BARITONE RECEIVES IRCPA CAREER BLUEPRINT AWARD
AFTER MONDAY SINGING STARS CONCERT
Baritone Clarence Frazer, 30, of Toronto has been named recipient of the second annual IRCPA Career Blueprint Award.
The announcement was made Monday night by Li Koo of the International Resource Centre for Performing Artists, following the concert Singing Stars: The Next Generation. The event was presented by the IRCPA at Zoomer Hall in Toronto, and broadcast live on The New Classical FM. All 10 participants had taken part in an Encounter with Brett Polegato in October. Mr. Frazer was chosen as recipient by Polegato, who was on hand to congratulate him.
On Monday night, the 10 young professional singers performed operatic and oratorio arias with pianist Rachel Andrist. All had received a scholarship in the name of an important Canadian musician past or present, to work with Polegato in the intensive one-day Encounter.
Frazer sang the lyrical Evening Star aria from Wagner’s Tannhauser. He had received a scholarship in the name of another baritone, Canada’s late internationally renowned Verdi specialist, Louis Quilico.
Receiving the IRCPA Career Blueprint Award gives Frazer three days at the National Opera America Center in New York, where new photographs, video and audio recordings, website consultation, mentoring with professionals, and additional vital resources for artists are provided. Last year’s recipients were soprano Natalya Gennadi, who went on to portray the title role in the new opera Oksana G; and mezzo-soprano Marjorie Maltais, who is being featured as soloist in a number of upcoming oratorio performances.
The performers in the Singing Stars: The Next Generation concert were the following:
Sopranos: Brianna de Santis, Vania Margani, Valérie Bélanger
Mezzo-soprano: Beste Kalender
Tenors: Asitha Tennekoon, Jean-Philippe Lazure
Baritones: Andrey Andreychik, Bradley Christensen, Clarence Frazer, David Diston
CLARENCE FRAZER (www.domoneyartists.com/clarence-frazer-baritone.html)
Originally from Mississauga, ON, Clarence Frazer made his debut in 2016, with Pacific Opera Victoria as Figaro in Il barbiere di Siviglia, a role he reprised with the Saskatoon Opera. With Canadian Stage/Soundstreams Canada, he appeared as Jean in the North American premiere of Philippe Boesmans’ opera Julie; and portrayed James Isbister in the Canadian Opera Company’s acclaimed 2017 production of Louis Riel, with further performances at National Arts Centre and L’Opéra de Quebec. Highlights for the current season include two guest appearances with the Windsor Symphony: Messiah and Figaro in Le Nozze di Figaro (concert version) in 2018.
Frazer is an alumnus of Calgary Opera’s Emerging Artists Program and the Canadian Opera Company’s Ensemble Studio, with which he made his mainstage role debut as Figaro in Il barbiere di Siviglia (“very polished…made for the part” wrote John Gilks of Operaramblings). Other COC credits include Schaunard in La BoheĚme, and Guglielmo in CosiĚ fan tutte.
The IRCPA acknowledges with thanks the support of the Ontario Arts Council, the Toronto Arts Council, the Jack Weinbaum Charitable Foundation, private donors, the Canadian Opera Company, THE 519, 918 Bathurst, Canadian Music Centre, and corporate partners La Scena Musicale, Lula Lounge, The Wholenote and The New Classical FM.
The International Resource Centre for Performing Artists (http://ircpa.net) is a non-profit, charitable organization founded in 1983 by award-winning, innovative artist manager/producer Ann Summers Dossena. Its goal is to assist Canada’s musicians to achieve sustainable, fulfilling careers that meet or exceed their goals. To this end, it offers Encounters with Employers or experts, including artists and staff from the Metropolitan Opera and Teatro alla Scala for singers; Workshops with industry leaders, and monthly Round-Table Discussions for a wide range of musicians and support workers in the industry, offering straightforward and current information, and entrepreneurial exchanges.
The IRCPA’s next event is three music industry workshops, November 25, and December 2 and 3. Details and sign-up forms are on the website.
