 August 2011  |
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THIS ISSUE:
May Festival Director of Choruses Robert Porco received Chorus America’s Michael Korn Founders Award for Development of the Professional Choral Art in June of this year. This lifetime achievement award named for the first president of Chorus America honors Mr. Porco’s nearly four decades of service to the choral field as an educator and conductor. Recognized as one of the leading choral musicians in the United States, Mr. Porco joins the ranks of past Korn Founders Award winners such as Ned Rorem, Alice Parker, Fred Waring, Earl Rivers, and Robert Shaw. Chorus America is the advocacy, research, and leadership development organization that advances the choral field. Click here to watch the tribute to Robert Porco created by Chorus America.
May Festival Auditions Being Held in August
Olivia Yokers, 19, has been named the winner of Cincinnati Opera’s third annual Opera Idol competition. She beat over 50 contestants and won a contract with the Opera, which includes public appearances and performance opportunities. Olivia graduated from Hamilton High School and was a member of the May Festival Youth Chorus for two-and-a-half years. “May Festival Youth Chorus was not only an outlet for me in high school but it was also an opportunity to create beautiful music with other students who shared my same passion. In today’s society it is difficult to keep music alive in high schools, especially wonderful music created by great composers such as Vivaldi, Brahms or Mozart. Without May Festival I would have never gotten to feel the joy that comes with singing in such a historical and magical place such as Music Hall. I would not have known what it felt like to create music with a hundred other singers and instrumentalists, working together to create one beautiful sound. Working under the direction of James Bagwell I was inspired to continue my love of music and attend Indiana University for Vocal Performance, where I was lucky enough to sing the Brahms Requiem under the direction of Robert Porco. May Festival has taught me how music, no matter how old, can be relived and can be just as inspiring as it was a hundred years ago.” - Olivia Yonkers
The summer months have found James Conlon conducting across the globe. In late June he was conducting La Bohème at the Teatro dell’Opera in Rome. In July and August he has been hard at work in Chicago at the Ravinia Festival where he has been the Music Director since 2005. Summer concerts there have included Mahler’s Das klagende Lied, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 3 in E-flat Major and Puccini’s Tosca.
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Robert Porco Receives Honor from Chorus America
The Cincinnati May Festival Chorus will be holding auditions on August 19 and 20 for all voice parts for the upcoming 2011–12 Season. From September through April, the May Festival Chorus is the Official Chorus of the Cincinnati Symphony and Pops Orchestras. The highlight of the season for the Chorus is performing in the May Festival which consists of two weekends of five concerts, each with different repertoire. 
Cincinnati Opera Idol WInner Former May Festival Youth Chorus Member
Where in the World is James Conlon?