Press Announcement:
Considered the finest Filipino tenors
in the world today, Arthur Espiritu returns to Manila after his successful series
of highly acclaimed performances as the Duke of Mantua in Verdi's Rigoletto at
the Theatre St. Gallen in Switzerland. He opens MCO Foundation's Chamber Music
Series 2013 in a special concert entitled "The
Poet Speaks" with collaborating pianist Najib Ismail on February 6,
2013 at 7:00 in the evening at the Ayala
Museum, Makati Ave. cor. de la Rosa St., Makati City.
Opera critics described Arthur as "a singer who possesses an
exceptionally beautiful lyric voice, capable of conveying a broad range of
characters and emotions, and perform them with great ease. His sings superbly with beautiful legato. A
regal tenor." A graduate of
Oberlin Conservatory of Music, Arthur
Espiritu is the Grand Prize winner of the of distinguished 2009 George London
Award, the La Scala award in the Belvedere Vocal Competition (Vienna), 2nd
price in the Irene Dalis Vocal Competition and the Metropolitan Opera National
Council Audition to name a few. Today, he regularly performs with Teatro alla
Scala, Milan, Opera Fuoco, Piccolo Teatro di Milano, Theatre St. Gallen in Switzerland,
Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris, Israeli Opera in Tel Aviv and major opera
companies in the United States including Pittsburg, Connecticut, Opera North,
Austin and Santa Fe. In Manila, he recently essayed the role of Alfredo in
Verdi's La Traviata and the magnificent Count Almaviva in Rossini's Il Barbiere
di Seviglia.
Assisting him at the piano is one of
the country's most sought after chamber music musicians and leading vocal repetiteur,
pianist Najib Ismail. Winner of numerous music competitions, Mr.
Ismail has collaborated with most of the major Filipino and guest foreign
artists in the country. A graduate of
UST Conservatory of Music and Hongkong Academy for the Performing Arts, he is
currently a faculty of the UST Conservatory of Music.
The “Poet Speaks” will showcase the
versatile artistry of Arthur Espiritu
as he performs one of the most beautiful and profound songs cycle -- Schumann's
Liederkreis, the heartwarming songs by Franz Liszt based on Petrarch love
sonnets, and opera arias that portray the different aspects of love.
This concert is presented by Manila
Chamber Orchestra Foundation in partnership with Ayala Museum, BusinessWorld
and Lyric Piano. The MCO Foundation,
hailed as “Makati’s Cultural Oasis”, is currently on its 28th year
of promoting classical music. Part of
the proceeds from the ticket sales will also benefit the Unang Hakbang
foundation, a caring organization engaged in helping children on the streets
and in urban poor communities by creating sanctuaries for children, designing
and promoting programs to help them tap their potentials to become productive
and responsible members of their communities.
For tickets, please call TICKETWORLD
at 891-9999, MCOF Secretariat at (750-0768 or 0920-954-0053) and COEA (782-7164
or 0918-347-3027).
