Influence and Inclusion: The Impact of Hometown To The World with Estevan, Ely, and Francesco of the Youth Chorus
Release Date: 06/22/2022
Six Carmens Later & Putting On Productions with Olga Perez Flora and Anna Garcia
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What do disco naps, pantsuits, and chili preferences have to do with life at the opera? If you’re new to the art form in general and Key Change specifically, welcome! And don’t worry, all will be revealed. To our returning fans, a hearty welcome back! We’re excited to share another season and a fresh focus with you. Back to that opening inquiry... “I was thinking it would be really great if we did a lightning round together where we got to know a little bit more about each other and about what's coming up this season,” explains Olga, making her official debut as Key Change co-host,...
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Coming up on Season 6, Episode 1 of Key Change... *** Key Change is a production of , Department of Community Engagement & Education. Produced and edited by Hosted by Anna Garcia & Audio Engineering: Collin Ungerleider & Kabby Technical Director: Edwin R. Ruiz Production Support from Alex Riegler Show Notes by Lisa Widder Theme music by with Corrie Stallings, mezzo-soprano, and Joe Becktell, cello Cover art by Dylan Crouch This podcast is made possible due to the generous support of the Hankins Foundation, Principal Education Sponsor of the Santa Fe Opera. To learn...
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What does it take to build a rewarding and sustainable career in opera? What happens when you realize you don’t really have the drive to BE an opera singer? How do you find the courage to take more creative risks in your own work and life? The answers to these questions and more on Key Change Season 6 from the Santa Fe Opera Department of Community Engagement and Education, with the returning co-host you know and love, Anna Garcia, and the new co-host you’re going to love, Olga Perez Flora! If you're new here, catch up on seasons 1-5 with this recommended playlist: Season 1 Episode 1:...
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Season 6: Nurturing the Next Generation of Artists
Key Change
What does it take to build a rewarding and sustainable career in opera? What happens when you realize you don’t really have the drive to BE an opera singer? How do you find the courage to take more creative risks in your own work and life? The answers to these questions and more on Key Change Season 6 from the Santa Fe Opera Department of Community Engagement and Education, with the returning co-host you know and love, Anna Garcia, and the new co-host you’re going to love, Olga Perez Flora! If you're new here, catch up on seasons 1-5 with this recommended playlist: Season 1 Episode 1:...
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An Opportunity to Encounter Excellence (and Big News!)
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Music Born Out of a Modern Experience: The Pigeon Keeper Orchestral Workshop
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Harmony in Process: The Young Voices of the Santa Fe Opera with Amy "Process" Owens
Key Change
What does an award-winning, multi-disciplinary artist, dynamic educator, and former Sweet Potato do for an encore? She brings that boundless energy and collaborative spirit to her new Santa Fe Opera role, fueled by a deep passion for opera and music education. Co-hosts Andrea Fellows Fineberg and Anna Garcia roll out a virtual red carpet welcome for Amy Owens, Director of the . Get to know this exuberant, optimistic talent and learn more about the program under her stewardship. Andrea, Anna, and Amy also explore the profound community impact of two beloved SFO programs: , a storytelling...
info_outlineYou’ve heard of main character energy? Well, get ready for youth chorus energy!
Andrea Fellows-Fineberg connects with an optimistic, pragmatic, and empathetic mindset courtesy of the youth chorus members who participated in the December 2021 world premiere of Opera For All Voices’ Hometown To The World. Their insights and post-performance emotion speak to art's ability to foster community––with Ely Aguilar, Francesco Aimale, and Estevan Flórez-Mansi.
We also hear post-show reactions from artists, creators, collaborators, and the audience buoyed by musical excerpts from the premiere at the Lensic Performing Arts Center in Santa Fe.
So much has changed in the decade since the events of Hometown took place in Postville, IA. And yet. “At the end of the opera, I was thinking to myself this opera is beautiful but, like, there's no resolution. And that kind of hurt me,” Estevan says of the myriad issues that still complicate our national discourse on immigration.
The youth chorus took on an increasingly significant role during the evolution of Composer Laura Kaminsky and Librettist Kimberly Reed’s intimate yet expansive one-act opera, questioning character motivations and responding to individual struggles for acceptance.
That experience helped Ely deepen his awareness of human interdependence onstage and off. “This is a world premiere. I feel like this is going to be really touching for a lot of people. And I feel like it's going to bring more people together. But, like, everyone has to put in their own part so we could all do this together.”
Francesco combines Ely’s idealism with a practical call to action. “I don't think twelve kids and three kind-of famous actors are gonna get a ton of messages across. More people in power need to start spreading these issues about how it's wrong to just hate people for being themselves.”
Don’t worry about the chorus. These kids are alright.
FEATURING
Ely Aguilar - Youth Chorus Member, Hometown To The World
Francesco Aimale - Youth Chorus Member, Hometown To The World
Estevan Flórez-Mansi - Youth Chorus Member, Hometown To The World
Laura Kaminsky - Composer, Hometown To The World
Kimberly Reed - Librettist, Hometown To The World
Blythe Gaissert - Linda Larsen, Hometown To The World
Michael Kelly - Abraham Fleischman, Hometown To The World
Many audience members, collaborators, and friends of Hometown To The World.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE
The New Colossus - by Emma Lazarus
RELATED EPISODES
Season 1, Episode 6 “Hometown to the World”
Season 2, Episode 9 “America Is Impossible Without Us”
Season 3, Episode 3 “Responding to the World”
Season 3, Episode 8 “Bridging Communities with Carmen Flórez-Mansi”
Season 4, Episode 1 “This Doesn’t Happen Without Audience”
***
Key Change is a production of The Santa Fe Opera in collaboration with Opera for All Voices.
Produced and edited by Andrea Klunder at The Creative Impostor Studios
Hosted by Andrea Fellows Fineberg
Audio Engineer: Kabby at Kabby Sound Studios in Santa Fe
Show Notes: Lisa Widder
Theme music by Rene Orth with Corrie Stallings, mezzo-soprano, and Joe Becktell, cello
Cover art by Dylan Crouch
This podcast is made possible due to the generous funding from the Melville Hankins Family Foundation, the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, and an OPERA America Innovation Grant, supported by the Ann and Gordon Getty Foundation.
To learn more about Opera For All Voices, visit us at SantaFeOpera.org.