Living!

Betty Allison, soprano; Kimberley-Ann Bartczak, piano

Sunday, May 26 at 2pm

Dr. Betty Allison and Kimberley-Ann Bartczak met just as Betty became professor of voice at Dalhousie University, and Kim joined Pacific Opera Victoria as their principal coach and accompanist. They bonded over art song, and their love for Vancouver island.  “Living!” explores the thriving world of the lyrical Canadian classical art song by composers from coast to coast actively writing for voice and piano today.

Programme

Biographies

Teaching artist and soprano, Dr. Betty Allison is a professor of voice at Dalhousie University where she runs the DalOpera program and teaches applied voice. A graduate of the Canadian Opera Company Ensemble, major credits include the world premiere of Mary’s Wedding with Pacific Opera Victoria, the title role in Floyd’s Susannah with Florentine Opera, Alice in Verdi’s Falstaff with L’Opèra Thèâtre de Metz Mètropole, and Rosalinde in Die Fledermaus with Edmonton Opera. Betty has performed a varied repertoire, demonstrating her natural ability and talent, from the Countess (Le Nozze di Figaro) and Tatiana (Eugene Onegin), to Vixen (Cunning Little Vixen) and Elizabeth I (Glorina). She is equally comfortable on the concert stage, with her rich and florid interpretation of pieces such as Mahler’s Symphony VIII, Brahms’ Requiem, and Gubaidulia’s Galgenlieder À 3. Recently, Betty completed her doctorate at the University of Toronto. Her research focused on the connection between a singer’s voice and their overall wellness and resilience. Specifically, she examined the non-musical stressors and coping strategies that elite singers use to maintain their voices and careers.

A native of Montreal, Kimberley-Ann Bartczak is a conductor, pianist and vocal coach. Currently the Principal Coach and Accompanist at Pacific Opera Victoria, she was Associate Artistic Director for Manitoba Underground Opera, Resident Conductor and Repetiteur at Calgary Opera, was on staff at Opera on the Avalon, and an alumna of Vancouver Opera’s Yulanda M. Faris Young Artist Program. Recent appearances include: Music Director for the world premiere of Veronika Krausas’ Ghost Opera at Calgary Opera and Sokolovic/Bartok’s Svadba/Bluebeard’s Castle double bill at Manitoba Underground Opera, and principal coach for Mozart’s Così fan Tutte at Pacific Opera Victoria.  She is an active performer, having performed and conducted coast to coast across Canada as well as in the United States, Mexico and Europe. She also teaches at the Victoria Conservatory of Music and is a regular vocal coach at University of Victoria.