We have spotted two reviews of the last concert of our 2010-2011 season online. Some excerpts:
I was first very happy to see that the program included not only translations but also engaging, easy to follow notes on each composer. […] The singers and instrumentalists were solid and did what was best – let the music take the fore. My especial applause goes to Suzanne DuPlantis, Randi Marrazzo and Laura Ward, the co-founding Artistic Directors of Lyric Fest, for putting together a concert that gave us all a rich context for music of the era PIFA celebrates.
The scholarly, good-humored talks that ran through the program should have pleased any Festival committee members lurking in the audience. […] An up-and-coming French opera diva, Manon Straus Evrard, sang three settings of Japanese poems by Stravinsky. Randi Marrazzo did a beautiful job […] Randall Scarlata, was in very good form […] Every review of a Lyric Fest concert should mention pianist Laura Ward, the one member of the cast who’s on stage from the beginning to the end. […] Some of the pieces on this program were originally performed with full orchestras. When Laura Ward plays the piano version, you don’t notice anything is missing.
The first of these reviews is by a PIFA blogger from Sweden and the second is by Tom Purdom in the Broad Street Review. We are very happy to have our efforts appreciated!