Migration and Memory: Virtual Concert by Tanya Bertier & Sima Kustanovich

CIC Friends & Colleagues:
Until we meet in the future in person, please connect with a virtual gathering with this event hosted by Boston/Cambridge community members:

Join the Ballets Russes Arts Initiative on Sunday for a virtual concert from Fanueil Hall!

MIGRATION and MEMORY: Songs and Romances

Virtual Concert by Tanya Bertier, Mezzo-soprano & Sima Kustanovich, Piano

Sunday, January 31, 2021, 6 pm (premiere), 7 pm (Zoom Q&A)
(available on demand through February 7)

RSVP required on EventBrite: https://migrationmemory.eventbrite.com

Join BRAI online for a concert exploring emigres from the Russian empire who settled in the US, UK, France and Israel, and the music they wrote about their original as well adopted homelands. Hear the music of IRVING BERLIN, MEDTNER, RACHMANINOFF, GLAZUNOV, STRAVINSKY, PROKOFIEV, and 6 other composers.

This concert is part of a series being recorded by BRAI at historic Faneuil Hall (built 1742) thanks to their collaboration with the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company (est. 1638). The performance, recorded shortly before the virtual concert date, lasts an hour and is followed (7 pm) by a live virtual Q&A with the musicians. If you cannot join on the 31st, worry not: the concert can also be viewed on demand for a week, and registration will remain open after the streaming premiere, through February 7.

Free registration is available. Ticket purchases and donations are shared by BRAI and the artists. https://migrationmemory.eventbrite.com

TANYA BERTIER started her musical training in Krivoi Rog, Ukraine before earning a Bachelor's in Vocal Performance at the Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance followed by a Master's at the Buchmann-Mehta School of Music in Tel Aviv. Initially a lyrical mezzo soprano, she performed as a soloist of Women Vocalise Ensemble, and took on operatic roles such as Carmen (Carmen) and Polina (Dame de Pique). With time and experience, her voice has evolved to full dramatic mezzo. Ms. Bertier commenced her US career with two productions of Hansel und Gretel at the New York Opera Forum and the New York Lyric Opera (interpreting the roles of the Witch and Gertrude, respectively). Other roles followed, including Santuzza (Cavalleria Rusticana), La Zia Principessa (Suor Angelica), Amneris (Aida), Azucena (Il Trovatore), Madame de la Haltiere (Cendrillon), and of course Waltraute (Götterdämmerung) Erda (Das Rheingold) and Fricka (Die Walküre) from the Wagnerian repertoire. Ms. Bertier recently made her Carnegie Hall debut in the Opera Showcase program and was chosen as a finalist of the Wagner, Strauss and Mahler International Vocal Competition.

SIMA KUSTANOVICH is one of the Northeast's most sought after pianists. Hailed by the Worcester Telegram & Gazette for the "extraordinary intensity and brilliance of her playing," she has performed in acclaimed international venues, including France's Courchevel Chamber Music Festival, New York City's BargeMusic, Toronto's Royal Conservatory Chamber Music Series, Niagara on the Lake Music Festival, Summit Festival, Sweden's St. Jacob's Cathedral, Hungary's Matthias Cathedral, Prague’s Hlahol and major cities of Russia, Austria, Italy and Estonia. Currently on the faculties of Clark University, where she is a Distinguished Artist, and Walnut Hill School for Performing Arts, she previously had appointments at the St. Petersburg Conservatory and the famed Leningrad Opera and Ballet Theater.