grimaldi Spitzer & Ammiel Bushakevitz (piano)

6 May 2016

Odeion

19:30

The French soprano Laetitia Grimaldi and pianist Ammiel Bushakevitz offer a program of Romantic French songs, presented in the style of a Parisian salon concert from the belle époque. From the heights of Marcel Proust to the decadence of the Moulin Rouge, the belle époque (circa 1871-1914) was a time when culture flourished more than ever in Paris. The salons of Paris became places where poets, painters and composers would meet to share their art.

Laetitia Grimaldi performs worldwide since her Carnegie Hall debut in 2013. After beginning her vocal studies with Teresa Berganza, she continued her studies in New York City, first at the Manhattan School of Music, followed by a Masters degree from the Juilliard School. During her studies at the Juilliard School, Laetitia was awarded first prize in the Kate Neal Kinley Memorial Fellowship International Competition. She is also a top prizewinner in the Concours Léopold Bellan (Paris, 2013). She has received mentorship with some of the world's leading artists, including Dame Emma Kirkby, Illeana Cotrubas, Alfred Brendel, Teresa Berganza, Sir Thomas Allen, Masaaki Suzuki and Matthias Goerne, amongst others.

Ammiel Bushakevitz has performed in over thirty countries across Europe, North America, Africa and Asia. He has received top prizes at numerous competitions including the International Schubert Competition, the International Johannes Brahms Competition, the Concours Léopold Bellan in Paris and the 2013 Wigmore Hall International Song Competition (London). After graduating from the University of Pretoria, he studied at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater “Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy” (Leipzig, Germany) and furthered his studies at the Conservatoire Nationale Supérieur de Musique (Paris). He has a special love for song accompaniment and has received mentorship from notable singers including Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Elly Ameling, Thomas Hampson, Matthias Goerne and Teresa Berganza.  Ammiel is an alumnus of the Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst, an honorary member of the Richard Wagner Society of South Africa and an Edison Fellow of the British Library.

PROGRAMME:

Henri Duparc:  L'Invitation au voyage; Soupir, Chanson triste

Franz Liszt:  Jeux d'eaux à la villa d'Este

Gabriel Fauré:  Le secret; Clair de lune; Romance sans paroles, Op. 17 No. 3

Jean-Philippe Rameau:  Rigaudon, from Dardanus (trans. Godowsky)

Reynaldo Hahn:  À Chloris; Quand je fut pris au pavillon

Charles Gounod:  Le premier jour de mai; Venise; Viens! Les gazons sont verts

Georges Bizet:  Chansons-mélodies: Extase

Joseph Cantaloube:  Baïlèro, from Chants d'Auvergne

Charles-Valentin Alkan:  Recueil de chants, Op. 38 No. 1

Léo Delibes: Chant de l'almée; Les filles de Cadix

ADMISSION:

R130 (adults)

*R90 (pensioners, students and learners)

*R70 (UFS staff)

*R50 (group bookings of 10+)

Tickets available at Computicket.

*Please note that tickets for pensioners, students, learners and UFS staff can only be purchased at a Computicket outlet (Shoprite Checkers shops) or at the door since a valid card or ID has to be presented to qualify for the above mentioned discount.

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