My Site

  • Home
  • About
    • Putting New Zealand singers on the world’s stages
    • Our Mission & Values
    • Special Projects
  • Grants
    • Grants by both Foundations
  • Galleries
  • Donations

  • news
  • contact
  • search

full menu

  • Home
  • About
    • Putting New Zealand singers on the world’s stages
    • Our Mission & Values
    • Special Projects
  • Grants
    • Grants by both Foundations
  • Galleries
  • Donations
  • news
  • contact

Jake Heggie and Kiri premiered at the Ravinia Music Festival

Posted on 15 December 2014

Athough composer Jake Heggie has focused the bulk of his creative energies on opera over the last couple of decades, between major projects he has returned again and again to his musical heart and soul – telling stories through song.

The prolific American composer – he has written more than 250 art songs to date – has done so again, creating a song cycle to poems by Emily Dickinson, expressly tailored to the voice and artistry of Kiri Te Kanawa, a close friend and colleague since his college years.

The beloved soprano will present the world premiere of Heggie's "Newer Every Day," composed in honor of Te Kanawa's 70th birthday, as part of her recital of songs and arias Tuesday in Ravinia's Martin Theatre. Heggie himself will accompany her at the piano.

For Heggie, Dickinson's evocative poetry and Te Kanawa's luminous voice are a match both natural and inevitable.

Some of the first texts he ever put to music were by Dickinson, and his first encounter with the New Zealand-born diva was in the early 1980s when he turned pages for her accompanist at a recital she gave at UCLA, where he was studying piano and composition.

Te Kanawa represented his first exposure to art songs sung by a classically trained classical performers. So deep was the impression her recital made on him that it hastened the emergence of Heggie as a composer of exquisite lyric miniatures and, eventually, operas.

"Not only was the voice so beautiful, large and plush, here was this radiant, gorgeous woman who, when you chatted with her backstage, was jovial and fun," he recalls of that concert in Los Angeles. "I got to know her as a vocal superstar who also was a real human being. And I became a diehard Te Kanawa fan!" Heggie keeps in a special box the dried petals of the roses presented to Te Kanawa after that recital, and which she then gave him.

He turned pages at a few more of the singer's recitals before their careers took divergent directions.

Source

Previous Article Back to news Next Article

News Archives

Year
Month

    Other articles

  • Two great antipodean sopranos have much in common22 Dec 2016
  • Marketing effort creates international awareness17 Nov 2011
  • News from around the world - Thomas Atkins15 Apr 2016
  • James Ioelu receives foundation scholarship17 Nov 2011

Te Kanawa Foundation @Kiri_TeKanawa • Aug 21

The new name for Auckland’s Aotea Centre ASB Theatre, the Kiri Te Kanawa Theatre, will be launched on 20 November w… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

Te Kanawa Foundation @Kiri_TeKanawa • Aug 21

‘One of the world’s greatest sopranos is being celebrated in a grand theatre tradition, with a permanent tribute to… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

Te Kanawa Foundation @Kiri_TeKanawa • Aug 9

This beautiful korowai. twitter.com/whaeavee/statu…

Te Kanawa Foundation @Kiri_TeKanawa • May 4

Congratulations to Julien Van Mellearts @Julien Van Mellaerts on his selection for the Cardiff Singer of the World competitio… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

Te Kanawa Foundation @Kiri_TeKanawa • Mar 7

Many highlights including a clip of Dame Kiri in the 1966 film, Don't Let It Get You, singing an aria from the Barb… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

Te Kanawa Foundation @Kiri_TeKanawa • Mar 2

Interview with Jim Mora on @RNZ Sunday Morning with Jim Mora; Dame Kiri Te Kanawa: encouraging the next generation radionz.co.nz/national/progr…

Te Kanawa Foundation @Kiri_TeKanawa • Dec 21

RT @Clarence House: Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, Soprano, today became a Member of the Order of the Companions of Honour for Services to Music. http…

Te Kanawa Foundation @Kiri_TeKanawa • Dec 20

RT @The Royal Family: Congratulations to Dame Kiri Te Kanawa who became a Member of the Order of the Companions of Honour, for services to music…

Te Kanawa Foundation @Kiri_TeKanawa • Aug 3

RT @Lexus Song Quest: Our hard-working and humble winner Joel Amosa chats with Eva Radich on @RNZ Concert about letting his operatic ambitions…

Te Kanawa Foundation @Kiri_TeKanawa • Jul 29

RT @Lifewise: FA'AMALO Niuafolau Joel Amosa! Congratulations for winning the 2018 @Lexus Song Quest! Joel is one of our amazing Lifewise #B…

Newsletter Signup

Receive the latest updates and news about the Kiri Te Kanawa Foundation

Email address

  • Legal
  • Site Map
  • Links

proudly supported by

Copyright © 2023 Kiritekanawa.org. All rights reserved

web design / web development by Web Torque

© Web Development by Web Torque