3 PADEREWSKIS by composer Jenni Brandon and librettist Oliver Mayer is performed on Saturday, October 12, 2019, 8:00 p.m at the University of Southern California (USC), Thornton School of Music, Polish Music Center, Alfred Newman Recital Hall ( campus map) , 3616 Trousdale Pkwy, Los Angeles, CA. This performance is this year’s Paderewski Lecture Recital.
3 PADEREWSKIS, a new opera by Jenni Brandon, explores the life and work of composer and founder of the Polish nation, Ignace Jan Paderewski. With book by University of Southern California professor and playwright Oliver Mayer and music by award-winning composer Jenni Brandon, this work is expanded to 60 minutes. Commissioned by The Adam Mickiewicz Institute and Co-financed by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage of the Republic of Poland as part of the multi-annual program NIEPODLEGŁA 2017-2022.
At his grave, we meet three versions of Paderewski (one of them female): Ignacy the virtuoso pianist/composer, Jan the politician/founder of the Polish nation, and Paderewski the éminence grise/Paso Robles winemaker. Coming together and pulling apart, sifting through a lifetime of memories far too large for any one person, they summon the ghost of Antonina, their beloved long-dead first wife. In so doing, they summon the spirit of Poland itself. A compassionate opera about a man who changed the world not only through his music but through pure passion for life, whose memory instructs our own moment of political and moral crisis. This work is expanded from a 40 minute version premiered in 2018 to a one hour, one-act opera.
Cast and Musicians:
Antonina (Soprano): Katherine Powers
Ignace (Mezzo-Soprano): Maria Dominique Lopez
Jan (Tenor): Todd Strange
Paderewski (Baritone): Steve Pence
SATB Chorus: Ariel Pisturino, Omar Crook, E. Scott Levin
Piano Quartet (Violin, Viola, Cello, Piano): Central4 Piano Quartet
Director: David Bridel
Stage Manger: Seira Murakami
Music Director and Conductor: Jenni Brandon
Producer: Ian-Julian Williams, Mark Seldis
Co-Producers:
Adam Mickiewicz Institute
Founded in 1925, the Kosciuszko Foundation promotes closer ties between Poland and the United States through educational, scientific and cultural exchanges. It awards up to $1 million annually in fellowships and grants to graduate students, scholars, scientists, professionals, and artists, and promotes Polish culture in America. The Foundation has awarded scholarships and provided a forum to Poles who have changed history.
The Adam Mickiewicz Institute is a national cultural institute, whose mission is to build and communicate the cultural dimension of the Poland brand through active participation in international cultural exchange. The Institute has carried out cultural projects in 70 countries. As of early 2016, the AMI has presented more than 5,500 cultural events, attracting an audience of more than 52 million on five continents. All of the Institute’s projects carry our flagship brand, culture.pl.
Event Partners:
Consulate General of the Republic of Poland in Los Angeles
Helen Modjeska Art and Culture Club
