Blackwater Valley Opera Festival Explained

The Blackwater Valley Opera Festival (formerly the Lismore Opera Festival and Lismore Music Festival) is a classical music and opera festival held annually in Lismore, County Waterford, Ireland.[1] Founded in 2010 by Jennifer O'Connell and Dieter Kaegi,[2] the festival was re-launched as the Blackwater Valley Opera Festival in February 2018.[3] [4]

Previous events have consisted of three opera nights performed in Lismore Castle's stable yard.[5] Concerts and recitals have also been staged in Lismore and in historic homes located along the banks of the Blackwater River downstream to the parish of Cappoquin. These venues have included Salterbridge House, Cappoquin House, Tourin House, Dromore Yard and Lismore Cathedral.[6]

In 2012, Irish President Michael D. Higgins inaugurated the festival's annual school's access programme.[7]

Marco Zambelli was the conductor of the festival for several years, except in 2016, when Killian Farrell conducted Così fan tutte, and in 2019 when Darren Hargan conducted Don Pasquale.[8] [9] The 2019 festival presented two operas for the first time, with 15 performances in total, including a solo recital by Giovanni Bellucci.[10] [11]

While the 2020 event was cancelled as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic,[12] [13] the festival's organisers ran outdoor concerts for residential care home residents.[14] [15] By March 2021, this concert series was described as "the largest arts and health intervention supported in response to the COVID-19 pandemic in Ireland" and had included 350 live classical music concerts involving artists like Anthony Kearns, Des Keogh, Celine Byrne and Iarla Ó Lionáird.[16] The 2021 program was also modified due to COVID-19 restrictions and included a number of free open-air recitals in Lismore, Dungarvan, Youghal and Waterford.[17]

The 2022 event included a free open-air concert in Fermoy, as well as concerts from Maurice Steger, Giovanni Bellucci, and Irish Baroque Orchestra.[18]

Past productions

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Neil Fisher . 9 June 2017 . L'elisir d'amore at Lismore Castle, Co Waterford . The Times.
  2. Web site: Lismore Music Festival: A chorus of young singers . Irish Examiner . 9 May 2013 . 30 June 2024 . Lismore Music Festival [..] has been developed by opera production team, Jennifer O’Connell and Dieter Kaegi, both formerly of Opera Ireland .
  3. Web site: Festival homepage . Blackwater Valley Opera Festival . blackwatervalleyoperafestival.com . https://web.archive.org/web/20180226213312/https://blackwatervalleyoperafestival.com/ . 26 February 2018 . Building on the legacy of the Lismore Opera Festival, [the] Box office opens on March 1st 2018 [for] the Blackwater Valley [Festival] May 29th to June 3rd 2018 . 12 January 2019 . live .
  4. Web site: Review: L’Italiana in Algeri - A spell-binding evening. 2018-06-02. Irish Examiner. 2019-05-22.
  5. News: The Barber of Seville, Lismore Music Festival . Irish Examiner. Mark O'Sullivan . 6 June 2012 . 25 July 2012.
  6. Web site: The Festival – Venues . Blackwater Valley Opera Festival . blackwatervalleyoperafestival.com . 15 January 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190115234236/https://blackwatervalleyoperafestival.com/the-festival/ . 15 January 2019 . dead .
  7. News: Schooled in opera . Irish Examiner . Nicki ffrench Davis . 1 June 2012 . 27 July 2012 . 27 February 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180227094333/https://aws3.irishexaminer.com/lifestyle/artsfilmtv/festivals/schooled-in-opera-195839.html . dead .
  8. Web site: Opera in the Valley. munster-express.ie. Munster Express Online. 9 May 2019.
  9. Web site: Derry born conductor at Irish Opera Festival. 21 May 2019. derryjournal.com. en. 21 May 2019.
  10. Web site: Put Bellucci on your Liszt: this week’s classical music highlight. Dervan. Michael. The Irish Times. en. 2020-01-15.
  11. Web site: Communal virtuosity is abundant in NSO’s Strauss performance. Dervan. Michael. The Irish Times. en. 2019-06-06.
  12. Web site: 2020-05-27. Updates on Summer Festivals Canceled Due to Coronavirus Outbreak. 2020-06-29. Opera Wire. en-US.
  13. Web site: 2020-03-21. Blackwater Valley Opera Festival - BVOF 2020 Cancellation. 2020-06-29. Blackwater Valley Opera Festival. en-GB.
  14. Web site: Mannion. Eleanor. 18 September 2020. 'Covid Care Concerts' tour delights care home residents. rte.ie . RTÉ News . en.
  15. Web site: Opera brings festive cheer to care home residents in Limerick. 2020-12-29. limerickleader.ie.
  16. Web site: 350 Live Concerts With World-Class Artists Bring Joy To Residents Of Hospital Settings & Care Homes. 2021-03-31. The Journal of Music. en.
  17. Web site: 2021-07-22. Blackwater Valley Opera Festival launches 2021 programme. 2021-09-06. The Avondhu Newspaper. en-GB.
  18. Web site: Cork preparing for the welcome return of popular Blackwater Valley Opera Festival . 2022-06-20 . The Corkman . en.
  19. Web site: Tenor Anthony Kearns Returns to Lismore Opera Festival to Perform in Donizetti's L'elisir d'amore. Kearns. Kirsten Fedewa & Associates, L. L. C. and Anthony. PR Newswire. en. 2020-01-15.
  20. Web site: Opera in Waterford and an Irish debut: This week’s classical music highlights. Dervan. Michael. The Irish Times. en. 2019-06-03.
  21. Web site: Images of the Day. 2021-09-06. The Irish Times. en.
  22. Web site: Orfeo ed Euridice: Gluck under canvas . 2022-06-20 . The Irish Times . en.

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