Master Teachers
Master Class with Warren Jones
Wednesday, June 30 at 5:00 pm PDT
Warren Jones enjoys a notably eclectic career that has taken him to virtually every corner of the musical world. He performs with some of today’s best-known artists such as Stephanie Blythe and Anthony Dean Griffey. He is the former Principal Pianist for the exciting California-based chamber music ensemble, Camerata Pacifica, and in the past he has partnered such great performers as Marilyn Horne, Håkan Hagegård, Kathleen Battle, Samuel Ramey, Christine Brewer, Barbara Bonney, Carol Vaness, Judith Blegen, Salvatore Licitra, Tatiana Troyanos, Thomas Hampson, James Morris, and Martti Talvela; and he has appeared in concerts with both the Juilliard Quartet and the Borremeo Quartet.
Mr. Jones is a longtime faculty member at the Manhattan School of Music, as well as a member of the Board of Trustees, and in the Spring of 2021 received the Presidential Medal for Outstanding Service at the annual Commencement Exercises of the school. For many years he taught at the Music Academy of the West, and recently finished an appointment as Artist in Residence in Music at the Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University.
Master Class with Denyce Graves
Wednesday, July 7 at 5:00 pm PDT
Recognized worldwide as one of today's most exciting vocal stars, Denyce Graves continues to garner unparalleled acclaim in performances around the world.
This season, Ms. Graves makes her debut at the Glimmerglass Festival as the title role in the world premiere of The Passion of Mary Cardwell Dawson, with music by Carlos Simon set to text by Sandra Seaton. She also performs in a program hosted by Tulsa Opera, entitled Greenwood Overcomes, honoring the centennial of the Tulsa Race Massacre. Additionally, she participates in a program hosted by the Trust of the National Mall, as well as a special presented by PBS entitled “United in Song: Celebrating the Resilience of America.” Previously scheduled engagements include performances at the Teatro Colón as Erda in Das Rheingold and at Cincinnati Opera as Madame de la Haltière in Cendrillon.
She is the recipient of many awards, including the Grand Prix du Concours International de Chant de Paris and Marian Anderson Award. She is a member of the voice faculty at the Peabody Institute, and recently became a distinguished visiting faculty member at The Juilliard School.
Master Class with Howard Watkins
Wednesday, July 14 at 5:00 pm PDT
American pianist Howard Watkins is a frequent associate of some of the world’s leading musicians on the concert stage and as an assistant conductor at the Metropolitan Opera. His appearances throughout the Americas, Europe, Asia, Russia, and Israel have included collaborations with Joyce DiDonato, Diana Damrau, Kathleen Battle, Grace Bumbry, Mariusz Kwiecien, Anna Netrebko, and Matthew Polenzani at such venues as the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Spivey Hall, Kennedy Center, the United States Supreme Court, Alice Tully Hall, the three stages of Carnegie Hall, and the Bolshoi Theater in Moscow. His current and former faculty affiliations include The Juilliard School, the Bard College Conservatory of Music, the Yale School of Music as a Visiting Presidential Fellow, the Tanglewood Music Center, the Aspen Music Festival, the Mannes School of Music, the North Carolina School of the Arts, the International Vocal Arts Institute (Israel, Japan, and China), IIVA in Italy, the Brancaleoni Music Festival in Italy, the Tokyo International Vocal Arts Academy (TIVAA), and VOICExperience in Orlando, Tampa, and Savannah. Currently a guest Master Coach for the Cafritz Young Artists of Washington Opera and the Opera Theater of St. Louis, Mr. Watkins has worked on the music staffs of Palm Beach Opera, the Washington National Opera, and the Los Angeles Opera. A native of Dayton, Ohio, Mr. Watkins completed the Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Accompanying and Chamber Music at the University of Michigan. Honored as the 2004 recipient of the Paul C. Boylan award from the University of Michigan for his outstanding contributions to the field of music, he is also the 2019 recipient of the Lift Every Voice Legacy Award from the National Opera Association.
Master Class with Carrie-Ann Matheson
Wednesday, July 21 at 5:00 pm PDT
Carrie-Ann Matheson (San Francisco Opera Center Artistic Director) has a multi-faceted international career as a pianist, conductor, and educator. She began her career at the Metropolitan Opera, where she was a tenured member of the full-time music staff as assistant conductor, prompter, pianist, and vocal coach. As a recital pianist, she has performed with many of the world’s most renowned opera singers, including Rolando Villazón, Jonas Kaufmann, Piotr Beczala, Benjamin Bernheim, Diana Damrau, Thomas Hampson, and Joyce DiDonato. In addition to her work with opera singers, she has performed in chamber music concerts with members of the New York Philharmonic, the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, the Cleveland Orchestra, the Chamber Orchestra of Europe, the Montreal Symphony Orchestra, and Philharmonia Zürich.
Performances in the 2020/21 season include recitals with Joyce DiDonato at the Festival de El Escorial, Festival de Santander, and the virtual Metropolitan Opera recital series, with Benjamin Bernheim at the Salzburger Festspiele, Le Festival de Paris and Philharmonie de Luxembourg, and with Pene Pati as part of Les Grandes Voix recital series with performances at Salle Gaveau in Paris and at the Opéra national de Bordeaux.
Master Class with Martin Katz
Wednesday, July 28 at 5:00 pm PDT
The New York Times has called Martin Katz “the gold standard of accompanists.” Justifably so, for his fifty year career has taken him to five continents, collaborating with the world's most celebrated singers. He has regularly shared the stage and the microphone with Marilyn Horne, Frederica von Stade, Karita Mattila, Kiri Te Kanawa, Lawrence Brownlee, and Piotr Beczala to name but a few.
Mr. Katz is also active as a conductor and editor. He has led opera productions for San Francisco's Merola program, the BBC, as well as innumerable performances at his home school. His editions of baroque and bel canto operas have been performed in Houston, Ottawa, and at the Metropolitan Opera.
At the University of Michigan for more than three decades now, he has chaired the program in collaborative piano and coached vocal repertoire and chamber music for singers, pianists and instrumentalists alike. His students are working in their chosen field all over the world. The University has recognized his contribution by awarding him a Distinguished University Professorship.
Now an author as well, Mr. Katz's first opus, "The Complete Collaborator," published by Oxford Univ. Press, is widely considered the seminal work on the subject.
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