‘Viva Opera!’
The Florentine Opera Company’s production of Carlisle Floyd’s Prince of Players was delayed until next season, but in its stead is something of a live “Opera’s Greatest Hits” called “Viva Opera!”—described by the Florentine’s general director, William Florescu, as “a veritable smorgasbord of beloved opera favorites.” Conductor William Boggs leads the opera company’s own chorus as well as the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra in this concert that will feature arias and ensembles from operatic masterpieces such as La Traviata, Nabucco, Carmen, La Boheme and Madama Butterfly. Composers to be sampled herein include Ludwig van Beethoven, Giacomo Puccini, Giuseppe Verdi and more.
London, England’s renowned soprano, Kate Royal, will make her Milwaukee debut in this presentation—following appearances she’s had with New York City’s Metropolitan Opera, the Paris Opéra, Royal Opera Covent Garden and elsewhere. Other featured soloists include Grammy Award-winning baritone Keith Phares and soprano Rena Harms.
March 16 and 18 in Uihlein Hall at the Marcus Center for the Performing Arts, 929 N. Water St. For tickets, call 414-291-5700 ext. 224 or visit florentineopera.org.
‘iLove Baroque’
The delightful sounds of Baroque Era instruments will be heard owing to Early Music Now—Milwaukee’s preeminent presenter of early music—hosting Canada’s Ensemble Caprice in a concert titled “iLove Baroque.” Their fascinating program, with music spanning some two centuries, is performed in a unique way: through the telling of short stories and written accounts of the personal lives of Baroque composers from five different countries, which will certainly assist audience members to thoroughly engage with the music.
Composers whose works are on Ensemble Caprice’s program include Baroque giants Johann Sebastian Bach, Antonio Vivaldi and Henry Purcell. Instruments to be heard include the recorder, Baroque guitar and violoncello. As part of its Milwaukee residence (amid an ongoing North American concert tour), Ensemble Caprice will be performing a special concert at Saint John’s On the Lake, 1840 N. Prospect Ave., on Thursday, March 15, and Caprice member Susie Napper will hold a master class with students from the Cello Institute of Milwaukee on Saturday, March 17.
Early Music Now and Ensemble Caprice’s iLove Baroque concert takes place on Saturday, March 17, at UW-Milwaukee’s Helene Zelazo Center for the Performing Arts, 2419 E. Kenwood Blvd. For tickets, call 414-225-3113 or visit earlymusicnow.org/this-season/ensemblecaprice.
CLASSICAL MUSIC MORE-TO-DO
‘March Winds’
The March “winds” in this case concerns wind instruments—flutes, oboes, clarinets, bassoons and so forth—not the chilly sort that blow their way across the city east-to-west off of frigid Lake Michigan. Milwaukee Musaik’s wind instrument-centered concert features less familiar works and composers: Sextet for Piano and Wind Quintet, Op. 6, by Austrian composer Ludwig Thuille (1861-1907); Old Hungarian Dances from the 17th Century by Hungarian composer Ferenc Farkas (1905-2000); and Mládí (Youth) by Czech composer Leoš Janáček (1854-1928). Monday, March 19, at the Wisconsin Conservatory of Music’s Helen Bader Hall, 1584 N. Prospect Ave. For tickets, visit milwaukeemusaik.org.
‘Of War and Peace’
Music inspired by warfare will be presented in a unique concert by the Master Singers of Milwaukee. The works on the program are not chest-thumping flag-wavers, but choral works with beautiful and inspiring texts reflecting on the human tragedy that is modern war. The Master Singers will join their voices with the Concert Chorale of UW-Milwaukee. Poetry and stories from the U.S. Civil War, both world wars and the Vietnam War inspired the composers of the choral pieces presented here. Saturday, March 17 at North Shore Congregational Church (7330 N. Santa Monica Blvd.) and Sunday, March 18 at St. John’s Lutheran Church (20275 Davidson Road, Brookfield). For tickets, visit mastersingersofmilwaukee.org.
Shen Yun
An eye-popping combination of classical Chinese dance, ethnic and folk dance, story-based dance routines, orchestral music, talented solo performers and history is what Shen Yun is all about. This New York City-based Chinese dance and music ensemble travels the world (except, notably, their ancestral homeland) presenting China’s long history in a very vivid, compelling way. They started their performances 12 years ago and, ever since, the 200-member group has become something of a sensation; for seven months a year, they hit more than 130 cities around the world. March 16-18 at Miller High Life Theatre, 500 W. Kilbourn Ave. For tickets, call 800-745-3000 or visit millerhighlifetheatre.com.
