“These married couples really do make beautiful music together,” writes Mark Pratt in a Thursday (8/18) Associated Press article. This past Saturday, seven married couples were “scheduled to perform Saturday at the Boston Symphony Orchestra’s summer home at Tanglewood in western Massachusetts in what’s being touted as the most wedded pairs to perform together in the orchestra’s 134-year history. The couples performing the first two acts of the Verdi opera ‘Aida’ include the orchestra’s music director, Andris Nelsons, and his soprano wife, Kristine Opolais, in the title role…. Violeta Urmana, a mezzo-soprano who plays the role of Amneris, and her husband, Alfredo Nigro, a tenor who plays the messenger—are also joined in matrimonial bliss. Six of the couples perform with the orchestra, and eight are in the Tanglewood Festival Chorus, the orchestra’s all-volunteer choir…. ‘I think it’s pretty cool,’ said Cathy Basrak, a viola player with the BSO who’s been married to timpanist Tim Genis since 2003. ‘But … I always knew there were a lot of married couples in the BSO.’ … Getting so many married couples on stage together wasn’t planned, BSO officials said. While going over the roster of more than 240 performers, several staffers noticed that the event was also a celebration of conjugal bliss.” Said Nelsons, “Without question, such a family-like atmosphere adds levels to our music-making together.”
Posted August 22, 2016
