In the KMFA studios: Robert Kyr and Ryan Heller

~posted by Dianne Donovan, KMFA mid-day announcer and host of Classical Austin

In last week’s episode of KMFA’s Classical Austin, I had the pleasure of interviewing composer Robert Kyr and Chorus Austin’s Artistic Director, Ryan Heller.  They offered a closer look at an event that is part of the Light/The Holocaust and Humanity Project. 

If you missed that episode, you can hear the interview portion again here, on the KMFA website.

~posted by Dianne Donovan, KMFA announcer and producer of Classical Austin

Mezzo-soprano Denyce Graves visits the KMFA studios!

~posted by Dianne Donovan, KMFA announcer and producer of Classical Austin

What a thrill it was to hear the great American mezzo-soprano Denyce Graves with the Austin Symphony Orchestra. While it was an all-French program, it was a rare treat to have music from such different sources. It was interesting hearing the differences in the timbre Ms. Graves’ voice in Ravel’s hauntingly sumptuous and exotic Shéherazade to the vocal colors she used in the arias, which were delivered in full operatic throttle. There were a few sobs heard as she sang Saint-Saens’ “Mon coeur s’ouvre à ta voix” from Samson et Dalila, but when she came back on stage to sing arias from another one of her signature roles, Carmen, we had a taste of the opera itself. In the Habanera, “L’amour est un oiseaux rebelle,” Ms. Graves gave us some very creative, playful phrasing the likes of which I had not yet heard on recordings.

The Austin Symphony under the direction of Maestro Peter Bay was in fine form with the soloist and in the instrumental pieces, the highlight for me being, Maurice Ravel’s, “La Valse.”

Denyce Graves and KMFA's Dianne Donovan

[Dianne Donovan had the great honor of interviewing Ms. Graves while she was in Austin for her performance with the Austin Symphony. If you missed that episode of Classical Austin, you can listen to it again here.]

~posted by Dianne Donovan, KMFA announcer and producer of Classical Austin

 

Preview of ALO’s Lucia di Lammermoor — an interview with the stars

This Saturday, KMFA will be broadcasting the ALO production of Lucia di Lammermoor LIVE from the Long Center!

Maestro Richard Buckley, Dianne Donovan, Lyubov Petrova, and Doug Scholz-Carlson

On this week’s Classical Austin, host Dianne Donovan had the great pleasure of interviewing some of the artists and artistic leaders who are so instrumental in creating this glorious operatic presentation.  She chatted with the star,  soprano Lyubov Petrova, as well as the conductor, Maestro Richard Buckley, and Stage Director, Doug Scholz Carlson.

If you missed this episode of Classical Austin, you can hear the interview portion again here.

~posted by Alison @ KMFA  :-)

Even rock stars tune in to KMFA!

~posted by Sarah Addison, KMFA Production and Membership Associate

Guess who dropped by the KMFA studios yesterday? Austin’s own slice of English Rock n’ Roll, Ian McLagan. He’s a resident of Central Texas and a supporter of KMFA, and we invited him to the KMFA studios for a friendly tour.

Ian’s well known for being the keyboard player for two of my favorite English groups, Small Faces and The Faces, as well as his most recent group, The Bump Band. Everyone at the station was thrilled to meet him, and when he arrived yesterday he couldn’t have been nicer. He even gave us copies of his new album Never Say Never, which has taken up permanent residence in my car’s stereo. He and KMFA announcer Carmel O’Donovan sat down in Studio 2000 to have a chat and record a testimonial about why he enjoys KMFA. See, even rock stars are tuned in to KMFA! Stay tuned, the finished spot will be on the air and online soon…

And the Beat Goes On …

We all know that Dianne Donovan, KMFA’s mid-day announcer, is a classical-music lover. But did you know she sings in a jazz trio?

That’s right, Dianne is one of The Beat Divas. Famous for their singing/cooking classes at Central Market, they recently celebrated a new CD release, called Dishin’ With the Divas: Songs of Food, Love & Mayhem, and they presented several of these songs during the opening ceremonies of the International Association of Culinary Professionals conference. They caught the attention of a New York Times’ writer… and they were featured in yesterday’s edition! You can read the whole article by clicking here.

They were also just featured in the Austin Chronicle, and that article is also on their website.

Here’s their new video for the song “Sweet Treat,” featuring Central Market Chef Robert Jenkins.