Alumnus performs villainous repertoire
By Julie Rausch
The concert is billed as "Samuel Ramey Sings Great Bass Arias," but when Ramey performs at 8 p.m. Tuesday, April 10, in the Century II Concert Hall, he’ll really be showing how great his talent is.
The most frequently recorded bass of our time, Ramey has performed in every major opera house in the world.
The Colby, Kan., native and WSU alumnus will be accompanied by the WSU Metropolitan Orchestra and joined by the WSU Concert Chorale and A Cappella Choir as he shares highlights of his greatest roles.
The Concert Chorale, led by associate professor Robert Glasmann, is a select 43-voice choir. A Cappella Choir, led by associate professor Tom Wine, is a mixed 78-voice chorus.
The WSU Metropolitan Orchestra, led by Michael Palmer and composed of WSU faculty, alumni and graduate students, will provide a harmony.
Also the 95-voice Wichita Community Children’s Choir, directed by Friends University’s Marilyn Killian, will join in the prologue from "Mefistofele" by Arrigo Boito.
Ramey’s critically acclaimed North American and European tours are sold out in all major cities. "Ramey’s singing is the stuff of which operatic legends are made," said a New York Post reviewer.
Harrison Boughton, professor emeritus of vocal music, has made sure he has one of the best seats in the house. Boughton recruited Ramey after hearing him sing "Old Man River" at Teller House, a popular Central City, Colo., hangout where people sang solos. Boughton offered him a scholarship on the spot and later arranged for a job at his church, which Ramey accepted for the fall 1962 semester.
Due to the unique expressiveness of his voice, many composers have had Ramey portray devils and villains. It is in this repertoire that Ramey has established a reputation unequaled in the music world. Méphistophéles in Gounod’s "Faust" has become his most performed role with more than 200 performances in 20 productions.
In 1996, he presented a sold-out concert at New York’s Avery Fisher Hall titled "A Date with the Devil," in which he sang 14 arias representing the core of his repertoire, and he continues to tour this program throughout the world.
Tickets are on sale through Central Ticket Agency, 263-4717, for $100, $75, $50 and $25. Proceeds benefit the School of Music.
