Rochester, NY — When soprano Nicole Cabell and baritone Nathaniel Webster appear at Carnegie’s Zankel Hall next month, they will share a special bond that goes beyond singing on the same prestigious New York stage. On Friday, January 27 — under the auspices of the Marilyn Horne Foundation’s festival, The Song Continues…2006 — the voices of Cabell and Webster will reflect the years of careful guidance under their esteemed voice professor, John Maloy at the Eastman School of Music.
Since receiving her bachelor’s of music degree in 2001 from the Eastman School, Cabell has gone on to international acclaim, winning in 2005 the prestigious BBC Cardiff Singer of the World Competition. Her Eastman colleague, Nathaniel Webster, graduated from the School in 1997, and has developed an international reputation for opera, concert, and recital performances. This appearance marks his Carnegie debut. In addition, baritone Ian Greenlaw (another Maloy student who graduated in 1995) will be featured in a duo-recital on Wednesday, January 25.
A member of the Eastman voice faculty since 1966 and now professor emeritus, Maloy has quietly produced some of the most successful vocalists performing today, including Renée Fleming (MM, 1983), and Anthony Dean Griffey (MM, 2001). “I am thrilled and proud to see Nicole, Nate, and Ian’s talents recognized by Marilyn Horne Foundation,” says Maloy. “Even as students at Eastman, it was obvious to me that they possessed the qualities of talent and musicality necessary to succeed in the competitive performing world.”
Maloy graduated from Indiana University and subsequently studied at the University of Southern California. During the 1950’s, he studied at the Hochschule für Musik in Hamburg under a Fulbright grant. Maloy’s principal teachers were Anna Kaskas, Armand Tokatyan, and Sergio Nazor. After a number of years performing and recording throughout Europe as a leading tenor, Maloy returned to the United States where he continued to perform and make his reputation as a much sought-after teacher, chairing Eastman’s voice department from 1977-2002. He also is a member of Pi Kappa Lambda, the National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS), and the National Screening Committee for Fulbright Awards in Voice.
Professionally, John Maloy and Marilyn Horne go back together over many years. Maloy credits the Horne Foundation for the resurgence of the vocal recital after it began to die out in the 1970’s. “The Marilyn Horne Foundation gives these young people an opportunity to perform and be heard in venues that they might otherwise never see.”
The January 25 and 27 concerts are part of the week-long, six-event series of recitals and master classes hosted by Ms. Horne. Special guest artist on the January 27 concert will be mezzo-soprano Frederica von Stade. Current Eastman graduate student Mark Webster (no relation to Nathaniel) from the studio of Carol Webber, has been accepted into the Robert White master class on January 25, and Eastman senior Jonathan Michie has been chosen as an alternate.
For complete information on concerts, master classes, times, and tickets, visit www.carnegiehall.org, or www.marilynhornefdn.org.
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