{"id":75633,"date":"2022-06-16T13:54:18","date_gmt":"2022-06-16T17:54:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/?p=75633"},"modified":"2022-06-16T13:54:18","modified_gmt":"2022-06-16T17:54:18","slug":"the-scoop-four-artists-join-the-coc-ensemble-studio-for-2022-23","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/2022\/06\/16\/the-scoop-four-artists-join-the-coc-ensemble-studio-for-2022-23\/","title":{"rendered":"THE SCOOP | Four Artists Join The COC Ensemble Studio For 2022-23"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure id=\"attachment_75636\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-75636\" style=\"width: 1200px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-75636\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/06\/COC-Studio-Ensemble-NEWS.jpg\" alt=\"Incoming members of the COC Ensemble Studio, Queen Hezumuryango, Ariane Cossette, Alex Hetherington, and Brian Cho (Photos courtesy of the artists)\" width=\"1200\" height=\"628\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-75636\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Incoming members of the COC Ensemble Studio, Queen Hezumuryango, Ariane Cossette, Alex Hetherington, and Brian Cho (Photos courtesy of the artists)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The COC Ensemble Studio is adding four new artists to the company for its 2022\/2023 season. New members soprano <strong>Ariane Cossette<\/strong>, mezzo-sopranos <strong>Queen Hezumuryango<\/strong> and <strong>Alex Hetherington<\/strong>, and pianist <strong>Brian Cho<\/strong> will join returning sopranos Charlotte Siegel and Midori Marsh, baritone Jonah Spungin, bass-baritone Alex Halliday, and pianist Vladimir Soloviev in August.<\/p>\n<p>The COC Ensemble Studio is a specialized development program for Canadian opera professionals. Involvement brings a host of benefits.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Experience performing on the COC\u2019s mainstage;<\/li>\n<li>The opportunity to work directly with COC General Director Perryn Leech, COC Music Director Johannes Debus, and Director of Artistic Planning Roberto Mauro;<\/li>\n<li>A customized mentorship program that offers guidance on career path;<\/li>\n<li>Specific training in voice, language, movement, and acting skills from some of the industry\u2019s best;<\/li>\n<li>Masterclasses with visiting artists.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>\u201cThe term \u2018emerging\u2019 is often applied to the young artists of this program, but I cannot stress enough the incredible talent of these incoming artists,\u201d says <strong>Perryn Leech<\/strong> in a media release. \u201cBy giving opportunities on our mainstage, in recital, and across all company work, we\u2019re not only better able to provide the real-life experience every artist requires to grow and flourish in this industry, we\u2019re also proudly presenting the next generation of Canadian opera talent to our audiences throughout each and every season.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMore than ever, we\u2019re looking to take a holistic approach to artist development,\u201d says<strong> Roberto Mauro,<\/strong> Director, Artistic Planning. \u201cWith each member of the Ensemble Studio, we\u2019re considering their pathway to this career, their personal goals and priorities, and seeking out how we can best support their individual journey in a way that sets them up for long-term success.\u201d<\/p>\n<h3><strong>About the artists&#8230;<\/strong><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Ariane Cossette<\/strong>: from Trois-Rivi\u00e8res, Quebec with a bachelor\u2019s degree from Conservatoire de musique de Montr\u00e9al and a master\u2019s degree from Universit\u00e9 de Montr\u00e9al, her credits include Mica\u00ebla in <em>La trag\u00e9die de Carmen<\/em> (Universit\u00e9 de Montr\u00e9al) and Selene in <em>Endymion\u2019s Dream<\/em> (COSA Canada).<\/li>\n<li><strong>Queen Hezumuryango: <\/strong>originally from Burundi, her credits to date include Tisbe in <em>La Cenerentola<\/em> (Lunenburg Academy of Music Performance), Carmen in <em>La trag\u00e9die de Carmen<\/em> (Atelier d&#8217;op\u00e9ra \u00e0 l&#8217;Universit\u00e9 de Montr\u00e9al), and Third Wood Sprite in <em>Rusalka<\/em> (Toronto Summer Opera Workshop). She recently began a doctorate in vocal performance at l&#8217;Universit\u00e9 de Montr\u00e9al, with a thesis exploring the contribution of Black composers to classical music.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Alex Hetherington:<\/strong> The Toronto native is currently completing a Masters of Opera Performance at the University of Toronto; past performances as Rosina in <em>The Barber of Seville<\/em>, the title role in La trag\u00e9die de Carmen (UofT Opera), as well as The House in Tapestry Opera\u2019s cast recording of Rocking Horse Winner. As a composer, she is currently completing a research-creation project combining art song performance practice and modern gender theory.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Brian Cho:<\/strong> From London, Ontario, he completed his Bachelor of Musical Arts and Masters in Collaborative Piano at Western University. Subsequently, he participated in the Orford Summer Music Academy and the Accademia Europea Dell\u2019Opera. Cho is the co-founder and head coach of Can of Soup Collective, a non-profit organization dedicated to making opera accessible and relatable to wider audiences.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The appointments come after auditions that began with video submissions in fall 2021. Seventy singers in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, and Montreal then completed live follow-up auditions. The eight finalists came to the COC in March 2022 for working sessions that culminated in the final auditions, adjudicated by COC General Director Perryn Leech along with key members of the COC\u2019s artistic and music staff: Johannes Debus (Music Director), Roberto Mauro (Director, Artistic Planning), Dorian Cox (Director, Ensemble Studio), Liz Upchurch (Head of the Ensemble Studio), and Wendy Nielsen (Head Vocal Consultant).<\/p>\n<p>The list of finalists includes: soprano Sydney Baedke, soprano Ariane Cossette, soprano Hannah Crawford, mezzo-soprano Alex Hetherington, mezzo-soprano Queen Hezumuryango, tenor Elias Theocharidis, baritone Alex Mathews, and baritone Mikelis Rogers.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe level of applicants we saw from across Canada was extraordinarily high, a fact that is especially impressive given that many were only able to sing from their living rooms for most of the two years leading up to these auditions,\u201d says<strong> Dorian Cox<\/strong>. \u201cWe are also so proud of our graduating artists for their ongoing success through an industry still in recovery, and will be eagerly watching as they lead the way to a new era of live opera!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Four Ensemble Studio members are leaving to make way for the new crop of artists. Soprano Jamie Groote, tenor Matthew Cairns, bass-baritone Vartan Gabrielian, and pianist Frances Thielmann were all features in the COC\u2019s live and digital offerings. All will also be moving on to new professional opportunities: Thielmann has been named Head Coach at Edmonton Opera, Gabrielian will debut with Vancouver Opera, Groote will make her debut with Manitoba Opera, and Cairns has been accepted into Metropolitan Opera\u2019s Lindemann Young Artist Development Program starting in the 2022\/2023 season.<\/p>\n<p>Groote, Cairns, and Gabrielian will be returning to the COC mainstage in the upcoming season\u2019s productions.<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"western\"><em><b>#LUDWIGVAN<\/b><\/em><\/h3>\n<p class=\"western\"><em>Get the daily arts news straight to your inbox.<\/em><\/p>\n<h3 class=\"western\"><em>Sign up for the Ludwig van Daily \u2014 classical music and opera in five minutes or less <\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/ludwig-van.us9.list-manage.com\/subscribe?u=4f785cb3f9058f2393ccad035&amp;id=57cdb68eac\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><em>HERE<\/em><\/a>.<\/h3>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The COC Ensemble Studio is adding four new artists to the company for its 2022\/2023 season.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":64,"featured_media":75636,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[39907,39,43,63],"tags":[40132,40134,40131,5780,40133],"yst_prominent_words":[10782,13160,12700,7306,12694],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/06\/COC-Studio-Ensemble-NEWS.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p9bakr-jFT","amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75633"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/64"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=75633"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75633\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":75637,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75633\/revisions\/75637"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/75636"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=75633"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=75633"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=75633"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=75633"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}