User:Chestnutsmom/sandbox

American Opera Society of Chicago, Inc.

https://americanoperasocietyofchicago.org

The archives of the American Opera Society of Chicago, Inc., are on file in The Newberry Library, Chicago, as part of their permanent records.

The American Opera Society of Chicago is a 501(c)(3) organization with the mission of encouraging and supporting classical music in Chicago. We offer performance opportunities to musicians, scholarships to young singers and instrumentalists, and concert experiences for our members.

The American Opera Society of Chicago began as Opera in Our Language Foundation, Inc., a foundation incorporated in 1921 by Edith Rockefeller McCormick and Eleanor Everest Freer to promote the performance of opera sung in English.

Eleanor Everest Freer and Edith Rockefeller McCormick were also instrumental in founding the David Bispham Memorial Fund, Inc. in March 1922. This memorial fund’s focus was to honor American composers by promoting concerts of their works and by awarding the Bispham Medal. Eleanor Everest Freer was chairman of both the Opera in Our Language Foundation and of the Bispham Fund, while Edith Rockefeller McCormick served as Treasurer of both organizations.

In 1924 the Opera in Our Language Foundation, Inc. and the David Bispham Memorial Fund, Inc. merged to become the American Opera Society of Chicago, Inc..

In the early years, the Society mounted a number of original operas in English. We produced three seasons of opera in English including miniature versions of Little Women by Eleanor Freer and Peter Ibbetson by Deems Taylor. We also mounted twenty-three classic operas translated by Charles Henry Metzer, including Carmen, Martha, Marriage of Figaro, and Madame Butterfly.

In addition, we awarded the Bispham Medal to more than sixty-five composers including George Gershwin, Howard Hanson, Victor Herbert, and Deems Taylor. The first medal was awarded in 1924 to Ernest Trow Carter, for his opera The White Bird, which saw its first full performance at the Studebaker Theater, in Chicago, on March 6, 1924. (The Opera in Our Language Foundation sponsored the performance.) The last Medal for an opera was awarded around 1953 to Vittorio Giannini for The Taming of the Shrew.

In time the American Opera Society of Chicago decided that our focus should be the support of all opera in Chicago, rather than only those in English. In 1959 we purchased the first stage set for the Lyric Theatre production of Jenufa. In 1960 we joined forces with the Illinois Opera Guild and Lyric Opera Women’s Board to produce the opening night of Don Carlo and the Opera Ball. Since its inception, we have promoted membership in Lyric Opera.

In 1951 we established the Scholarship Fund for deserving young musicians of superior ability and achievement, to further their studies. This fund is supported entirely by bequests and voluntary contributions of members. Our scholarship winners number more than 200 young musicians.

_____________________________________________________________________

Bispham Memorial Medal

David Scull Bispham (January 5, 1857 – October 2, 1921) was an American operatic baritone who was a strong advocate for the performance of classical vocal music in the language of the audience. His support of opera sung in English led to the formation of the Bispham Memorial Fund, Inc. after his death. Eleanor Everest Freer and Edith Rockefeller McCormick (from the Opera in Our Language Foundation) were instrumental in creating the David Bispham Memorial Fund, Inc. in March 1922. It was endowed, in part, through David Bispham’s will, and in part by Eleanor Everest Freer.

The Bispham Memorial Fund’s purpose was to support opera in English, written by United States composers and often on American subjects, by awarding the Bispham Memorial Medal. This award was presented by the American Opera Society of Chicago. The first Medal was awarded in 1924 to Ernest T. Carter for his opera, The White Bird. The last Medal for an opera was awarded around 1953 to Vittorio Giannini for The Taming of the Shrew.

The Bispham Medal was awarded to the following composers for their operas as noted here. These awardees are listed chronologically, from earliest to most recent.

DAVID BISPHAM MEMORIAL MEDAL AWARDEES

Composers of American Music

Ernest Trow Carter	The White Bird

Charles Wakefield Cadman	Shanewis

Francesco de Leone	Alglala

Eleanor Everest Freer	Legend of the Piper

Theodore Stearns	The Snow Bird

John Adam Hugo	The Temple Dancer

Ralph Lyford	Castle Argrazant

Simon Bucharoff	Sakahara

Frank Patterson	The Echo

Humphrey J. Stewart	The Hound of Heaven

Henry Hadley	Azora

Victor Herbert	Natoma and Madeleine

J. Lewis Browne

The Corsican Girl (La Corsicana)

Isaac Van Grove	The Music Robber

W. Franke Harling	A Light from St. Agnes

Aldo Franchetti	Namiko-San

Frederick S. Converse	The Pipe of Desire

William McCoy	Egypt

Clarence Loomis	Yolanda of Cyprus

S.W. Harwill	Bella Donna

Jane Van Etten (Andrews)	Guido Ferranti

Charles Frederick Carlson	Phelias

William Lester	Manabozo

Henry Purmort Eames	Priscilla and John Alden

Hamilton Forrest	Yzdra

Deems Taylor	The King’s Henchman

Alberto Bimboni	Winona

Walter Damrosch	Cyrano de Bergerac

Wesley LaViolette	Shylock

Pietro Floridia	Paoletta

Mary Carr Moore

“Narcissa,” or The Cost of Empire

Charles S. Skilton	Kalopin

Karl Schmidt	The Lady of the Lake

Marx E. Oberndorfer	Roseanne

Clarence Cameron White	Ouanga!

Otto Luening	Evangeline

Louis Gruenberg	The Emperor Jones

Howard Hanson	Merry Mount

George Antheil-John Erskine	Helen Retires

Ralph Errole	Prince Elmar

T. Carl Whitmer	selection of religious operas

Virgil Thomson	Four Saints in Three Acts

Rosseter Cole	The Maypole Lovers

John L. Seymour	In the Pasha’s Garden

Peter J. Engels	Minnehaha

Richard Hageman

Tragedy in Arezzo (Caponsacchi)

Bernard Rogers	The Marriage of Aude

George Gershwin	Porgy and Bess

Albert Stoessel	Garrick

P. Marinus Paulsen	The Cimbrians

Julius Osiier	The Bride of Baghdad

Edward Collins	Daughters of the South

Beryl Rubinstein	The Sleeping Princess

Quinto Maganini	The Argonauts

Douglas Moore	The Devil and Daniel Webster

Frederick Jacobi	The Prodigal Son

Ernst Bacon	A Tree on the Plains

Gian Carlo Menotti

The Medium and The Telephone

Kurt Weill	Down in the Valley

Vittorio Giannini	The Taming of the Shrew

Jean Martinon

distinguished composer and conductor

Sir Michael Tippet

distinguished composer and conductor

Alan Stout	distinguished American composer

Other Bispham Medal Awards

Lyric Theatre	Lyric scholarship fund

Lyric Theatre	Lord Byron’s Love Letter stage sets

____________________________________

Memorial Scholarship Awards

In addition to the American Opera Society of Chicago Scholarship Awards, several recurring awards are given from funds established in memoriam: the Lola Fletcher Scholarship, the Eileen Deneen Scholarship, the Arthur J. and Glenna B. Collins Scholarship, and the Eleanor Pearce Sherwin Scholarship.

Lola Fletcher Scholarship

First awarded in 2005, this scholarship is funded each year through a generous contribution to the Scholarship Fund by the late Mrs. Priscilla (Bruce) Hubbard, who served as Board and Sustaining Board Member. It is in memory of her mother, a renowned opera singer and voice teacher in Chicago for many years.

Eileen Deneen Scholarship

First awarded in 2017, this scholarship is made possible through a bequest given in the memory of Eileen Deneen, well-known Chicago coloratura soprano and voice teacher, who was a protégée of Lola Fletcher. Eileen Deneen left an indelible mark on many young voice aspirants in the Chicago area. We are indeed fortunate to have had Ms. Deneen as an active member and judge for our competitions.

Arthur J. and Glenna B. Collins Scholarship

First awarded in 1993, this scholarship was established by longtime honorary member Sam Pfeffer and president Ellen Nickel. It was made possible by the estate of Arthur and Glenna Collins.

Eleanor Pearce Sherwin Scholarship

First awarded in 1994, this scholarship memorializes Mrs. Sherwin, a past president who was active in the American Opera Society of Chicago. It was established by her husband.

_____________________________________

SCHOLARSHIP AWARD WINNERS

1995-2020

Listed According to Placement by Judges

1995  Scholarship Awards

Jun Jensen, cello, American Opera Society of Chicago

Elizabeth Norman, soprano, American Opera Society of Chicago

Monica Harris, American Opera Society of Chicago

Catherine Basrak, viola, Arthur J. and Glenna B. Collins

Lisa Kim, violin, Eleanor Pearce Sherwin

1996 Scholarship Awards

Natalie Arduino, mezzo-soprano, American Opera Society of Chicago

Theresa Ludden, soprano, American Opera Society of Chicago

Esther Noh, violin, Eleanor Pearce Sherwin

Ji-Sun Yang, violin, Eleanor Pearce Sherwin

1997 Scholarship Awards

James Cornelison, baritone, American Opera Society of Chicago

Jeffrey Rau, American Opera Society of Chicago

Brenda Huang, piano, American Opera Society of Chicago

Patricia Risley, mezzo-soprano, Arthur J. and Glenna B. Collins

Elisa Billey (Becker), soprano, Eleanor Pearce Sherwin

Yi Qian, Eleanor Pearce Sherwin

1998 Scholarship Awards

Jesse Raven, mezzo-soprano, American Opera Society of Chicago

Anthea Kreston, violin, American Opera Society of Chicago

Misha Royzen, tenor, American Opera Society of Chicago

Stanley Jackson, Arthur J. and Glenna B. Collins

Jennifer Cheung, Eleanor Pearce Sherwin

Ching Wen Hsiao, piano, William Browning Memorial Scholarship

1999 Scholarship Awards

Jonita Lattimore, soprano, American Opera Society of Chicago

Theodora Satolia, American Opera Society of Chicago

Elizabeth Joy Roe, piano, American Opera Society of Chicago

Kristin Figard, viola, Arthur J. and Glenna B. Collins

Michelle Areyzaga, soprano, Eleanor Pearce Sherwin

2000 Scholarship Awards

Sherry Hong, violin, American Opera Society of Chicago

Hyejin Lee, piano, American Opera Society of Chicago

Edyta Kulzcak, mezzo-soprano, American Opera Society of Chicago

Jennifer Miyahira, cello, Arthur J. and Glenna B. Collins

Cordula Merks, violin, Eleanor Pearce Sherwin

2001 Scholarship Awards

Tomo Matsueo, piano, American Opera Society of Chicago

Eunice Keem, violin, American Opera Society of Chicago

Adam Chlastawa, piano, American Opera Society of Chicago

Faith McCoy, piano, Arthur J. and Glenna B. Collins

Rebecca Davis, soprano, Eleanor Pearce Sherwin

2002 Scholarship Awards

Ashu Kejariwal, sax, American Opera Society of Chicago

Shawn Moore, violin, American Opera Society of Chicago

Melina Pyron, soprano, American Opera Society of Chicago

Tina Beverly, soprano, Arthur J. and Glenna B. Collins

Kevin Kordi, piano, Eleanor Pearce Sherwin

Erin Wood, soprano, Eleanor Pearce Sherwin

2003 Scholarship Awards

Nicole Cabell, soprano, Rose McGilvray Grundman

Joy Reeder, piano, American Opera Society of Chicago

Marguerite L. Williams, harp, American Opera Society of Chicago

Natalia Szadkowski, violin, Arthur J. and Glenna B. Collins

Lauren McNeese, mezzo-soprano, Eleanor Pearce Sherwin

Rachel Kudo, piano, Eleanor Pearce Sherwin

Khary Laurent, baritone, American Opera Society of Chicago

2004 Scholarship Awards

Rebekah Camm, soprano, Rose McGilvray Grundman

Scott Ramsay, tenor, American Opera Society of Chicago

Jennifer Woodrum, clarinet, American Opera Society of Chicago

Patrick Miller, tenor, Arthur J. and Glenna B. Collins

Levi Hernandez, baritone, Eleanor Pearce Sherwin

2005 Scholarship Awards

Nina Heebink, mezzo-soprano, Rose McGilvray Grundman

Jonathan Beyer, baritone, Lola Fletcher

Arianna Warsaw-Fan, violin, American Opera Society of Chicago

Veronica McHale, mezzo-soprano, American Opera Society of Chicago

Erica Strauss, soprano, Arthur J. and Glenna B. Collins

Lauren Curnow, soprano, Eleanor Pearce Sherwin

Victor Ngo, piano, Eleanor Pearce Sherwin

2006 Scholarship Awards

Susanna Phillips, lyric soprano, Rose McGilvray Grundman

Kathleen Kim, coloratura soprano, American Opera Society of Chicago

Paul Corona, baritone, Lola Fletcher

Masha Popova, flute, Arthur J. and Glenna B. Collins

Todd Wedge, lyric tenor, Eleanor Pearce Sherwin

2007 Scholarship Awards

Janai Brugger, lyric soprano, Rose McGilvray Grundman

Alex Lawrence, baritone, American Opera Society of Chicago

Evan Boyer, bass, Lola Fletcher

Victor Sotello, cello, Arthur J. and Glenna B. Collins

Matt Hanscom, baritone, Eleanor Pearce Sherwin

2008 Scholarship Awards

Elizabeth DeShong, mezzo-soprano, Rose McGilvray Grundman

Darren Stokes, bass-baritone, American Opera Society of Chicago

Amber Wagner, lyric spinto soprano, Lola Fletcher

Luisa Lee, violin, Arthur J. and Glenna B. Collins

Samantha Barnes, lyric soprano, Eleanor Pearce Sherwin

Suzanne Shields, mezzo-soprano, Eleanor Pearce Sherwin

Rabiha Davis, soprano, American Opera Society of Chicago

2009 Scholarship Awards

Kathryn Leemhuis, mezzo-soprano, Rose McGilvray Grundman

David Portillo, lyric tenor, Lola Fletcher

Ryan Belongie, countertenor, American Opera Society of Chicago

Susan Jang, violin, Arthur J. and Glenna B. Collins

Constance Chou, piano, Eleanor Pearce Sherwin

2010 Scholarship Awards

Amanda Majeski, soprano, Rose McGilvray Grundman

Corey Crider, baritone, American Opera Society of Chicago

Angela Mannino, coloratura soprano, Lola Fletcher

Andrew Tung, piano, Arthur J. and Glenna B. Collins

Lydia Umlauf, violin, Eleanor Pearce Sherwin

Samuel Post, piano, American Opera Society of Chicago

2011 Scholarship Awards

Emily Fons, mezzo-soprano, Rose McGilvray Grundman

Darik Knutsen, baritone, American Opera Society of Chicago

James Kryshak, lyric tenor, Lola Fletcher

Julia Yang, cello, Arthur J. and Glenna B. Collins

David Govertsen, bass-baritone, Eleanor Pearce Sherwin

Katherine Lerner, mezzo-soprano, American Opera Society of Chicago

2012 Scholarship Awards

Kiri Deonarine, lyric soprano, Rose McGilvray Grundman

Paul Juhn, piano, American Opera Society of Chicago

Paul Scholten, baritone, Lola Fletcher

Matthew Newlin, lyric tenor, Arthur J. and Glenna B. Collins

Paul LaRosa, baritone, Eleanor Pearce Sherwin

2013 Scholarship Awards

Brittany Hebel, lyric soprano, Rose McGilvray Grundman

Will Liverman, baritone, American Opera Society of Chicago

J’nai Bridges, mezzo-soprano, Lola Fletcher

Russell Houston, cello, Arthur J. and Glenna B. Collins

Drew Ladd, lyric tenor, Eleanor Pearce Sherwin

Kyle Jannak-Huang, piano, American Opera Society of Chicago

2014 Scholarship Awards

Julie Ann Miller, mezzo-soprano, Rose McGilvray Grundman

Anthony Clark Evans, baritone, American Opera Society of Chicago

Zachary Elmassian, baritone, Lola Fletcher

Maya Cohon, violin, Arthur J. and Glenna B. Collins

Jennifer Cha, violin, Eleanor Pearce Sherwin

Eric Delagrange, bass, American Opera Society of Chicago

2015 Scholarship Awards

Richard Ollarsaba, bass-baritone, Best Vocal Artist

Brannon Cho, cello, American Opera Society of Chicago

Nicholas Davis, baritone, Lola Fletcher

Esther Nyberg, piano, Arthur J. and Glenna B. Collins

Laura Wilde, lyric soprano, Eleanor Pearce Sherwin

Karisa Chiu, violin, American Opera Society of Chicago

2016 Scholarship Awards

Bradley Smoak, bass, Best Vocal Artist

Danny Mui, clarinet, American Opera Society of Chicago

Jesse Donner, tenor, Lola Fletcher

Katie Calcamuggio, mezzo-soprano, American Opera Society of Chicago in honor of Anatol Wolf Holt

Sofiya Kyrylyuk, viola, Arthur J. and Glenna B. Collins

Joshua Brown, violin, Eleanor Pearce Sherwin

2017 Scholarship Awards

Lindsay Metzger, mezzo-soprano, Best Vocal Artist

Allison (Pei Yu) Wang, piano, American Opera Society of Chicago

Sean Stanton, baritone, Lola Fletcher

Patrick Guetti, bass, Eileen Deneen

Julian Rhee, violin, Arthur J. and Glenna B. Collins

Nathan Mo, cello, Eleanor Pearce Sherwin

2018 Scholarship Awards

John Mathieu, baritone, Best Vocal Artist in honor of Helen Chastain Sowa

Alan Higgs, bass-baritone, American Opera Society of Chicago

Lauren Decker, contralto, Lola Fletcher

Luis Avila, violin, American Opera Society of Chicago

Noel Kim, violin, American Opera Society of Chicago

Emma Ritter, mezzo-soprano, Arthur J. and Glenna B. Collins

Samantha Farmilant, soprano, American Opera Society of Chicago

2019 Scholarship Awards

Eric Ferring, lyric tenor, Best Vocal Artist in honor of Eleanor Law Rudnick

Emily Pogorelc, lyric coloratura soprano, American Opera Society of Chicago in honor of Dr. Ludmila Lazar

Eriko Darcy, piano, American Opera Society of Chicago in honor of Virginia K. Wussow

Olivia Doig, soprano, American Opera Society of Chicago

Ryan Stoll, bass-baritone, Lola Fletcher

John Heo, violin, American Opera Society of Chicago

2020 Scholarship Awards

Christopher Kenney, baritone, Best Vocal Artist

Anthony Reed, bass, American Opera Society of Chicago in honor of Elizabeth W. Lewis

Diana Dohyung Kim, violin, American Opera Society of Chicago

David Weigel, bass-baritone, Lola Fletcher

Jacqueline Piccolino, soprano, Eileen Deneen

Robyn Neidhold, cello, American Opera Society of Chicago