Three talented singers and a pianist will perform in Clovis on Friday, April 17 at 7 pm during The Santa Fe Opera’s annual Spring Opera Tour throughout New Mexico and west Texas. Presented by Clovis Community College and The Citizens Bank of Clovis as part of the 2008-2009 Cultural Arts Series, the concert will be held at the CCC Town Hall and is free to the public.
The first half of the program features the adaptation of The Elixir of Love, and the second half is comprised of popular arias, show tunes, and such favorites as Shenandoah and Home on the Range. Performers in this year’s tour include soprano Ashley Logan, tenor Jon-Michael Ball, baritone Michael Nyby, and pianist and music director Kirt Pavitt.
Ashley Logan was a Music Fellow at Tanglewood in 2008 where she appeared in A Little Night Music with the Boston Pops. In 2007 she was a member of the Merola Program of the San Francisco Opera.  Originally from Princeton, New Jersey, Ms. Logan holds a Master’s Degree from the University of Cincinnati, College Conservatory of Music.  Jon-Michael Ball has appeared as Don Ottavio in Don Giovanni, Pang in Turandot, and Frederic in The Pirates of Penzance with the Orlando Opera. A graduate of the Manhattan School of Music, he has performed in many productions with the school’s Opera Studio, most notably, in the world premier recording of Lee Hoiby’s A Month in the Country for Albany Records. A native of Olive Branch, Mississippi, he was a Santa Fe Opera apprentice singer in 2006 and 2008. Mr. Nyby recently made his debut with the Vancouver Opera. A native of Hamilton, Ontario, he earned a Master’s Degree in opera performance from the University of British Columbia. He will return to Santa Fe as an apprentice singer during the 2009 season.
Kirt Pavitt enters his thirteenth year as music director and pianist for the Spring Tour. His ability for assembling interesting programs well-tailored to each year’s artists ensures varied, informative and friendly concerts. Pavitt takes pride that after many years, the tour is welcomed each season in as many towns and cities as is possible to visit.
The 2009 Spring Opera Tour is supported by First Community Bank, The Guilds of The Santa Fe Opera, Inc., New Mexico Arts, a division of the Department of Cultural Affairs, the City of Santa Fe Arts Commission-1% Lodgers’ Tax, and the National Endowment for the Arts. The Spring Opera tour is a project of The Santa Fe Opera’s Education and Community Programs Department.
For more information, please contact:
 

Christy Mendoza
Cultural Arts Director
769.4950  799.5798

 
Stephanie Spencer
Cultural Arts Producer
769.4956  714.3924