Echoes of Nature (Live from Shakespeares Church) Laetitia Grimaldi, Lucía Caruso, Pedro H. da Silva, Bruce O'Neil & Orchestra of the Swan

• Lucía Caruso (b. 1980), Pedro H. da Silva: Echoes of Nature:
• 1 Caruso, Silva: Echoes of Nature: I. Un bimbo cammina in un meleto (Live from Shakespeare's Church) 04:45
• 2 Caruso, Silva: Echoes of Nature: II. Lune d’argent (Live from Shakespeare's Church) 05:15
• Lucía Caruso: Echoes of Nature:
• 3 Caruso: Echoes of Nature: III. Aube d’automne (Live from Shakespeare's Church) 04:14
• Pedro H. da Silva: Echoes of Nature:
• 4 Silva: Echoes of Nature: IV. Un cielo vuoto (Live from Shakespeare's Church) 04:57
• 5 Silva: Echoes of Nature: V. Une ribambelle d’oiseaux (Live from Shakespeare's Church) 06:17
• William Shakespeare, Lucía Caruso: Nine Shakespeare Songs:
• 6 Shakespeare, Caruso: Nine Shakespeare Songs: I. Titania’s Lullaby (Live from Shakespeare's Church) 03:35
• William Shakespeare, Pedro H. da Silva: Nine Shakespeare Songs:
• 7 Shakespeare, Silva: Nine Shakespeare Songs: II. When Daffodils Begin to Peer (Live from Shakespeare's Church) 03:55
• William Shakespeare, Lucía Caruso, Pedro H. da Silva: Nine Shakespeare Songs:
• 8 Shakespeare, Caruso, Silva: Nine Shakespeare Songs: III. Double, Double Toil and Trouble (Live from Shakespeare's Church) 06:19
• 9 Shakespeare, Caruso, Silva: Nine Shakespeare Songs: IV. Willow Song (Live from Shakespeare's Church) 03:55
• William Shakespeare, Lucía Caruso: Nine Shakespeare Songs:
• 10 Shakespeare, Caruso: Nine Shakespeare Songs: V. Sigh No More (Live from Shakespeare's Church) 02:45
• William Shakespeare, Pedro H. da Silva, Lucía Caruso: Nine Shakespeare Songs:
• 11 Shakespeare, Silva, Caruso: Nine Shakespeare Songs: VI. Ophelia’s Madness (Live from Shakespeare's Church) 05:13
• William Shakespeare, Lucía Caruso: Nine Shakespeare Songs: Nine Shakespeare Songs:
• 12 Shakespeare, Caruso: Nine Shakespeare Songs: VII. Pardon, Goddess of the Night (Live from Shakespeare's Church) 02:43
• William Shakespeare, Pedro H. da Silva, Lucía Caruso: Nine Shakespeare Songs:
• 13 Shakespeare, Silva, Caruso: Nine Shakespeare Songs: VIII. O Mistress Mine (Live from Shakespeare's Church) 03:59
• William Shakespeare, Pedro H. da Silva: Nine Shakespeare Songs:
• 14 Shakespeare, Silva: Nine Shakespeare Songs: IX. Ariel’s Song (Live from Shakespeare's Church) 06:51
• Total Runtime 01:04:43

Info for Echoes of Nature (Live from Shakespeares Church)

Echoes of Nature features two world premiere symphonic song cycles by Lucía Caruso & Pedro H. da Silva recorded live from Shakespeare’s church in Stratford-upon-Avon. The album features soprano Laetitia Grimaldi and composers Lucía Caruso on piano and celesta, and Pedro H. da Silva on Portuguese guitar, joined by the Royal Shakespeare Company music director Bruce O’Neil conducting the Orchestra & Choir of the Swan.

The music draws on classical techniques, improvisation, and elements from various cultures and eras. Echoes from the Renaissance, Baroque, Romantic opera, and Impressionism pervade the two cycles, as well as new sonorities created by celesta and Portuguese guitar with choir and orchestra. The first song cycle, “Echoes of Nature,” is based on poems by Korean polymath Ahae translated into Italian and French, ranging from a child discovering the world, to the silvery moon at a lake, an autumn dawn, a sunset over the mountains, to all of creation singing glory to the eternal. The “Nine Shakespeare Songs” were selected from different plays—comedies, tragedies, and fantasies— which the Stratford-upon-Avon Herald dubbed “a major new work."

Laetitia Grimaldi, soprano
Lucía Caruso, celesta
Pedro H. da Silva, Portuguese guitar
Orchestra of the Swan
Bruce O'Neil, conductor

Recorded at Church of the Holy Trinity, Stratford-upon-Avon, UK. June 24th and 25th 2019
Mixing and mastering engineer, Mike Tierney
Editing and mixing engineer, Pedro H. da Silva
Recording engineer, Terry Carter

Laetitia Grimaldi
Since her Carnegie Hall debut in 2013, Laetitia Grimaldi has sung in many renowned halls, opera stages and international festivals worldwide: Kennedy Center (USA), Shanghai & Forbidden City Concert Halls (China), Festival Croisements (China) Festival Pitic (Mexico), Festival Musica Classica (Canada), Verbier Festival (Switzerland), Ravinia Festival (USA), Festival d’Aix-en-Provence (France), Melbourne Festival (Australia). ​

In 2017 she was awarded the first prize in three international competitions:

1st prize-Grand Prix at the Concours International de Mélodies Françaises in Montreal, Canada, the 1st prize at the Concours International Robert Massard in Bordeaux, France as well as the 1st Prize at the Concours International Pro Musicis in Paris. ​

Born in France, Laetitia Grimaldi spent her childhood in Lisbon and London. After beginning her vocal studies with Teresa Berganza, she continued her education with Lorraine Nubar in New York City, first at the Manhattan School of Music, followed by a Masters degree from the Juilliard School. ​

She has received mentorship with some of the world's leading artists, including Sir Thomas Allen, Dame Emma Kirkby, Alfred Brendel, Ileana Cotrubas, François le Roux and Dalton Baldwin. In 2016, Ms Grimaldi changed to soprano under the mentorship of the German baritone, Matthias Goerne. ​

Laetitia Grimaldi has had the privilege to work with conductors and artists such as William Christie, Leonardo Garcia Alarcon, Vlad Iftinka, Antoine Glatard, Jorge Parodi, Ryan Brown, Anne Manson and Carlos Miguel Prieto, Pablo Sainz Villegas and Malcolm Martineau. ​

She has appeared in many opera productions internationally, performing the role of Nancy in Albert Herring in Tampa, Florida, Dorothée in Massenet’s Cendrillon in Belgium, Lucilla in La Scala di Seta in New York, the American premiere of Sir Peter Maxwell Davies’ Kommilitonen in New York. She made her debut at the Verbier Festival in Switzerland with the role of Marcelina in Le Nozze di Figaro. She sang the title role of Rameau’s Les Fêtes de l’Hymen et de l’Amour at the Kennedy Center of Washington DC. Once again, she was invited to the Verbier Festival to perform the role of Musetta in Puccini's La Bohème. Recently she sang the title role of Proserpina in the modern revival of J.Jommelli’s opera Cerere Placata. ​

In October 2018 Naxos released a DVD of the opera Les Fêtes de l’Hymen et de L’amour in which Laetitia Grimaldi performs the title role. ​

Recent performances include extensive recital tours in China, Australia, New Zealand, Mexico, South Africa, Canada, the USA and throughout Europe as well as performances with orchestras in Montreal, Brasilia, Cape Town and the Château de Versailles. ​

Upcoming performances include singing with the KZN Philharmonic orchestra for an opera Gala followed by recital tours in South Africa. She has been invited to give extensive solo recitals in China, Guangdon and Shenyang as well as Australia and New Zealand with pianist Ammiel Bushakevitz also presenting masterclasses at the universities of Queensland, Adelaide, Perth and Wellington in 2021.

For the release of her upcoming CD recording, presenting female composers of the Parisian Belle Epoque, she will be touring giving recital concerts in China, France, United States, Canada, Germany and Egypt.

Booklet for Echoes of Nature (Live from Shakespeares Church)