Five Concerts, Four Amazing Vocal Soloists
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'Blaue Augen Hat Das Madchen' by Tyler Duncan and Michael Colvin
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A founding member on the faculty of the Vancouver International Song Institute, British Columbia-born and New York-based baritone Tyler Duncan enjoys international renown for bringing consummate musicianship, vocal beauty and interpretive insight to recital, concert and operatic literature. He is featured in:
Sunday, August 12
8pm VANCOUVER PLAYHOUSE
This performance incorporates multi-media components in a compelling musical response to works of the past. Jeffrey Ryan's recent commission is based on The Whitening of the Ox (Inside the Zen Ox Pictures) by Canadian poet K.V. Skene. This extended vocal/instrumental work incorporates 15th-century illustrations by Tensho Shubun of a Chinese fable. Just as an Oxherd domesticates a beast, the series depicts the Zen Buddhist concept representing the taming of the disordered mind and the ultimate attainment of enlightenment. Purchase tickets.
Cristina Braga has been to a large extent responsible for showing the world a harp with Brazilian soul and expanding the possibilities of her instrument in Brazilian music, both classical and popular. She is a compelling vocalist with a deep melancholy in her voice that seems specially carved for the compositions of Tom Jobim, Luiz Bonfá, Roberto Menescal and other masters of Música Popular Brasileira. Don't miss her in Harpa Bossa Jazz!
Monday, August 13
5:30pm CHRIST CHURCH CATHEDRAL
From the tropical beaches of Rio de Janeiro in the late 1950s, a "new beat" started a musical craze. A sensual mixture of Brazilian rhythms, American jazz and Portuguese lyrics, Bossa Nova became an international sensation, and Stan Getz's 1964 recording of The Girl from Ipanema with João & Astrud Gilberto spent 96 weeks in the US charts! This concert will send you home with a samba in your step! Purchase tickets.
3. Donna Brown, soprano
 Donna Brown's voice has been described as "shimmering", "luminous",
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Bachianas Brasileiras No.5 Aria, Donna Brown.
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"gemlike in its brilliance", and "crystal clear". She has graced the stages of Paris, London, Tokyo, Berlin, Vienna, Rome, Sao Paulo, Caracas, Tel Aviv, Toronto, and San Francisco, performing an extensive repertoire ranging from opera, recital, and chamber music, to contemporary and even alternative music. You can hear her in two contrasting programs:
Duo Brazil: Soprano Donna Brown & Guitarist Andrew Mah
Tuesday, August 14
5:30pm CHRIST CHURCH CATHEDRAL
In Duo Brazil, Donna Brown teams with Ottawa guitarist Andrew Mah, who has taken special interest in music of Brazil and the Cape Verde Islands, for a program that ranges from the dreamy sounds of the Bachianas Brasileiras of Villa Lobos to the exuberance of Carnaval season in Rio. Purchase tickets.
Donna Brown & Philippe Cassard: Ariettes oubliées
Friday, August 17
5:30pm CHRIST CHURCH CATHEDRAL
As an interpreter of Debussy's work, French pianist Philippe Cassard has impeccable credentials, having recorded the composer's complete piano works. He has also frequently partnered with singers such as Natalie Dessay, Stéphanie d'Oustrac and Canada's own Donna Brown in recitals of French repertoire. MusicFest Vancouver reunites these deux bons amis in a recital of Debussy's much admired settings of French texts. Purchase tickets.
 4. Patricia O'Callaghan, cabaret singer
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Patricia O'Callaghan: Sad Boy
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Patricia O'Callaghan was born and raised in Northern Ontario, and trained at the University of Toronto and The Banff Centre for the Arts. In 1996 she got a Chalmer's Grant, which allowed her to devote herself to music full time. Billboard Magazine has named her "the most promising cabaret performer of her generation." She performs with the Gryphon Trio on August 16.
Gryphon Trio with Patricia O'Callaghan: Broken Hearts & Madmen
Thursday, August 16
8pm ORPHEUM ANNEX
This show includes songs by Nick Drake, Leonard Cohen, Lhasa de Sela, Laurie Anderson, Elvis Costello, Astor Piazzolla and more, and showcases the Gryphon Trio at its adventurous and groundbreaking best. Beautiful songs sung in an intimate cabaret setting by a renowned singer in collaboration with an internationally acclaimed piano trio - this is sure to be a festival highlight and seating is limited, so purchase early to avoid disappointment! Purchase tickets.
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