Salute to Vienna New Year's Concert in Washington
BASED ON VIENNA'S BELOVED NEUJAHRSKONZERT
December 29, 2024 3:00pm
The Music Center at Strathmore
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"A rousing afternoon of music and dance."
– Washington Post
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Salute to Vienna Cast
Strauss Symphony of America
Featuring dancers from Europaballett (Austria)
András Deák
Conductor
Hailed a “young titan” by the Montreal Gazette, Gregory Vajda is music director of the Huntsville (AL) Symphony, and is principal conductor of the Savaria Symphony in Hungary. He is artistic director of the UMZE ensemble, Budapest, and artist in residence of Ensemble Ars Nova, France. In addition to his presence on the podium, Maestro Vajda is also a gifted clarinetist and composer. For his creative and performing work he received the prestigious Bartók-Pásztory Award, and twice the award of excellence of the Artisjus Copyright Association.
Katarzyna Dondalska
Soprano
Sera Gösch was engaged as soloist at the Volksoper Wien from 2012-2015. Since then, she has performed at Vienna’s Musikverein, Konzerthaus, and State Opera, as well as across the United States, Canada, Russia, Italy, Bulgaria, Slovenia, South Korea, and Taipei. She has sung Konstanze at Les Théâtres de la Ville de Luxembourg, Het Toneelhuis Antwerpen, and at the Nationaltheater Mannheim. In 2018, in a co-production between the Hungarian State Opera and the Budapest Summer Festival, she undertook the title role in Salome, a role she performed again in 2019 and 2020 in Lucerne, Switzerland and in Budapest. In 2021, Sera performed concerts in the Golden Hall of the Wiener Musikverein and appeared in a gala at Musiktheater Wien performing selections from Lulu and Salome. In December 2022, she performed in the inaugural Salute to Vienna New Year’s Concert in Israel. She has recently performed opera concerts in Cyprus.
Franz Gürtelschmied
Tenor
Brian Cheney has gained international acclaim for his portrayal of roles including Don José in Carmen, Mario Cavaradossi in Tosca, Rodolfo in La bohème, Manrico in Il trovatore, and Canio in Pagliacci, and regularly performs concert works and oratorios throughout North America. Mr. Cheney has appeared numerous times as a soloist at Carnegie Hall since his debut at the venue in 2007, most notably, he was a featured soloist in Carnegie Hall’s Tribute to Ruth Bader Ginsberg in 2020. In 2011, he made his Lincoln Center debut as tenor soloist for the 10th anniversary of 9/11, alongside acclaimed soprano, Jessye Norman. Recent appearances include Radamès in Aida with Virginia Opera, Turiddu in Cavalleria rusticana with Toledo Opera and a guest starring role in “American Horror Story” on FX. You can also find Mr. Cheney on Audible, narrating several suspense/thriller audiobooks.