FSOO Composer Spotlight: Rhiannon Randle and "DOOR"

One Ounce Opera is thrilled to announce the American premiere of Door, and the unique opportunity to be directed by its librettist, dramaturg Daniel Solon. Door was first produced by Guildhall School of Music and Drama in association with the Royal Opera House in London. This powerful short opera takes us on a gripping journey through claustrophobia, relationship breakdown, depression and escapism. The cast - Robert LeBas, Julie Silva, Julie Fiore, and Dalton Flake - had these questions for Rhiannon Randle, composer:
1. What inspired the rhythmic and the percussive focus of the piece?

The rhythm that drives the opera right from its opening bars is the incessant ‘knocking on the door’ that Andy hears inside his head. The rhythm is a visceral, musical expression of Andy’s paranoia about his front door: the door through which Laura came into his life, the one through which she left him, and pivotally, Andy's only remaining portal to the outside world; the source of his greatest fear, but also, ultimately, his greatest motivation. The rhythm came about as a wonderful accident, where Daniel and I had been discussing our mutual interest in the use of bells for religious ritual, and that we wanted to find a way to tie this into our opera on depression and claustrophobia. A YouTube video surfaced of a Romanian priest playing a toace, a kind of wooden bell made of a suspended wooden plank. The hammering, driving rhythms of the toace were so mesmerizing, I developed a toace-style rhythm which became one of my key musical materials from which the Prologue, and many other moments of dramatic intensity, were developed. Whenever Andy focuses on the door - or any action occurs surrounding the door, Laura, or his fears, that same driving rhythm returns. It also underpins the development of Mary’s aria in the first scene, her frenetic attempts to sort out Andy’s life, and the accompaniment for Laura’s intensely sad aria in Scene 3.

2. One could say the accompaniment feels like it is its own character. How did you discover Door's recurring figures, patterns, and themes (or how did you choose which compositional tools to use when writing the piece)?

Underneath the layers of torment, excitement, sorrow and intensity, everything that happens in Door can be divided into two basic emotional states: frantic, and its opposite: calm. This is precisely the concept I had in my mind while writing the music. While it may seem to be simplifying matters, to me, it was a kind of creative spring-board. Instead of being caught up in the twisting complexities of the drama, I divided it all into clear ’types’ of musical material, that then became layered on top of one another. Each musical material is a kind of leitmotif, in a sense - and it recalls various important emotional moments, such as Andy’s attempts to break free of the physical and mental prison he finds himself in; Mary and Chas’s attempts to help him out; Laura’s deeply pained return. Using layering techniques provided a straightforward emotional communication, giving the music a directness that cuts right through and ultimately leaves the audience as tormented and emotionally drained as Andy.

To this end, there are two main materials or ’themes' in Door, out of which everything else developed. The first, as I’ve already described, is the hammering rhythm, which is the main, frenetic driving force of the opera, derived from the incessant ‘knocking on the door’ idea. The second, is what I call the ‘breathing chords’: Andy is forever being told to take a seat, calm down, relax, ‘take a breath’ to get away from the franticness of his mind - and so, I created a set of two chords: one for the inhale, one for the exhale. The chords are built from the harmonic series, steeped in natural resonances which exude calm - but they could equally be interpreted as jazz chords with added notes which, in turn, provided the basis for the opera’s smoothest character, Chas, whose main approach to Andy’s torment is to encourage him to relax. All of the opera’s frenetic passages and moments of calm are developments, layerings and juxtapositions of these initial two materials.

Writing Door became a puzzle - a really intriguing and exciting puzzle, where I kept finding more and more ways to layer, juxtapose, develop and intertwine these two opposites. Musically, it became a question of: which side will win? - which is of course Andy’s own mental dichotomy put into music, and it’s the exact question I wanted the audience to be asking from Door’s very first notes.

Watch an One Ounce Opera live performance of DOOR on YouTube

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Rhiannon Randle (b. 1993) is an award-winning composer, violinist, soprano and emerging conductor based in London and Cambridge. A ‘distinctive theatrical talent’ (Stainer & Bell) who ‘turns anguish into art’ (Matthew Parris, The Times), drama is central to Rhiannon’s music – she has written three chamber operas, one in association with the Royal Opera House. Her music has been performed nationally and internationally, with commissions including for BBC Radio 3 International Women’s Day; BBC Singers; Dame Sarah Connolly; Britten Sinfonia; members of Allegri Quartet; the Choirs of King’s College; Trinity College; St. Catharine’s College, Cambridge and Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford; Choir of Royal Holloway and The Ebor Singers (York); Borough New Music Series; EQUATOR Women of the World (King’s Place); King’s Lynn; Orpheus & Bacchus (Bordeaux); and in the USA by Boston Opera Collaborative, and One Ounce Opera, Austin. Rhiannon is currently Associate Composer with Cambridge Graduate Orchestra – her latest orchestral tone poem, Chiron: The Teacher of Heroes was premiered in West Road Concert Hall, Cambridge as part of this year’s Cambridge Science Festival; Rhiannon’s orchestral nocturne Salt Deep will receive its premiere later this year. Selected for Psappha’s Composing for…scheme (2017-18), Rhiannon is writing for guzheng (Chinese zither) with forthcoming recording. She was a finalist in the Britten Sinfonia Composer Competition 2015 adjudicated by Judith Weir. Chamber music is a particular interest: Rhiannon’s first string quartet, Walking on Purple, has been recorded by her own award-winning Fourier Quartet.

After Door, Rhiannon produced and directed her second opera in Cambridge: Dido is Dead tells the myth of Dido and Aeneas through the eyes of the maddened heroine. Rhiannon’s first opera, Temptations, was a collaboration with best-selling poet Rev. Dr. Malcolm Guite, in Cambridge, reimagining Satan’s temptations of Jesus in a modern setting, and was praised by Sir Harrison Birtwistle. Other theatrical works include Lie There Dead, a drama for tenor, baritone and ensemble, and recent Duruflé Trio commission The Bitterness of Salt for soprano, flute, viola and piano.

Rhiannon's choral works have been described as adventurously expressive but singable (Richard Causton). She was commissioned by BBC R3 for International Women’s Day 2015: Like A Singing Bird premiered live on The Choir by Sarah Connolly and the Girl’s Choir of St. Catharine’s, Cambridge. She was a finalist in National Centre of Early Music Composer Award 2017, and a second performance of her Ave Regina by the Ebor Singers was featured in ‘Women of Note’, part of York Late Music series. Her On Life’s Dividing Sea was a finalist in the ORTUS International New Music Competition, New York and has recently been recorded by the BBC Singers. O Magnum Mysterium, commissioned by Choir & Organ, was premiered by Royal Holloway Choir, published online in Choir & Organ New Music Series, and a feature on Rhiannon appeared in the January/February 2017 edition of the magazine. Rhiannon is the inaugural Composer-in-Residence at St. Michael’s, Cornhill (2017-18); commissions include memoria for choir and erhu (Chinese fiddle); a communion motet; a Canticles setting and an anthem for The Drapers’ Company. Other recent commissioners include Girton College for their 150th Anniversary; Ronald Corp and the New London Children’s Choir; and the Zürich Chamber Singers. Her choral music is published by Stainer & Bell.

Rhiannon is an alumna of Girton College, Cambridge (BA Music and MPhil Composition), where she studied with Richard Causton; Jeremy Thurlow and Giles Swayne, and was a Leverhulme Arts Scholar at Guildhall School of Music & Drama on the innovative Opera Making & Writing MA, graduating with Distinction. Rhiannon currently supervises harmony, counterpoint and related compositional subjects at Cambridge University. She studies with Julian Anderson in London.

Robert LeBas appreciates the exceptional musicianship and innovation of One Ounce Opera. The adventurous group continues to explore new ways of experiencing and performing opera. Robert first began singing in choir and musical theater in his hometown of Amarillo, TX. He received his Bachelor's of Vocal Performance degree from the University of North Texas. Since moving to Austin, he has also performed with Good Shepherd Choir, Austin Opera, Austin Cantorum, and the Austin Gilbert & Sullivan Society. When not singing, he can also be found going on adventures with his dogs, biking around Austin, or climbing rocks. Robert would like to thank his family and his wife Danika, for their love and support.

Mezzo-soprano Julie Silva has a passion for bringing music and characters to life on stage, particularly when reaching new audiences with innovative performances. Julie is thrilled to be performing the role of Mary in the American premiere of Door on this year’s Fresh Squeezed Ounce of Opera. Julie has had a lively 2017-2018 season with live soloist and televised performances with the iSING! International Young Artists Festival and Suzhou Symphony Orchestra in China, sharing arias with opera’s youngest fans through Austin Opera’s “Opera Treasure Chest” school outreach series, and recent performances as Annio in LOLA’s La clemenza di Tito: A Retelling. In May, Julie is excited to travel to Mississippi to perform as Countess Malcolm in A Little Night Music with the Natchez Festival of Music.

Founder and CEO of One Ounce Opera, Julie Fiore has enjoyed a lifetime of performance and stage work. Possessing an “energetic and richly beautiful soprano voice”, favorite roles include Abigail in Robert Ward's The Crucible and Sister Constance in Poulenc's Dialogues of the Carmelites. Prior to founding OOO, she served as an Artist-In-Residence and Assistant Director of Taos Opera Institute (NM), and Co-Director of Amarillo Opera's Summer Opera Camp. In Austin, Julie has created and performed new works and classical re-imaginations as part of the Fusebox Festival, Soundspace at the Blanton Museum, the City of Austin's People's Gallery, East Austin Studio Tour, South By Southwest Music Festival, Thinkery21, Beerthoven Recital Series, and OOO's Fresh Squeezed Ounce series, among others. Julie has a private voice and piano studio and is a Senior Music Mentor for Kids In a New Groove. She has a Bachelor of Music from University of North Texas and a Master of Music from University of Denver Lamont School of Music.

While studying for pre-med in his undergraduate work at Midwestern State University, Dalton Flake discovered the world of opera. His roles include: Borsa in Rigoletto; Rinuccio in Gianni Schicchi; Alfred in Die Fledermaus; and Detlef in The Student Prince. He then attended Texas State University for his Masters of Voice Performance. Where he added: Kaspar in Amahl and the Night Visitors; Candide in Candide; Sam Kaplan in Street Scene; Rodolfo in La Boheme; Charlot in Angelique, which went to win awards with the National Opera Association; E.T.A. Hoffmann in Le Contes d’Hoffmann; Abbe in Felice, and 1st boy in Trouble in Tahiti. He has been a soloist for Texas State in there performances of Monteverdi’s Vespers and Mendelssohn’s Elijah. Dalton has earned first place at NATS and won the Didzun Honors Award for excellence. Recently, Dalton performed Rodolfo in Puccini’s La Bohemewith Red River Lyric Opera. He thanks God and his wife and kids for allowing him the luxury of being a performer.

by Jules

FSOO Composer Spotlight: Timothy Ayres-Kerr and "A Game of Werewolf"

...and what a game it will be! Composer/librettist Timothy Ayres-Kerr takes singers Angela Irving, Andy Fleming, Dalton Flake, Jake Jacobsen, Jenny Ohrstrom, and Patricia Combs on a fast-paced journey of who-done-it, in the Fresh Squeezed Ounce of Opera 2018's winning work A Game of Werewolf. The cast had these questions for Tim:

1. We noticed that what drives the villagers most is fear. Were you inspired by our current political climate to write this piece?

The actual game (Werewolf / mafia ) is all about suspicion and persuading the masses to trust and support you against someone else. The phycological and political issues it’s gameplay builds on are such real world elements that it would be impossible for a dramatization of it to not relate. I painstakingly tried to avoid taking a stance that too easily aligned with either major “Sides” of current politics. Instead, my aim is that this piece will challenge everyone of every ideology to question their belief systems and dogmas.

2. How long did it take you to write the piece? Did you workshop it with singers as part of the process?

I began work on GOW in June of 2017 working exclusively on the libretto. It was mostly finished by the end of that month. July and august I went about setting it. It was in a complete form by September when rehearsals started. I'm a singer first, and so my approach to writing was largely based on me singing something, recording it as a voice memo, then later transcribing it. With every single phrase, I would mull over it for about 10/15 minutes (usually while doing some other chore) and if i couldn't commit it to memory and sing it, I would make significant edits.  The work was performed several times by my own company as a curtain raiser for WholeTone Opera's own Werewolf opera and you could consider that a workshop, as so much was learned about the piece in that process. 

3. This opera reminds a lot of us of Gilbert & Sullivan, but gone dark. Have you drawn inspiration from G&S? What other composers do you draw inspiration from?

Most of my stage experience to date is G&S and I the influence is unshakable. I consider Arthur Sullivan to be one of the greatest setters of intelligible English text, and definitely tried to emulate him. The way certain characters make light of gave occurrences reads to me incredibly Victorian.

I listen to system of a down on occasion, and imagined some of that tonality for Gadruna's first lines of music (weird i know lol). The aggressive rhythmic figures they use really blow my mind. I was also pulling inspiration from an obscure music hall form I'm currently studying. You can hear a recording of it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ddT-CqR8ibc  

4. Did you have someone in mind as the werewolf when you wrote the piece?

I may have at one point. I planned on some sort of big reveal near the end of the story, but as I wrote, the werewolf took on a much more metaphorical quality, even though it is a real thing. The Werewolf’s motivic language can be found accompanying characters at their most sinister moments. While this was a handy musical tool, I believe it to be central to the piece’s overall message. The undertaker says it best: 

"Now I know what you're all thinking and I say it isn't so-

The Werewolf isn't me, it's true!

So at risk of causing panic I'll inform of what I know-

The Werewolf could be any one of you!"

Watch an One Ounce Opera live performance of A Game of Werewolf on YouTube!

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Timothy Ayres-Kerr BM is a recent graduate of New England Conservatory of Music and a former student of Bradley Williams. While studying at the Conservatory he performed as a soloist in Opera, Oratorio, and discovered a particular love of British and American Operetta, performing several lead tenor roles in the works of Gilbert & Sullivan, Most notably Frederic in The Pirates Penzance. Of a recent performance of his, the Boston Musical Intelligencer noted that "He sang with purity and conviction, enunciated perfectly, and acted without a touch of guile." Timothy is currently studying for an MM in vocal pedagogy with Ian Howell at the New England Conservatory while continuing to Run his own miniature opera company, the Parlour Opera Players. Timothy has been writing vocal music almost as long as he has been singing, working primarily on short comic operas and Cantatas. A Game of Werewolf is Timothy’s second completed opera. He is passionate about opera in English, whether it be new or old.

Angela Irving is a multifaceted singer who enjoys molding young HS-aged minds and voices. She currently teaches 65 wonderful young people at Bowie, Lake Travis, and McCallum High Schools. Angela performs with One Ounce Opera, Austin Opera, Gilbert & Sullivan Society of Austin, and as the soloist at the Christian Science Church downtown. Some recent roles are The Plaintiff/Angelina in Trial By Jury (Gilbert & Sullivan Austin); Fortuna in L’Incoronazione di Poppea (One Ounce Opera); Tessa in The Gondoliers (GSA); and Melissa in Princess Ida (GSA). Angela premiered the song cycle “Five Mystic Songs” by David Adams with string quartet at OOO’s Fresh Squeezed Ounce of Art Song in 2016, and has enjoyed premiering art songs and musicals by Rain Nox, Jonathan Geer, Michael Nesline/Steve Saugey, Fred Fisher, and, while at the University of North Texas, many, many others.

While studying for pre-med in his undergraduate work at Midwestern State University, Dalton Flake discovered the world of opera. His roles include: Borsa in Rigoletto; Rinuccio in Gianni Schicchi; Alfred in Die Fledermaus; and Detlef in The Student Prince. He then attended Texas State University for his Masters of Voice Performance. Where he added: Kaspar in Amahl and the Night Visitors; Candide in Candide; Sam Kaplan in Street Scene; Rodolfo in La Boheme; Charlot in Angelique, which went to win awards with the National Opera Association; E.T.A. Hoffmann in Le Contes d'Hoffmann; Abbe in Felice, and 1st boy in Trouble in Tahiti. He has been a soloist for Texas State in there performances of Monteverdi's Vespers and Mendelssohn's Elijah. Dalton has earned first place at NATS and won the Didzun Honors Award for excellence. Recently, Dalton performed Rodolfo in Puccini's La Boheme with Red River Lyric Opera. He thanks God and his wife and kids for allowing him the luxury of being a performer.

Having completed his MM in Vocal Performance at UT’s Butler School of Music, Andy Fleming continues to be involved in opera around Austin. Andy has performed roles with Gilbert and Sullivan Austin (Trial by Jury, Cox and Box, The Zoo), and even stepped into the pit for one production of Gondoliers. Critics have remarked that Andy “was there, too.” He has also performed with Spotlight on Opera (Hansel and Gretel, Die Zauberflöte, Cosí fan tutte), Opera Piccola (Abduction from the Seraglio), and One Ounce Opera (There's Beauty in the Beast, Love After the Collapse of Civilization, Ho! Ho! Ho!, Problems), and can be seen in the chorus of Austin Opera’s upcoming La Traviata.

Patricia Combs, mezzo soprano, loves singing a wide variety of music, but excels in French literature, zarzuelas, and loves the challenges of contemporary works as well as chamber music. She will be playing the role of Dame Hannah in Ruddigore this summer with the Gilbert & Sullivan Society of Austin. Her roles include Alisa in Lucia di Lammermoor, Bianca in The Rape of Lucretia, Meg Page in Falstaff, Mrs. Zilkov in The Manchurian Candidate and Dinah in Trouble in Tahiti. She studied with Dr. Hugh Cardon, Rose Taylor, Cindy Sadler, and Cynthia Moellenhoff. She holds a Bachelors of Music Education from UT-El Paso and a Masters in Vocal Performance from UT-Austin.

Jake Jacobsen, baritone, is a founding member of OOO and is excited to be performing in his third FSOO production. Jake is a graduate of the Butler School of Music, earning a Masters of Music in 2011, and a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in 2015. Jake has performed with several professional organizations in the
Austin Area in addition to OOO, including Conspirare, Austin Opera, and the Gilbert & Sullivan Society, where he performed the role of Samuel in their production of The Pirates of Penzance last season. At the end of this month, Jake will be performing in the chorus of Austin Opera’s production of La Traviata, and will be in the G&S Society’s production of Ruddigore in June.

Jenny Ohrstrom's recent performances include Helena in Ho! Ho! Ho! and Voodoo Priestess in The Stranger the Better with One Ounce Opera, and Carmen with Austin Opera. Other highlights include Fiordiligi in Così fan tutte, Miss Pinkerton in The Old Maid and the Thief, Santuzza in Cavalleria Rusticana, Dido in Dido and Aeneas, Mother in Hansel and Gretel, and the title role in Alcina. Jenny holds a Master of Music in Voice Performance from California State University-Northridge and a Bachelor of Music in Voice Performance from Central Washington University in Ellensburg, Washington. She is a winner of CSUN’s and CWU’s Concerto Competitions, and a recipient of the Village Voices Chorale Scholarship, Nancy Hooker Scholarship, NATS-LA Summer Study Grant, CSUN Graduate Research Fellowship, and the CSUN Graduate Fellowship for Outstanding Research and Creative Activity. Keep up with Jenny at www.jennyohrstrom.me

by Jules

FSOO Composer Spotlight: Tony Solitro and the Cast of "She's Fabulous"

One Ounce Opera is happy to introduce you to Tony Solitro, composer/librettist of "She's Fabulous," a Fresh Squeezed Ounce of Opera 2018 winner. Soprano Julia Watkins-Davis (Clarice) and Mezzo-soprano Patricia Combs (Bethel) -- who will breathe life (and laughter!) into the piece -- had these questions for Tony:

1. I really enjoy singing this piece. I understand that part of the inspiration may have come from a Funny or Die video. Could you walk us through your composition process for this piece? How did you come up with the character names?

The idea to adapt Jack Neary’s play came from Greg Smucker and Trish Weinmann (Artistic Directors of Boston Opera Collaborative). They sent several short plays and asked if any resonated with me. When I read the script, Clarice and Bethel seemed so familiar to me. I adore all the over-the-top opera singers in my life, even when they are being total divas. I poke fun at singer-culture throughout the vignette, but it always comes from a place of love.

The original play is sharp and concise. When the ladies banter and echo one another, it's also quite musical. I seized every opportunity that allowed the characters to sing together. (I'm always on the lookout for these moments, but they are rare in plays). These qualities are all built into the source material, so the process felt very organic.

2. Do you compose at the piano? Or do you use Digital Performer, Logic, or ProTools to sequence the music, or go old-school with manuscript paper and then to Sibelius or Finale to render it?

I composed most of She’s Fabulous at the piano and penciled it on old-school manuscript paper. I wrote it during a residency at VCCA in Virginia. My studio had a lovely grand piano—a luxurious step up from my trusty keyboard at home—and wanted to take full advantage of it. (I don’t work this way on every piece. I often prefer to balance my work at the piano with abstract techniques. Drawing shapes and contours. Mapping out rhythmic and harmonic patterns. Writing prose.) Each evening, I engraved the day’s work in Finale.

I surprised myself with this piece. The concept was clear to me from the moment I read the play. The muse took over, and the realization felt inevitable. I typically trudge through several sketches and drafts. I refine ideas through a slow, methodical, and labor-intensive revision process. The final score for She's Fabulous materialized with uncharacteristic immediacy and clarity. This is me at my least self-conscious. I remember worrying about the pastiche audition arias and the zany “Congratulations” waltz. Comedy is particularly challenging … I’d work alone all day, then step out of my studio humming the tunes and chuckling to myself. I wasn’t sure if anybody else would find it funny. When I heard the audience’s reaction opening night, I was glad I didn’t second-guess my choices.

3. I noticed that, for the most part, this piece was written very conversationally. How long did it take you to get the rhythms just right?

There’s an ideal balance that I want to achieve. If it is too conversational, the whole thing sounds like recitative. The voice can’t shine in that context, and it’ll be boring for the audience. If I sacrifice prosody for the sake of the music, then I’m disrespecting the text. It weakens the theatrical experience if the words are unintelligible.

John Steinbeck gave some wise advice. “If you are using dialogue—say it aloud as you write it. Only then will it have the sound of speech.” Even though I’m not a vocalist, I sing through everything with a metronome. (Gotta make sure I can get the words out at tempo and find my note in the chord!) From the beginning, I make it a priority to honor natural speech patterns. Then, I can make music. Stretch things out. Energize the rhythmic profile. Play with articulation.

4. I was wondering if you were interested in composing more “mini-operas” with Clarice and Bethel, since Jack Neary has at least six ten-minute plays...

I have a lot of fun with the mini-opera genre. It's been a satisfying creative outlet for me. Boston Opera Collaborative presents a popular “Opera Bites” program each November. Our first collaboration was She’s Fabulous in 2016. They subsequently commissioned Triangle in 2017, and we have an exciting project in the works for 2018. I am certain more vignettes are in my future—but I have no plans (yet) to adapt another from the Clarice/Bethel series. Should the opportunity present itself, I’d happily revisit them. Jack’s writing is brilliant, and these characters hold a special place in my heart.

Watch an One Ounce Opera live performance of She's Fabulous on YouTube!

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Tony Solitro is composer of concert and stage music whose recent works have been commissioned by Boston Opera Collaborative, Joseph Conyers (Assistant Principal Bass, Philadelphia Orchestra), the Institute of Contemporary Art, Philadelphia, and Network for New Music. His compositions have been performed by People Inside Electronics (Los Angeles), the Litha Symphony Orchestra (Manhattan), International Opera Theater (USA/Italy), and in venues such as the Red Note New Music Festival (Illinois State University), the Royal Northern College of Music (Manchester, England), and the International Guitar Research Centre (University of Surrey, Guildford, UK). Tony has been awarded fellowships from Yaddo, VCCA, Brush Creek, Kimmel Harding Nelson, and the Brevard Music Center. He earned his Ph.D. (University of Pennsylvania) as a recipient of the George Crumb Music Fellowship and his M.M. (Longy School of Music) on a Nadia and Lili Boulanger Scholarship. To hear recordings, see videos, and explore his composition catalogue, visit www.tonysolitro.com.

Julia Watkins-Davis has been praised for her"fiery coloratura" and"outstanding musicianship and gift of interpretation" as a classical performer. In the 2017-2018 Season, she will perform Donna Anna in Don Giovanni with Texas Concert Opera Collective, and debut in a winning mini-opera with One Ounce Opera’s “Fresh Squeezed Ounce of Opera." Credits include work with Austin Opera; Los Angeles Opera and their Community Education Department; Glimmerglass Opera; the Geffen Playhouse in Los Angeles; South Bay Opera; Orange County Opera; Pacific Music Festival in Sapporo, Japan; and the Altenburg Musik Festival in Germany. Not confined to traditional classical endeavors, Julia has recorded with emerging popular artists, voiced regional commercials and performed featured solos for film and television soundtracks, including HBO's Carnivàle and Virtual Obsession for ABC/Von Zerneck-Sertner Films. For the title theme to The Forgotten City, she served as both singer and co-composer. Julia Watkins-Davis was awarded the Grand Prize at the national finals of the Bel Canto Vocal Scholarship Foundation. She has also been honored as a district winner of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions in Southern California, recognized by the National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS), the Young Musicians Foundation, the Palm Springs Opera Guild, the Loren L. Zachary Society and the Opera Buffs of Southern California.

Patricia Combs, mezzo soprano, loves singing a wide variety of music, but excels in French literature, zarzuelas, and loves the challenges of contemporary works as well as chamber music. She will be playing the role of Dame Hannah in Ruddigore this summer with the Gilbert & Sullivan Society of Austin. Her roles include Alisa in Lucia di Lammermoor, Bianca in The Rape of Lucretia, Meg Page in Falstaff, Mrs. Zilkov in The Manchurian Candidate and Dinah in Trouble in Tahiti. She studied with Dr. Hugh Cardon, Rose Taylor, Cindy Sadler, and Cynthia Moellenhoff. She holds a Bachelors of Music Education from UT-El Paso and a Masters in Vocal Performance from UT-Austin.

by Jules