Bill Halsey, the founder of Saint Jude, is a pianist and baritone. "When I was living in the San Francisco Bay Area, my wife Jane and I were trained by a somewhat eccentric but brilliant voice teacher, Pete Peterson, of Daly City, CA. Because of our different sound, it was hard for us to gain admission to the limited opportunities for opera singers in our area. We were also interested, both for training and for its own sake, in the Bel Canto French and Italian repertoire that was hardly ever done by small companies. Therefore we resolved to not let our destiny be controlled by the audition process, and so we founded our own company, Operagainst The Wall, that did performances in schools and other venues. We moved to New York City five years ago, and are now looking for other singers to join our new company, either as trainees or principals. E-mail me, if you are interested, at [email protected]."
Jane Halsey, soprano: "I sing because I love language, and languages. Each composer has for me a special emotional language, that expresses ideas and feelings in a unique way.When I travel, I love having the opportunity to communicate in someone else's language and when I sing I feel the same way. In opera, I not only get to speak another language but be part of another culture and time and wear another face, live another life. And I get to bring those things to others--not like sending home postcards to friends and family but actually bringing them the whole country. Each composer's language comes partly from the language and culture of his country, partly from the language and culture of music in general, and partly from himself. This is the human experience--this is what we're all made of. This is why opera rightfully belongs to everyone--not just to some degreed and moneyed elite.
Oh, yeah--do I actually have a voice, or just a philosophy? I dunno--ask Bill. Or better yet, come to a performance of the St. Jude Opera Workshop."
Leslie Johnson is a lyric tenor who was one of the original members of St. Jude's Opera Workshop. He is remarkable for his dedication to off-beat repertoire. His ease of tessitura is phenomenal.
Judy Hardin is a mezzosoprano with a big, dark, almost contralto-like timbre to her instrument. She is receiving a full scholarship from the Meyerbeer Institute for Vocal Development, a training program for my more advanced singers group, the St Jude Opera Workshop. "I was born in Mexico (state of Veracruz), grew up in Chicago and spent eighteen years in Montreal. Initially I joined the workshop (actually at that time it was the Flatbush Avenue Choir) to learn more about my Spanish culture and as a venue to learn to sing and use the Spanish language. Being a part of the workshop has given me opportunity to do this. In the process, Bill has introduced me to the exceiting and intriguing world of opera, a world which I never thought I'd be a part of, where I am also able to use my knowledge of French."
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