The Porto Alegre Symphony Orchestra (OSPA) presents on Saturday (30) the concert “Brasil Musical”, dedicated entirely to Brazilian composers such as Carlos Gomes, as well as new works by João Guilherme Ripper and Catarina Domenici.
For the occasion, José Soares, associate conductor of the Minas Gerais Philharmonic, and Deborah Bulgarelli, a Brazilian soprano based in Ireland, were invited to join the Orchestra. Tickets are available on the Sympla platform, for prices between R$10 and R$50. The presentation, starting at 5pm, at the OSPA House, will also be broadcast live on OSPA’s YouTube and will include a tribute to the Chamber’s 250th anniversary Municipality of Porto Alegre.
Invited to conduct OSPA for the first time, maestro José Soares explains that the first part of the concert offers a perspective on Brazilian opera, combining Carlos Gomes (1836 – 1896) with two contemporary names, Domenici and Ripper. “The link that opens and concludes this part is Carlos Gomes, a musician who achieved great recognition in the lyrical world in the 19th century in Italy. Starting with Condor, princess of Samarkand, to the heroine Fosca, we have a first part that celebrates opera in a symphonic medium”, writes the conductor.
Contemporary opera
Brazilian contemporary opera will be represented by two composers. By João Guilherme Ripper from Rio, OSPA performs “Leanor”, an excerpt from the opera “Cartas Portuguesas”, made to order for Osesp and the Gulbenkian Foundation in 2020. By Catarina Domenici, from São Paulo based in Porto Alegre, the Orchestra brings two excerpts from the opera “Anita Garibaldi” commissioned by the King’s Brazil Ensemble and premiered in 2021 at the King’s College Chapel, in London.
Catarina herself will address her works and the others present in the presentation’s repertoire in the lecture Concert Notes, scheduled for Saturday, at 4pm, in the Recitals Room of the OSPA House. About “Anita’s death: an opera scene”, which makes its Brazilian debut with OSPA, the composer comments that it recovers the circumstances of Anita Garibaldi’s death. At 27 years old, pregnant and besieged by enemy armies in Italy alongside Giuseppe, the warrior sings in three languages.
Deborah Bulgarelli
The piece will be sung in the voice of Deborah Bulgarelli, who returns to Brazil after a period abroad. She also takes the stage to perform the aria “Leanor”, from “Cartas Portuguesas”. “I am very happy and honored to have the opportunity to sing this Brazilian and contemporary repertoire that is absolutely stunning, accompanied by the fantastic OSPA, and to be conducted by one of the greatest conductors of the new Brazilian generation, maestro José Soares”, comments the lyric singer.
After the intermission, OSPA performs two pieces that have a celebratory atmosphere in common: the “Abertura Festiva”, a 1971 work written by Mozart Camargo Guarnieri (1907 – 1993), and the “Suíte Festiva”, a 1997 work by Ronaldo Miranda.
OSPA House Series Concert – BRASIL MUSICAL
- SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2023
- Start of the concert: at 5pm. Concert Notes Lecture: at 4pm, with Catarina Domenici.
- Where: OSPA House (CAFF – Av. Borges de Medeiros, 1.501, Porto Alegre, RS)
