The Key Change Time Machine: Reflecting the Times, Speaking to the Human Condition
Release Date: 02/28/2024
Key Change
Fire up the Key Change time machine! We’re charting our course for the collaborative partnership between Santa Fe Opera and the University of New Mexico (UNM). Never experienced time-machine travel before? No problem! Key Change co-hosts Olga Perez Flora and Anna Garcia are experienced pilots. They introduce us to students participating in the Young Voices residency and steer our audience through an exciting day of master classes and workshops on the UNM campus. And don’t worry if you’re new to this bold, creative initiative. Olga and Anna provide episode recommendations to help...
info_outlineKey Change
What have our favorite high school aged singers been up to? Hear from the Young Voices of the Santa Fe Opera themselves on the next episode of Key Change... coming soon! *** Key Change is a production of , Department of Community Engagement & Education. Share your favorite opera moments and questions with Community Engagement: 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...
info_outlineKey Change
We often say that the road to a successful opera career can be a winding one—and we’ve got the receipts to prove it! Join Key Change co-hosts Anna Garcia and Olga Perez Flora as they discuss career trajectories, academic journeys, and artistic life with two legendary performers and educators: Kristin Ditlow, Associate Professor of Vocal Coaching and Opera Conductor at the University Of New Mexico, and James Flora*, acclaimed American tenor and Lecturer in Voice and Opera, also at UNM. Our conversation sets the stage for an exciting collaboration between Santa Fe Opera and UNM. “The...
info_outlineKey Change
Coming up on the next episode of Key Change... the trajectory of an opera career from academia to the main stage with musicians & opera educators Jamie Flora and Kirstin Ditlow. *** Key Change is a production of , Department of Community Engagement & Education. Share your favorite opera moments and questions with Community Engagement: 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,...
info_outlineKey Change
We love an encore! And this one's got it all: audition trends, futurecasting, and pragmatic advice for young opera talent. Key Change co-hosts Anna Garcia and Olga Perez Flora also serve up plenty of musical memories, behind-the-scenes intel, and a little love for the Santa Fe Opera as a venue as they continue their visit with Chandler Johnson. When we last met Chandler, he had introduced us to career paths less traveled. "There's more to this business than just singing,” he continues. Chandler knows this truth better than most. After discovering opera in his early teens, he pivoted from...
info_outlineKey Change
Pop quiz: Name an opera training initiative that creates space for self-discovery, serious fun, and a bit of Broadway adoration. Spoiler alert: there’s only one answer. On this episode of Key Change, co-hosts Anna Garcia and Olga Perez Flora get to know Chandler Johnson, Director of Santa Fe Opera’s Apprentice Program for Singers, and uncover what early-career singers selected for this internationally acclaimed program can expect from their 13 weeks in the desert. “It’s a pressure cooker!” exclaims Chandler of the four-month-long apprenticeship, initially developed by John...
info_outlineKey Change
Audition trends, career pivots, and pragmatic advice for young opera talent... It's all coming up in our 2-part series of Key Change with Chandler Johnson, Director of the world renknowned Santa Fe Opera Apprentice Program for Singers. *** 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...
info_outlineKey Change
Bet you didn’t know that nurturing the next generation of opera performers, technicians, and enthusiasts begins in classrooms. Join Key Change co-hosts Anna Garcia and Olga Perez Flora on an exclusive behind-the-scenes tour of the Santa Fe Opera Department of Community Engagement and Education, featuring guest appearances by Season 5 favorites Charles Gamble, Director of Community Engagement, and Marissa Aurora, Community Engagement Liaison, plus new friend Olivia Dorrell, Administrative Coordinator. “We’re all moved by the extraordinary pageantry, music, and movement of opera,”...
info_outlineKey Change
What is the minimum age you have to be to start training at the Santa Fe Opera? What are 3 ways you can volunteer at the Santa Fe Opera? What secret do we reveal on Season 6, Episode 2 about our new Director of Community Engagement, Charles Gamble? *** 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,...
info_outlineKey Change
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,...
info_outlineIt’s all systems go for season five of Key Change! But before we commence with the anniversary celebrations, co-hosts Andrea Fellows Fineberg and Anna Garcia dust off the time machine for a whirlwind tour of seasons past. Think of this episode as part process evaluation––an appraisal of Opera For All Voices (OFAV), the Santa Fe Opera initiative committed to co-commissioning and co-producing new, diverse operatic works––and part indispensable playlist for repeat audiences and newcomers alike, covering the essential artistic and emotional moments that have made Key Change an award-winning podcast.
Since 2015, OFAV has sought to answer the question: How does one of the oldest art forms remain relevant in an increasingly perilous landscape of aging audiences, funding shortages, budget cuts, and political polarization?
One answer is to produce works that reflect our modern conversations around race, social justice, accountability, and understanding. Key Change offers a complimentary option: Amplify the diverse stories of those involved in the commissions, be they artists, production assistants, or folks with firsthand knowledge of events reimagined for the stage.
So, how are we doing? “I think it's kind of amazing how, little by little through the seasons, we’ve touched on the creation of stories being told by people finding their voice,” Anna says, noting that those voices speak truth to power in wildly bold and creative ways.
Key Change has cataloged four seasons of redemptive journeys and harrowing real-life stories while envisioning a future of genuinely collaborative artistic endeavors. We invite you to stay tuned for what’s next.
RELATED EPISODES
S1E2 - What's In A Name? The Origin Story Of Opera For All Voices
S2E2 - A Seat At The Table: Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, And Opera - Part I
S2E3 - Bring Your Folding Chair: Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, And Opera - Part II
S2E6 - The Universe Is Made Of Stories: A Conversation With Peter Sellars
S3E4 - Singing A Call To Action, Is This America?
***
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 & Anna Garcia
Audio Engineer: Kabby at Kabby Sound Studios in Santa Fe
Technical Director: Edwin R. Ruiz
Production Support from Alex Riegler
Show Notes by 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 Hankins Foundation, the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, and an Opera America Innovation Grant supported by the Anne & Gordon Getty Foundation.
To learn more about Opera For All Voices, visit SantaFeOpera.org. And for more Key Change, visit SantaFeOpera.org/KeyChange.