Earning great attention, the voice of American tenor Scott Ramsay was endorsed by The Irish Times who saluted his European opera debut as Edgardo at the Dublin International Opera Festival declaring, "He's engaged, he's wound up and fearlessly sends his voice on its difficult missions ." Engagements during 2007-08 include his European debut as Edgardo in a new production of Lucia di Lammermoor directed by Roberto Oswald of the Teatro Colon and conducted by the renowned Franz-Paul Decker at the Anna Livia International Opera Festival in Dublin Ireland, Pong in Turandot at the Lyric Opera of Chicago, Gloriously Baroque: Telemann & Bach with Chicago's Music of the Baroque, Edgardo in Lucia di Lammermoor at New Orleans Opera and Connecticut Grand Opera, his role debut as Roméo in Roméo et Juliette at New Jersey Opera Theater, Don Ottavio in Don Giovanni with Dayton Opera, a return to the Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra for Beethoven's Symphony No. 9, Nemorino in L'elisir d'amore at San Antonio Opera, a return to Arizona Opera for his role debut as Tamino in The Magic Flute , covering Edgardo in Lucia di Lammermoor at San Francisco Opera and his return to the Lyric Opera of Chicago. 

Bass-baritone Stefano de Peppo, a native Italian, began his musical career as a soloist in the Children's Chorus of Teatro alla Scala of Milan, city where he continued his training with vocal studies at the Civic School of Music.
Engagements for 2007/2008 include The Magic Flute, don Giovanni, Nozze di Figaro, Cosi Fan Tutte, Tosca, L’elisir d’amore, Barbiere di Siviglia  in USA, Mexico, Spain, Israel and Venezuela. 
In 2006 He has been invited by Placido Domingo at Washington National Opera to take part to William Friedkin’s recent  production of  Gianni Schicchi  with Samuel Ramey in the title role. He also sang Leporello in Milan and at Connecticut Grand Opera, and his first Papageno with great acclaim at Wichita Grand Opera.  In 2005  he was Bartolo in a new production of Il Barbiere di Siviglia at Teatro Colon in Bogota, Colombia. He also appeared as Geronte in a production of Puccini's Manon Lescaut at Palm Beach Opera, with Daniela Dessi and Fabio Armiliato.

Matthew Worth’s engagements in the 2007-08 season include his return to the New York Festival of Song, the role of Papageno in Die Zauberflöte with Lyric Opera of Kansas City, the role of Guglielmo in Così fan tutte with Opera Naples, and performances of Carmina Burana with the Lansing Symphony Orchestra and the Baton Rouge Symphony. Recent highlights include Tarquinius in The Rape of Lucretia under Lorin Maazel at the conductor’s estate, Guglielmo in Così fan tutte at Tanglewood under James Levine, his debut at Chicago Opera Theater as Claudio in Béatrice et Bénédict, and his performance in “Island Journeys” with New York Festival of Song.

Born in Philadelphia, Kiera Duffy was an accomplished pianist before pursuing singing and holds Bachelors and Masters Degrees in Voice Performance and Pedagogy from Westminster Choir College. She is the recipient of numerous awards and recognition from such esteemed organizations as the Metropolitan Opera National Council and the Philadelphia Orchestra Greenfield Competition. Kiera Duffy is a student of Laura Brooks Rice, her teacher of 10 years.A Grand Finalist in the 2007 Metropolitan Opera National Council auditions, American soprano Kiera Duffy is recognized for the agility, ease, and gleaming quality of her high soprano, and is enjoying a flourishing concert and operatic career in repertoire that spans from Handel and Praetorius to the new sounds of Elliott Carter and John Zorn.

Ira Siff is a native New Yorker who spent the better part of his adolescence on the standing-room line of the Metropolitan Opera worshipping the great singers of the time. While working toward a Bachelor of Fine Arts at Cooper Union, Mr. Siff began to study voice, and in 1970 made his debut as a tenor, creating roles for composer Al Carmines. After a decade of productions at Circle in the Square, Playwrights Horizons, The New York Shakespeare Festival, among others, Mr. Siff became a popular cabaret performer in New York, combining music with parody. In 1980 he founded La Gran Scena Opera Co., and has spent the past fifteen years leading the company in performances in New York and on tour, as well as performing administrative and artistic duties on the home front. Mr. Siff is a full-time vocal coach in New York and also works with singers privately in the preparation of roles and audition material. As Vera Galupe-Borszkh, Ira Siff has also appeared in his Second Annual Farewell Recitals in New York, London and Ireland, in several galas at Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall; and on the Donahue Show on TV. He has received two MAC (Manhattan Association of Cabarets) Awards, and is particularly happy and proud that Gran Scena can count among its fans some of the very same opera stars for whom this show is a tribute. Mr. Siff made his debut in the Metropolitan Opera House where, as Vera Galupe-Borzskh, he entertained the Metropolitan Opera Club at their 100th Anniversary Dinner. After this, he performed Vera's Second Annual Farewell Recital in London's Covent Garden Festival. Last July Mr. Siff took Vera's Tenth Annual Farewell Recital to the Verbier Festival. He has also appeared with Opera Francais twice, guesting as Vera in Orfee aux Enféres and Les Mammelles de Téresias at Lincoln Center under the baton of Yves Abel.

Artistic and Management Consultant Carl Ratner learned his craft assisting directors, including eminent composer Gian Carlo Menotti, at the world's major opera houses, including the Royal Opera (Covent Garden) in London, the Metropolitan Opera in New York, the Spoleto Festival in Italy, Lyric Opera of Chicago, San Francisco Opera, New York City Opera and the Santa Fe Opera, among others. He served as Artistic Director of Chicago Opera Theater from 1994-1999, and previously held the same post at Chamber Opera Chicago from 1985-1993. For Opera Naples, he directed Amahl and the Night Visitors, The Prodigal Son, and Madama Butterfly. Also accomplished as a baritone, he has performed the title roles in Verdi's Falstaff and Puccini's Gianni Schicchi, as well as Papageno in The Magic Flute and John Proctor in The Crucible. A frequent soloist for oratorio, he has sung Handel's Messiah and Bach's Magnificat with The Bach Ensemble of Naples and Dona Nobis Pacem by Ralph Vaughan Williams and Aaron Copland's Old Amercian Songs with the Cedar Rapids Concert Chorale. He received his Doctor of Music degree from Northwestern University and currently serves as Director of Opera at Western Michigan University.

Mezzo-soprano Sarah Austin is an emerging artist who is receiving great praise for her strong lyrical voice and dramatic talent. Most recently, she was a fellow with the Tanglewood Music Center, performing Dorabella in Cosí fan tutte conducted by James Levine and directed by Ira Siff. Ms. Austin is originally from Texas where she earned a Bachelor of Music degree from Stephen F. Austin State University graduating summa cum laude. While part of the SFASU Opera Theatre she performed the roles of Giannetta in L’Elisir d’amore and Prince Orlofsky in Die Fledermaus.

In addition, Ms. Austin holds a Master of Music degree with academic honors from the New England Conservatory of Music. Her roles while at NEC included Dorothée in Cendrillon, the Second Lady in the touring production of The Magic Flute, and Meg in Little Women. She was also chosen to be a featured soloist in The Saga of Jenny, a tribute to Kurt Weill at Boston’s historic Jordan Hall.

Ms. Austin has also performed the role of Alma March for the New England premiere of Mark Adamo’s Little Women with the Boston Opera Project, the lead role of The Child in L’enfant et les sortileges for the Opera North Young Artist Program, and as a soloist with Opera Providence. Her international concert engagements have included Mozart’s Mass in C Minor in Wimborne, England and Handel’s Messiah in Brussels, Belgium.

Soprano Layla Claire is from British Columbia, Canada. She obtained a Bachelor’s and Master’s of music in vocal performance from l’Universite de Montreal before continuing her studies in Philadelphia at the Curtis Institute where she is currently studying opera.

Ms. Claire’s opera credits include Fiordiligi in Cosi fan Tutte under the baton of James Levine at the Tanglewood Music Festival this past August. At l’Universite de Montreal she sang Tytania in a Midsumer Night’s Dream, Lauretta in Gianni Schichi, Susanna in Le Nozze di Figaro and with the Curtis Opera Theatre sang Ersibe in Cavalli’s l’Ormindo and Yvette in Puccini’s Rondine. This coming season Ms. Claire will be singing the Contessa in Le Nozze di Figaro and Margarita in Golijov’s Ainadamar in Philadelphia. Ms. Claire is the winner of the Radio-Canada’s Concours des Jeunes Artistes, a recipient of a Jacqueline Desmarais Foundation bursary and a Canada Council Grant and placed fourth at the 2007 Palm Beach Opera competition.

Lucy Arner is an Assistant Conductor at the Metropolitan Opera. She joined the company's music staff during the 1994-1995 season specializing in Italian repertory. Ms. Arner has been featured as the recitative accompanist in recent productions of Rossini's Il Barbiere di Siviglia, Handel's Giulio Cesare and Donizetti's L'Elisir d'Armore as well as preparing the Met's telecast production of Giordano's Fedora with Mirella Freni, Placido Domingo and Roberto Abbado conducting.

Ms. Arner became the Artistic Director of the New York Chamber Opera in November 2000, making her debut with the company conducting an exciting and controversial production of Britten's Rape of Lucretia.

Born in Cuba, Ms. Arner began her musical studies at the age of twelve. She attended Baldwin-Wallace College and Indiana University, revceiving her Bachelor of Music and Master of Music degrees and continued her doctoral studies at the University of Miami.

Layla Claire Soprano
as Fiordiligi
Tanglewood Music Festival

Sarah Austin, Mezzo Soprano
as Dorabella
Tanglewood Music Festival
www.sarahaustin.com