Gotham Early Music Scene new showcase – “Global Roots: Mi Alma, Mi Voz, Mi Corazón” – will be headlined by Argentine-Armenian mezzo-soprano Solange Merdinian, Opera Wire reports.
It will first be presented will take place at St. Ignatius of Antioch Episcopal Church in Manhattan on June 3. There will also be a June 4 performance at the Jamaica Performing Arts Center followed by a June 5 presentation at St. Philip’s Episcopal Church in Brooklyn.
Merdinian will be joined by violinist Dongmyung Ahn, guitarist Dusan Balarin, viola de gamba player Patricia Ann Neely, and percussionist Rex Benincasa. The repertory will explore folk and oral musical traditions in both Spanish and Armenian.
“By using period instruments, our Global Roots program also explores the intersection of folk music with Baroque style to show what is possible when we expand our lens on early music to include popular and cross-cultural idioms,” said Open Gates Project Co-Director Michele Kennedy, in an official press statement. “We envision this program to be a conversation across languages, genres, and cultural traditions that can help to broaden our collective sense of early music: what it sounds like, where it comes from, and how powerful it can be when we can all find personal reflections of ourselves in musical traditions presented on the stage.”
Miami based American-Armenian-Argentine singer Solange Merdinian has garnered an international reputation for her versatility and interpretation as a recitalist, chamber musician, and opera singer in repertoire ranging from baroque to contemporary, folk, tango, cabaret, and world music.
Highlights include 2022 guest soloist with Firdaus Orchestra at the World Expo Dubai, celebrating International Woman’s Day; Carnegie Hall, Weill Recital Hall Solo Recital Debut in 2021; Winner of the Pro Musicis Competition 2019; critically praised “ tour de force” principal role in Maria de Buenos Aires, Opera Tango by Piazzolla; singing at Madison Square Garden in NYC, representing Argentina with the National Anthem; and French pop debut for the Hollywood movie The Hundred-foot Journey: “My mind is a stranger without you”, and a special guest performer at the UN General Assembly for India’s 70th Independence Day with renowned multi-award winner composer and singer AR Rahman.
