by Antonio Caldara 

Saturday, June 15, 2024 at 2:30pm

In the summer of 1734, Caldara celebrated the Austrian Empress' birthday with a charming operatic gem Il giuoco del Quadriglio (The Card Game), for which the composer provided roles for the young archduchess and for his own wife Caterina.  

Featuring: Courtney Rhone, Eliza O’Malley, Daphne Touchais, and Katherine Gray 

Stage Director – Olivia Freidenreich

by Henry Purcell

Saturday, June 15, 2024 at 2:30pm

Featuring: Sara Couden, Wayne Wong, Daphne Touchais, Katherine Gray, Don Hoffman, Eliza O’Malley, Ellen St. Thomas, & Reuben Zellman

Orchestra: Martha Stoddard & Susanne Rublein - Flutes; Michael Jones & Niko Umar Durr - Violins; Nansamba Ssensalo - Viola; Daniel Strickland - Violoncello; Ryan Danley, Electric Bass Guitar

William G. Ludtke - Harpsichord 

with Sidney Ragland, Angela Jarosz, Katherine Gray, Eliza O-Malley, Ellen St. Thomas, Reuben Zellman, and Bradley Kynard

December 17, 2023, 7:00 pm.

This year’s program, curated by William Ludtke, founder of the Handel Opera Project and Music Director at FCCS, features Ottorino Respighi’s cantata “Laud to the Nativity” and other selections old and new.

July 16, 2023 at 3:30 PM

Concert given to honor the memory of Fred Porta, with Psalms by Handel, Liszt &Vivaldi, and "Come, Ye Sons of Art" by Henry Purcell.

Featuring: Sara Couden, Jennifer Mitchell, Reuben Zellman, and Bradley Kynard

February 26, 2023 at 2:30PM

JEPTHTHA by G. F. Handel. First presented in concert form at Covent Garden theatre on 26 February 1752.

Featuring: Jonathan Smucker, Angela Jarosz, Reuben Zellman, Kathleen Miller, Bradley Kynard, Jennifer Mitchell

December 18th, 2022 at 2pm

Magnificat by Randall Thompson, an excerpt from Hodie by Ralph Vaughan-Williams, additional music from the Baroque,and other 20th Century American composers...

Featuring: Daphne Touchais, Jennifer Mitchell, Elizabeth Baker, Kathleen Miller, & Bradley Kynard

June 11, 2022 at 2:30pm

Semele by G.F. Handel 

First Church of Christ, Scientist, 2619 Dwight way

Berkeley, CA 

Featuring: Angela Jarosz, Sara Couden,

Ellen St. Thomas, Shannon Arcilla,

Andrew Green, Reuben Zellman, Don Hoffman, & Wayne Wong 

Flutes: Martha Stoddard

& Susanne Rublein; Violins: Victor Romasevich

& Michael Jones; Viola: Nansamba Ssensalo; Violoncello: Paul Rhodes

Harpsichord: Michael Peterson

February 13, 2022 at 2:30pm

Acis and Galatea by G. F. Handel 

First Church of Christ, Scientist, 2619 Dwight Way in Berkeley 

Featuring: Daphne Touchais, Andrew Green, & David Peterson

December 19th, 2021 at 2pm

First Church of Christ, Scientist

2619 Dwight Way in Berkeley

Featuring: Daphne Touchais, Kathleen Moss Miller, Jennifer Mitchell, & Bradley Kynard

Victor Romasevich & Michael Jones – Violins

Leighton Fong - Violoncello

Sunday, October 17, 2021 at 2pm

ORPHÉE DESCENDANT AUX ENFERS by Marc-Antoine Charpentier

COFFEE CANTATA by J. S. Bach 

Featuring: Angela Jarosz, David Oorbeck, Wayne Wong, & Reuben Zellman

June 27, 2021 at 2pm

HANDEL, BACH, & SCARLATTI 

Featuring: Angela Jarosz, Kathleen Miller, and Bradley Kynard

Instrumentalists: Victor Romasevich, Michael Jones, Felicity McCarthy, Paul Rhodes, and Michael Peterson

March 8, 2020 at 7PM

TAMERLANO

by G. F. Handel

Featuring: Elizabeth Baker, Angela Jarosz,

Bradley Kynard, David Oorbeck

& Reuben Zellman

Orchestra:

Martha Stoddard, Susanne Rublein,

Victor Romasevich, Michael Jones,

Stephen Levintow & Lewis Patzner

Michael Peterson at the Harpsichord

December 15, 2019 at 2PM

First Church of Christ, Scientist, 2619 Dwight Way in Berkeley

Featuring: Elizabeth Baker, Ben Brady,

Katherine Gray, Chelsea Hollow, Bradley Kynard,

Kathleen Miller, & David Oorbeck 

Victor Romasevich & Michael Jones: Violins

Lewis Patzner: Violoncello

June 16, 2019 at 2 PM 

L’Enfant Prodigue by Claude Debussy

Featuring: Angela Jarosz, Michael Desnoyers & Bradley Kynard   

March 17, 2019 at 2PM

Featuring: Bradley Keynard, David Oorbeck, Katherine Gray, Sebastien Cuevas, and William G. Ludtke

January 6th, 2019, 2PM & 7PM 

The Little Match Girl by Gordon Getty 

with extended excerpts from

Amahl and the Night Visitors by Gian-Carlo Menotti 

and

The Lark Ascending by Ralph Vaughan Williams 

Featuring: Leslie Katter, Diana Kehrig, Bradley Kynard, and Ben Brady  

December 9th, 2018 at 2PM

Featuring: Silvie Jensen, Bradley Kynard, Kathleen Moss, Eliza O’Malley, & Ben Brady

Victor Romasevich & Michael Jones – Violins

Paul Rhodes - Violoncello

William G. Ludtke at the Organ

October 28, 2018 at 2PM

Original Compositions by William G. Ludtke

Featuring: Elizabeth Baker, Michael Jones, Bradley Kynard, Nanette McGuinness, and Paul Rhodes

April 15, 2018 at 7PM

SERSE by George Frideric Handel

2601 Durant Avenue in Berkeley

Featuring: Elizabeth Baker, Eliza O’Malley, Kathleen Moss Miller, Jennifer Mitchell, Bradley Kynard, and Ben Brady

Martha Stoddard, Susanne Rublein

Victor Romasevich, Michael Jones

Stephen Levintow & Paul Rhodes

Michael Peterson at the Harpsichord

Sunday, December 10, 2017 

VOM HIMMEL HOCH by J. S. Bach

First Church of Christ, Scientist

2619 Dwight Way in Berkeley 

Featuring:  Elizabeth Baker, Nanette McGuiness, Eliza O’Malley, David Oorbeck, & David Peterson

Victor Romasevich & Michael Jones - Violins              William G. Ludtke at the Organ

April 30, 2017

Works by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart 

Featuring: Vanessa Aldrich, Elizabeth Baker, Michael Desnoyers, Kathleen Moss Miller, Eliza O’Malley, Nanette McGuinness, David Peterson, and Christina Swindlehurst-Chan with

Victor Romasevich, Michael Jones

Paul Rhodes and William Ludtke at the Organ

January 29, 2017

Giulio Cesare in Egitto by G. F. Handel

with English Dialogue

Featuring: Elizabeth Baker as Cleopatra

Martin Bell as Caesar

Kathleen Miller as Cornelia

Michael Desnoyers as Sextus

David Peterson as Ptolemy

Thomas James as Achillas 

Chamber orchestra conducted by William Ludtke

October 23, 2016

Elizabeth Baker in Recital

Music by Handel, Vivaldi, Rossini, and Gluck

Ensemble conducted by William Ludtke 

The Abduction from the Seraglio by W.A. Mozart 

Featuring: Eliza O'Malley, Chelsea Hollow, Michael Desnoyers, Ryan Matos and Nathan Savant 

In conjunction with Berkeley Chamber Opera 

Chamber Orchestra conducted by William Ludtke

January 24, 2016

Tolomeo by G. F. Handel

Featuring: 

Elizabeth Baker as Tolomeo

Sara Hagenbuch as Seleuce

Nanette McGuinness as Elisa

Deborah Rosengrauss as Alessandro

Martin Bell as Araspe 

Jupiter String Quartet

Michael Peterson - Harpsichord

William Ludtke, Conductor

December 5 & 6, 2015 

Amahl and the Night Visitors by Gian-Carlo Menotti 

Mother – Diana Kehrig

Amahl – Aydin Asgari Marchiel

Kaspar – David Oorbeck

Melchior – Martin Bell

Balthazar – David Peterson

The Page – Arman Asgari Marchiel

William Ludtke, conductor                

June 7, 2015

La Clemenza di Tito by W. A. Mozart

with Berkeley Chamber Opera

Featuring: Michael Desnoyers, Eliza O’Malley, Elizabeth Baker, Kathleen Moss, Shannon Latimer, Martin Bell

Chorus:  Elizabeth Butler, Cyril Drame, John Grant, Katherine Gray, Dee Hoover, Curtis James, Kim James, June Melchior, David Oorbeck, David Peterson 

William Ludtke, Conductor

May 10, 2015

Cantatas by Carl Philipp Emmanuel Bach, Antonio Caldara, Giacomo Carissimi, George F. Handel

Featuring: Nanette McGuinness, Soprano; David Oorbeck, Tenor; William Sauerland, Countertenor; 

with the Albany Consort  

January 25, 2015 

ADMETO by G. F. Handel

Featuring:  Admeto – Billy Sauerland

Alceste   – Vanessa Langer

Hercules – Martin Bell

Trasimede  – Michael Mohammed

Antigone  – Sara Hagenbuch

Meraspe – David Peterson  

December 13, 2014

Amahl and the Night Visitors by Gian Carlo Menotti

Featuring:  Mother – Kathleen Moss; Amahl – Aydin Asgari Marchiel; Kaspar – David Oorbeck; Melchior – Martin Bell; Balthazar – David Peterson; The Page – Arman Asgari Marchiel

May 2014

Médée by Luigi Cherubini (1797)

Featuring: Médée – Eliza O’Malley; Jason – Brian Thorsett; Dircé – Sara Hagenbuch; Créon – Martin Bell; Néris – Kathleen Moss; 1ére Femme – Erin Findley; 2éme Femme – Krista Wigle; Le Coryphée – Dee Hoover; The children - Arman Asgari Marchiel
and Aydin Asgari Marchiel

Chorus: Dee Hoover, Shreya Condamoor, Sofia Chandler-Freed, David Oorbeck, Curt James, Pete Smyth & Tony Mauro; Stage Direction – Kimberley James; Production Assistant – Bruce Dowliing

Flutes: Martha Stoddard & Jooeun Lim; Bassoon: Katsunori Terada; Violins: Victor Romasevich & Michael Jones; Viola: Stephen Levintow; Violoncello: Paul Rhodes; Contrabass Viol; Richard Duke

Conductor: William G. Ludtke

January 2014

Rodelinda by G. F. Handel

Featuring: Christa Pfeiffer - Rodelinda; Michael Mohammed - Bertarido; Kindra Scharich - Eduige; Jonathan Smucker - Grimoaldo; 

with Anthony P. Martin & Christina Owens, violin; Thomas Chow, viola, Paul Rhodes, cello, Jonathan Salzedo, harpsichord, Martha Stoddard & Rachel Adams, flute

William G. Ludtke conducting

September 2013

Concert of Bach, Handel, Mozart

Coffee Cantata by J.S. Bach

"Allor ch'io dissi addio" by G.F. Handel

The Impresario by Mozart

Featuring: Nanette McGuinness, Brett Ruona, David Peterson, and David Oorbeck, Naomi Silva, Samantha McCurry, David Oorbeck & Thomas James with the Jupiter Ensemble, Martha Stoddard, and Rachel Adams, flutes, and Susie Fong, harpsichord. William G. Ludtke conducting

May 5, 2013

Le Nozze di Figaro by W.A. Mozart

Featuring: Andrew White - Figaro; Erin Findley - Susanna; David Auerbach - Count; Samantha McCurry - Countess; Emily Markoe - Cherubino  

David Oorbeck - Basilio/ Don Curzio; Sarah Hagenbuch -  Marcellina; Naomi Sylva - Barbarina;   Alexander Tarcynski - Antonio; Pete Smyth - Bartolo; Taron Hensley and Meredith Tate - Narrators; With the Jupiter String Ensemble and Martin Morley at the piano.

Conducted by William G. Ludtke

January 27, 2013

Orphée et Euridice by Christoph W.R. von Gluck 

Featuring: Jonathan Smucker - Orphee; Erin Findley - Euridice; Christa Pfeiffer - Amor; Samantha McCurry - Blessed Spirit; Jupiter String Quartet, Noah Usher, flute, Jessica Schaeffer, harp, Janice Mercer, harpsichord. William Ludtke, conducting

October 28, 2012

Fall Benefit Concert

Operatic Excerpts by Handel, Purcell, Stravinsky & Mozart 

Featuring: Samantha McCurry, Emily Markoe, Brett Ruona (sopranos); Jonathan Smucker - tenor; Paul Murray - bass-baritone and Noah Usher - Flute

William G. Ludtke at the piano 

September 2012

Acis & Galatea by Handel

Featuring: Jonathan Smucker as Acis, Christa Pfeiffer as Galatea, Paul Murray as Polyphemus

AND

Dido & Aeneas by Purcell

Featuring: Kathleen Moss as Dido, Martin Bell as Aeneas, Jennifer Paulino as Belinda, Paul Murray as the Sorcerer, Emily Markoe & Samantha McCurry as Attendants, Michael Mohammed & Curtis James as Warlocks                     

January 2012 

Giulio Cesare in Egitto by Handel

Featuring: David Auerbach as Giulio Cesare

Nanette McGuinness as Cleopatra

Paul Murray as Tolomeo

Kindra Scharich as Cornelia

Jonathan Smucker as Sesto