Brian Major
Charismatic baritone Brian Major consistently garners praise from critics, celebrated for his enchanting “velvety voice” and commanding stage presence.
Major’s 2023-2024 season has his return to the Metropolitan Opera covering the role of Malcolm X in X: The Life and Times of Malcolm X. His schedule includes debuts with Opera Roanoke as Count Almaviva in Le nozze di Figaro, Marcello in La bohème with Florentine Opera, a concert debut with the esteemed Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and Amonasro in Aida with Opera Maine. Last season, he made a role debut as Ford in Verdi’s Falstaff with Maryland Lyric Opera and made a significant impact at The Metropolitan Opera, making his house debut as Baron Douphol in La traviata and covering Benny “Kid” Paret in Champion and Scarpia in Tosca with The Santa Fe Opera.
Mr. Major debuted as Scarpia in Tosca with Opera Columbus, Taylor in the world premiere of Undying Love with Hearing in Color in Chicago. His return to Sarasota Opera as Ezio in Atilla and Boston Lyric Opera debut as Emile Griffith in Champion further solidified his reputation as a versatile and accomplished artist. The season unfolded with a return to Opera Carolina as Amonasro in Aida and the Columbus Symphony for the role of Schaunard in La bohème. He debuted with the Schenectady Symphony Orchestra as the titular character in Don Giovanni, and noteworthy appearances at Carnegie Hall with MidAmerica Productions. He also joined Cincinnati Opera as the cover of Castor in the world premiere of Castor and Patience by Gregory Spears and Tracy K. Smith.
Additional appearances included the Princeton Festival for an Opera Gala and Opera Delaware for a concert of Shakespeare selections and a Studio Recital. He returned to Opera Grand Rapids as Gary in Douglas Pew’s Penny and participated in a filmed recital of Kurt Weill songs with Lyric Fest. Mr. Major has performed with Madison Opera for their production of La traviata as Baron Douphol and covered the role of Germont. The subsequent year saw his return to Toledo Opera as Marcello in La bohème, a South American debut as Amonasro in Aida with Teatro Municipal de São Paulo, and a slated Princeton Festival debut as Germont in La traviata (COVID19). Closing out that season was a memorable turn in the title role of Gianni Schicchi, a recital for the Shivers Concert Series, and a performance of Brahms’ Ein deutsches Requiem with The Colorado College Summer Music Festival.
Noteworthy past season credits include Mr. Major’s debut with Opera Columbus and the Columbus Symphony Orchestra in a collaborative production of Aida as Amonasro. Kirke Mechem’s Songs of the Slave in Boston Symphony Hall and a reprise of the role Amonasro in a debut with Opera Theatre of the Rockies in their twentieth-year celebration, where his voice was lauded as “honey-filled and capable of organic, dramatic expression.”
In addition to his operatic accomplishments, Mr. Major is an accomplished recitalist and concert artist. He has served as the baritone soloist in Handel’s Messiah, Vaughan Williams’ Five Mystical Songs, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9, and Mendelssohn’s Elijah to name a few.
Major’s excellence has been recognized on the competition circuit, earning him prestigious awards such as the 2022 Sullivan Foundation Award, 2nd Prize at the Harold Haugh Opera Vocal Competition, 1st prize at the Opera Ebony Vocal Competition, 3rd prize at the Annapolis Opera Vocal Competition, 2nd prize at the Opera at San Nicola Vocal Competition, 1st prize at Harlem Opera Theater’s Vocal Competition, 1st prize at the Atlanta Music Club Vocal Competition, and an Encouragement Prize at the Palm Beach Atlantic Vocal Competition. Mr. Major holds degrees from Morehouse College, Boston University, and Michigan State University.
https://www.brianmajorbaritone.com/
Noriko Yasuda
Noriko Yasuda began her career in Osaka Japan as an accompanist with the Osaka Philharmonic Orchestra and Osaka College of Music Opera House. In that capacity she worked with Seiji Ozawa, Toru Takemitsu, Luciano Pavarotti, Kiri Te Kanawa, and Alfred Kraus, among others.
Since she moved to the U.S. in 1993, she has worked with Grant Llewellyn, Harry Christophers, John Nelson, Stephen Lord, John Finney, Jeffrey Rink, F. John Adams, Martin Pearlman, and Louis Burkot. She has been invited as a guest accompanist for master classes with Jose Van Dam, Mignon Dunn, Jerry Hadley, Shirley Verret, Joseph Colaneri, Betty Buckley, Sharon Daniels, Donna Roll, and Louise Toppin.
An active vocal coach and accompanist in the Boston area, she has worked with Boston Lyric Opera, Boston Baroque, Handel and Haydn Society, Chorus Pro Musica, New England String Ensemble, and La Donna Musicale. Her credits as opera continuo are “Le Nozze di Figaro”, “Don Giovanni”, “Cosi Fan Tutte”, “L’Elisir D’Amore”, “Il Barbiere di Siviglia”, “La Cenerentola” , “Orontea”,“Alcina”, “Xerxes”, and “Dido and Aeneas.”
Currently, she is the principal coach at Longy Opera Workshop and Opera North and staff accompanist/coach at the Boston University Opera Program. In 2009 she received the George Seaman Excellence in Teaching Awards from Longy School of Music of Bard College. She and her husband baritone Robert Honeysucker regularly travel to Japan to give master classes. They had been invited by Osaka College of Music, Kobe Women’s College, Doshisha Women’s College, and Osaka University of Fine Arts where she is on the visiting faculty.
Long Okada
Long Okada is a violist and baroque violinist, currently based in Boston, Massachusetts, and enjoys a varied career as a soloist, chamber musician, orchestral musician, and teacher.
A passionate advocate for the performance of British music, he frequently programs works for viola by British composers in his recitals. He has a particular interest in the folksong revival in the early 20th century and how it shaped the classical music landscape, particularly works for string instruments, in Great Britain. He has had the honor of performing at a wide range of venues including Queen’s Hall, St Botolph without Aldgate, David Josefowitz Recital Hall, Salle de concert du Domaine Forget, Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, and Brown Hall at New England Conservatory.
An active chamber musician, he plays with flutist Nicholas Southwick in Duo Gwynne, which held an Artist Fellowship with Music for Food in the concert season 2023-2024. The Duo made their concert debut at the historic St. Botolph without Aldgate in the City of London, England, and subsequently enjoyed many performance engagements in the United Kingdom and the United States, notably celebrating the coronation of King Charles III at the Church of Holy Cross, St Pancras. He has appeared in music festivals around the world including Composers Now, Domaine Forget, Manchester Music Festival, Summer in Aldgate, and Zephyr International Chamber Music Festival. He has also had the privilege of performing with many esteemed musicians including Thomas Bowes, Bonnie Hampton, Mark Menzies, Inesa Sinkevych, and Xiao Wang.
A sought-after orchestral musician, he is a frequent guest with the viola section of the Cape Symphony and has also performed with Sainsbury Royal Academy Soloists, Nevis Ensemble, and other orchestras and chamber ensembles in North America, Europe, and Asia.
As an enthusiastic instructor with a holistic educational approach, he holds the Licentiate of the Royal Academy of Music (LRAM) and teaches viola and violin at Concord Conservatory of Music and Kingsley Montessori School in Massachusetts. He previously maintained a flourishing private studio of violin, viola, and piano students in London, U.K.
He holds a Bachelor of Music from New York University and a Master of Music from the Royal Academy of Music in London. He also holds a Postgraduate Diploma from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. His principal teachers include Danielle Farina, Karen Ritscher, Sarah Darling, Jane Atkins and Martin Outram. He has also performed in masterclasses for many renowned musicians including Désirée Elsevier, Nobuko Imai, Kim Kashkashian, and Hartmut Rohde.
https://longokada.com/about
