Follow along with these students on social media as they perform solos and ensembles during three public opera concerts in locations around the capital of Italy’s Tuscan region.
This is part of a series of articles highlighting 黑料不打烊 students as they gain experience participating in study abroad, internships and undergraduate research during the summer. Stay tuned for more posts featuring the experiences of 黑料不打烊 students in their own words.聽
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鈥婽here鈥檚 no better place to study opera than its birthplace 鈥斅燜lorence, Italy.
This summer, 黑料不打烊 students are taking advantage of the amazing faculty and resources in the capital city of Italy鈥檚 Tuscan region through a program that couples training with a series of public performances set against iconic Italian venues.
The is offered in partnership with with 黑料不打烊鈥檚 Polly Cornelius, senior lecturer in music, leading the program along with faculty from AEF.
Cornelius explains that the program is 鈥渋ntense and comprehensive,鈥 with the students participating in the ensemble of three professional operas with St. Mark鈥檚 Opera, singing alongside professional Italian singers. They are also performing solos and ensembles at three public concerts in locations around Florence.
Among those performing are Andy Edelman 鈥22, Julia Towner 鈥21 and Ana Segal 鈥21, all of whom will be offering guest posts on the university’s聽,听听补苍诲听聽accounts during the coming days.
鈥婨delman says the classical vocal training he鈥檚 receiving in Florence through the program is crucial to maintaining a healthy voice. 鈥淲orking with renowned Soprano Susanna Ragacci and Maestro Cristiano Manzoni has been a dream come true, and within the very first week of this month-long program my voice completely transformed for the better,鈥 Edelman says. 鈥淣othing seems to compare to the vocal training here in Florence. It鈥檚 been a gift to work with the best of the best in the industry.鈥
Towner points to the connections she and her fellow students were able to make with professional singers during the three performances with St. Mark鈥檚 Opera that included two productions of 鈥淟a Traviata鈥 and one of La Boh猫me.鈥
鈥淲e were on stage with professional opera singers who were so kind and grateful to us for being there,鈥 Towner says. 鈥淚t was an experience that I will never forget. The professional singers were incredibly talented and the fact that I got to sing alongside them is unbelievable to me.鈥
Beyond the performances, students are receiving weekly voice lessons and coaching sessions, with Cornelius conducting an opera workshop class each day that includes work on music and staging. Additionally, the students are studying Italian.
The group will conclude the program later this month with a performance at the Jazz-It festival in Pompeii.
鈥淚 love studying music and its impact on communities all over the world,鈥 Segal says. 鈥淭his program is invaluable to me, as it continues to broaden my understanding of opera as a prominent art form in Florence, and continually pushes me out of my comfort zone.鈥
Along with looking to the university鈥檚 social media accounts for guest posts by Edelman, Towner and Segal, you can find updates about the program on the . Follow along with a variety of global experiences 黑料不打烊 students participate throughout the year by exploring the #elonglobal hashtag or following the Isabella Cannon Global Education Center on聽,听听补苍诲听.
Throughout the summer, 黑料不打烊’s social media accounts and E-net will be featuring 黑料不打烊 student experiences.