At City Opera, we choose our composers via Jury, and an anonymized competition. Akin to screen auditions at a Symphony, we invite well-qualified Canadian composers to set an identical text from our new libretto. We avoid hypothesis and mere hopefulness. In this way, we hear how the composer would set the actual libretto -- two years before opening night. Our system reduces risk.
We also use this system to reduce bias. The Jury does not know the name, age, gender, or ethnicity of the composer. Only the sound.
On Saturday 25 April, from 2 - 3pm at the Canadian Music Centre, 837 Davie Street, four different settings will be sung of an excerpt from the CHINATOWN libretto of Madeleine Thien. NB: because of COVID, this event will now be held online. Free, of course. Details to come
Please RSVP at info@cityoperavancouver.com
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