New York Opera Fest 2021: Free Classical Music with Opera Lafayette

Opera Lafayette introduces Fête de la Musique – 12 hours of FREE original classical performances online Sunday, June 20, 2021. Registration required at https://operalafayette.org

Starting from 8 AM until 8 PM, Opera Lafayette will feature music from Bach, Forqueray, and Roussel, behind-the-scenes views into the creation of a production, family-friendly musical programming, as well as performances from Mezzo-Soprano Caitlin Hulcup, Tenor Jean-Paul Fouchécourt, Harpsichordist Justin Taylor, full productions, concert highlights, and many more! We’ll virtually travel across the world to historic Edvard Grieg house in Leipzig, Washington D.C.’s Tregaron Conservancy,  Fondation Singer-Polignac in Paris, and more. What began as a singular Fête de la Musique in Paris in 1982, has expanded to millions of musicians participating from more than 120 countries on five continents. Each year on the first day of summer, communities around the world come together to celebrate music with free outdoor concerts.

Fete de la Musique is part of the New York Opera Fest 2021.

8:00 A.M. — A Morning Meditation with Bach

Join us virtually at the Tregaron Conservancy, a hidden idyll in Northwest Washington, DC, for the music of Bach’s Cello Suite performed for Opera Lafayette by Thomas Dunford, lute.

9:00 A.M. — Opera Starts with Oh! Opera

Opera Lafayette’s critically-acclaimed, interactive educational program designed for our youngest opera fans and their families.

10:00 A.M. — Recital: Mezzo-Soprano Caitlin Hulcup and Pianist Ammiel Bushakevitz

Filmed in the historic Edvard Grieg house in Leipzig, this recital features works by Henry Purcell and Benjamin Britten.

11:00 A.M. — Premiere of The Making of: The Blacksmith Documentary

Behind-the-scenes look at how this critically-acclaimed production during the COVID-19 global pandemic was brought to a live audience on a ranch in Colorado.

12:00 P.M. — Performance of Philidor’s The Blacksmith

A modern premiere adapted and translated from an 18th-century French opéra comique composed by François-André Danican Philidor in 1761 to the late 19th-century American West.

1:00 P.M.— From the Opera Lafayette Archives

A compilation of works from Opera Lafayette recordings, featuring Kirsten Blaise, Tony Boutté, Thomas Dolie, Jean-Paul Fouchécourt, David Newman, Karim Sulayman, Nathalie Paulin, Jeffrey Thompson, Emiliano Gonzales Toro, and Talise Trevigne.

2:00 P.M. — Solo Recital by Harpsichordist Justin Taylor

Recorded live for Opera Lafayette at the Fondation Singer-Polignac, featuring the music by Couperin, Rameau, Forqueray.

4:00 P.M. — From the Opera Lafayette Archives

Featuring music and dance by The Opera Lafayette Orchestra, Pascale Beaudin and Keven Geddes, Marianne Fiset, Nathalie Paulin, and Kalanidhi Dance.

5:00 P.M. — Excerpts from In Search of Lost Time: A Performance of French Airs, Chansons and Chamber Music from Rameau to Roussel

Featuring Ammiel Bushakevitz, Latitia Grimaldi-Spitzer, Stephanie Houtzeel and Charles Brink

7:00 P.M. — Excerpts from Lamentation to Liberation: A Journey from Sorrow to Joy in 17th Century Italy

Featuring Aaron Sheehan, Yulia Van Doren, Michele Kennedy, Reginald Mobley, Patricia A. Neely, Dongsok Shin, Jonathan Woody, and Adam Pearl

Opera Lafayette is the preeminent American interpreter and producer of period-instrument opera from the 17th through the 19th centuries and an international leader in this repertoire. Based on meticulous research and the creation of modern performing editions, the company’s compelling performances and recordings of rediscovered gems and historical masterpieces highlight the works’ original appeal and introduce a new generation to their contemporary relevance.