Julie Liston Johnson and Bert Johnson – Feb. 11, 2023

The Puccini Society of Dallas presents

High notes, low notes, and a few in between!

Julie Liston Johnson

Julie Liston Johnson, soprano and
Bert Johnson, bass

Saturday, February 11, 2023 at 3:00 pm

Members $30 Guests $40
Valet Parking provided

Kindy RSVP by Feb 6 to PucciniSociety@gmail.com
Mail checks to:
Puccini Society of Dallas
P.O. Box 1782
Colleyville, TX 76034-1782

or call Jana at (817) 999 – 5509 for credit card payments.


Julie Liston Johnson and her husband Bert Johnson will perform at our upcoming Puccini program on Feb.11.  Their biographies below demonstrate they are both very accomplished artists. You will enjoy their program very much!

Biographies

American soprano Julie Liston Johnson has earned an impressive reputation for her rich, shimmering timbre, technical brilliance and diverse repertoire encompassing opera, concert and recital. Dr. Liston Johnson earned a Doctorate of Musical Arts in voice performance and opera from The University of North Texas and her Master of Music from The Juilliard School. While at Juilliard, she held multiple teaching fellowships and was subsequently hired to teach Ear Training in the Evening Division. Julie has been a featured soloist at Carnegie Hall, Teatro Communiale di Bologna, Alice Tully Hall, Moody Performance Hall, Trinity Church Wall Street, and Durham Cathedral in northern England where in 2019 she sang the soprano solos, alongside her favorite bass, Bert K. Johnson in Verdi’s Requiem. A frequent soloist in the Metroplex, Dr. Liston Johnson will make her Meyerson solo debut this June, in the Brahms’ Requiem. Other highlights include a Dallas Puccini Society recital, Handel’s Messiah, Mozart’s c minor Mass, Vaughan Williams’ Dona Nobis Pacem; John Rutter’s Requiem with the composer conducting; and the American premiere of Bob Chilcott’s St. John Passion also with the composer conducting. Julie is also a member of Dallas based Orpheus Chamber Singers under the direction of JD Burnett. Dr. Liston Johnson presented the subject of her dissertation, Pieces of 9/11: Memories from Houston, by Jake Heggie this past summer at the NATS National conference in Chicago. She teaches as part of the voice faculty at the University of Texas 

Bert Johnson, Bass

Bert K. Johnson serves as the Director of Music at Spring Valley United Methodist Church.  Bert is a fifth generation Texan hailing originally from Granbury, TX.  His love for great choral music led him from his early years with the Texas Boys Choir into a Bachelors Degree in Vocal performance at The University of North Texas.  That love of great choral music turned into a passion for the operatic stage.  Bert went on to further his studies at Manhattan School of Music in New York City where he received a Masters in Vocal Performance.  Bert found additional training in such apprentice programs such as Opera North, Santa Fe Opera, and Music Academy of the West.  Bert had the fortune to receive both vocal instruction and career guidance by the great Marilyn Horne at Music Academy of the West.  Bert has performed all over the country with such opera companies as Santa Fe, Boston Opera, Greensboro Opera, and many years on the stage at New York City Opera, singing such roles as Figaro in Le Nozze di Figaro, Sarastro in Die Zauberflöte, Don Alfonso in Lucrezia Borgia, and many more. Bert has also performed concert works on some of the finest stages such as Trinity Church Wall Street, NY, Marble Collegiate Church , NY, St. Ignatius Loyola , NY, and Carnegie Hall.  He recently made his debut at Painted Sky Opera in Oklahoma City, as “Zuniga” in Carmen.  Mr. Johnson will be covering the role of “Papinou” in world premiere of The Diving Bell and the Butterfly in the upcoming season at Dallas Opera.   Bert celebrates his twelfth year at Spring Valley UMC.  Bert also is privileged to share his life with his wife Julie Liston Johnson and daughter Ava.

Puccini Society 2022/2023 Season

Portrait of Giacomo Puccini by Anne Cushing Ganz

Dear Puccini Friends;  

As we approach another fall season I am excited to announce our upcoming Puccini Society programs.  Our first event of the new season will celebrate our Founder, Bettie Francis on the occasion of her 90th Birthday!  In Dec, 1995, Judson and Bettie Francis, Pat Blankenship, and Earl Carter created the Puccini Society of Dallas in order to share their love of Puccini’s music with others.  Pat planned the programs, recruited members, and did whatever was necessary to keep the society going. Betty spent many successive years as Society Secretary, printing and mailing invitations and taking reservations, hosting events, as well as taking care of society correspondence.   Our first program was held in March, 1996 at the home of Inge and Sam Vastole.

At Pat’s request, Dallas artist and teacher Ann Cushing Gantz painted a portrait of Giacomo Puccini for Judson Francis.  Several members of the Puccini Society surprised Judson with the portrait at a small cocktail party in June,1996, shortly before his death.  The portrait became the logo for the Puccini Society, and our society awarded the late Mrs. Gantz an honorary lifetime membership.

We are dedicated to acknowledging, enjoying, and promoting the music of Puccini and other great opera composers. We offer educational programs for our members and our goal is to help and encourage aspiring, young singers.  Many of our members volunteer their time and talents for which we are grateful.

Among our first members who are still active in our society are Marion Ward, Bill Herrera (a past President), Inge and Sam Vastole, and myself. Bettie is our only surviving founder.  We are delighted to honer her on the occasion of her 90th birthday!  Without her years of leadership this society could not have thrived in the way it has.

Our fall schedule is as follows:

Sept. 25; Andrew Simpson, bass (and son of our own Tina Simpson) will sing for us at the home of Wendy Kumph and  her mom, Sue Prideaux.  The address is 3806 Stratford, 75225, just east of Dallas Country Club.  We will celebrate our Founder, Bettie Francis.

Oct. 23; St. Matthew’s Cathedral Arts Series will present Mary Dibbern with Courtney Maina, soprano and Christopher Leach, tenor, in Songs of Mary Howe.  These will be taken from their newly released CD, Songs by Mary Howe, which The Puccini Society helped underwrite.  We will be at the Collora Piano Studio.

Nov.19; Stephen Dubberly will present two outstanding young singers and will also report on the Craft’s Opera in Concert program in Italy, which we help sponsor.  Location TBA.

Dec. 3; Joint program with Voce Intimae (art song organization), Christian Bester, General Director.  We will hear all of Puccini’s  songs which will be narrated by Stephen Dubberly and held at the home of Enika and Richard Schulze.

Our membership renewal letter will go out soon with our new P.O. Box number, and we encourage everyone to renew their membership promptly.  We look forward to seeing everyone soon and often at our programs.

Best wishes,

Marilyn Halla

Josefina Maldonado Dec 4, 2021

Puccini Society of Dallas presents

Josefina Maldonado, Mezzo-soprano

Josefina Maldonado
Mezzo Soprano

Saturday, December 4, 2021 at 3:00 P.M.

Members $25 Guests $35
Valet Parking Provided

RSVP by Dec 1 to
PucciniSociety@gmail.com

Pay at Door or mail check to
Puccini Society
PO Box 25105,
Dallas, TX 75225

For credit card charges, please contact
Jana at 817-999-5509

Josefina Maldonado, Mezzo-soprano

Emerging Dallas-born artist, Josefina Maldonado has been critically acclaimed by The Texas Classical Review and Theater Jones as ‘vocally superb’ with a ‘remarkably rich timbre’. Ms. Maldonado was a young artist with The Dallas Opera Outreach Program in the role(s) of Veronica/Dr. Miracle and Dorabella/ Così Fan Tutte, for Bremen Town Musicians.

For her European debut, Ms. Maldonado was a principle artist in two modern world premieres of serenatas by Johannes Schmelzer; Le veglie ossequiose and Die sieben Alter stimmen zusammen, for the Olomouc’s Baroque Festival held in the Czech Republic.

Ms. Maldonado holds a B.M. from the University of North Texas where she was a frequently featured soloist alongside the UNT Symphony Orchestra. Her major roles with UNT Opera included Dorabella/Così Fan Tutte, Ruggiero/Alcina, Cherubino/Le nozze di Figaro, Siébel/Faust and Mother Marie/Dialogues of the Carmelites.


Photo Gallery

Schollmaier Scholars – November 13, 2021

The Puccini Society of Dallas presents

AN AFTERNOON OF PUCCINI AND OTHER OPERA DELIGHTS

with the Foote Foundation Schollmaier Scholars and graduate students of

BARBARA HILL MOORE

Presented in memory of:
Cecile Bonte, Eleanor Krebs, Marigny Lanier, Ed Lynch, and Jody Reed

Saturday, November 13, 2021

3:00 p.m.

Members $30             Guests $35

Please RSVP to PucciniSociety@gmail.com by Nov. 10


Puccini Friends

What a big group we had yesterday to enjoy Barbara Hill-Moore’s wonderful students.  Some of these singers are young artists to watch!  Prosper is really getting some wonderful opportunities with both Dallas and Ft. Worth Operas.  Others may well be singers to watch in the future.  

Our fall Puccini event featuring the students of Barbara Hill Moore, Senior Associate Dean, SMU. Barbara sponsors these international students through the Foote Foundation. It was an amazing event. So good to be meeting in person again.
Photo by Mac Irwin

To enjoy their beautiful singing in the stunning surroundings of Bill Cornog’s home was a double pleasure; and what a gracious and accommodating host he is.  All in all the afternoon was a lovely tribute to our past members Cecile Bonte, Eleanor Krebs, Marigny Lanier, Ed Lynch and Jody Reed. They were each valued and loved members of the Puccini Society.

A proud teacher: Barbara Hill Moore.
Photos by Josephine Dewaal

To enjoy their beautiful singing in the stunning surroundings of Bill Cornog’s home was a double pleasure; and what a gracious and accommodating host he is.  All in all the afternoon was a lovely tribute to our past members Cecile Bonte, Eleanor Krebs, Marigny Lanier, Ed Lynch and Jody Reed. They were each valued and loved members of the Puccini Society.

We continue to welcome new members to our group:  Mary Lou Alford has just joined us along with a number of others who were introduced at our Sept. meeting. Mary Lou is delighted to find that she has a number of friends and acquaintances in our group. New members this fall include:  Mary Lou Alford, John Shriner, Anna Morini, Yvonne Sage, Carl Schieffer, Dona and Michael Watson, and Mary Ellen Winborn. Also Brian Hackfeld, Joey Meirtschin, and Mark Landson. Welcome to all! Guest are always welcome and we were happy to have several yesterday as well.

I hope everyone will remember that these beautiful receptions are spearheaded by Mac Irwin and Patsy Brooks.  Special thanks to Rosemary O’Neill and Josephine DeWaal for their special home baked Irish Tea Bread and Stollen.  We appreciate them all so much!  Bob Brooks makes sure we all have a wine of choice and graciously serves as bartender.  Our whole Board is a great team as each member reliably does their job.  Thanks to Jana Irwin for keeping our reservations and checking everyone in.  The Tobys sent membership renewals and many have responded.  You can still renew and now Jana can take your payment via credit card (817-999-5509) or a check to P.O. Box 25105, Dallas, 75225. Laurie Pan took very nice pictures which will be posted on our web site. Many thanks to all.

Yesterday’s guest Robin Green will host our Dec. 4 program in her lovely home.  Josefina Maldonado, soprano will present our program.  We had Josefina scheduled to sing for us just as we were asked to curtail our in-person meetings, and I’m really delighted to reschedule her now.  She is a very accomplished young singer whom we will be thrilled to finally hear. Invitations will be sent out soon with meeting details.
Have a Happy and Safe Thanksgiving,

Marilyn Halla

Event Photos by Laurie Pan

Julie Liston Johnson – December 14, 2019

The Puccini Society of Dallas presents

Julie Liston Johnson, soprano
Molly Fillmore, mezzo soprano
with Szu-Ying Huang, pianist

At the home of

Linda and Tom Smith
6614 Forestshire Drive
Dallas, Texas 75230

December 14, 2019, 3:00 P.M.

Members $25 – Guests $30 – Valet Parking

Please RSVP to

P.O. Box 25105
Dallas, Texas 75225
or
puccinisociety @ aol.com

Puccini Friends;

I want to share with you my enthusiasm for our upcoming program next Saturday at the home of Linda and Tom Smith.

Linda suggested we invite soprano Julie Liston Johnson to perform, and when I contacted her she was happy to accept our invitation. She received her Master of Music degree from the Juilliard School where she held a teaching fellowship and is currently on the voice faculty of the University of Texas at Arlington while also finishing her DMA at the University of North Texas. She has sung solos at Carnegie Hall, Alice Tully Hall, Trinity Church Wall Street as well as prestigious halls in Italy and England. A frequent performer in the Metroplex, many of you may have heard her performances. Favorite opera roles include Donna Anna, Dido, and Madama Butterfly as well as concert performances of The Queen of the Night’s vengeance aria and Gilda in Rigoletto. She lives in Dallas with her husband Bart Johnson and their daughter Ava Grace.

Julie has invited mezzo soprano Molly Fillmore to join her for our program. Molly made her Metropolitan Opera debut as Helmwige in Die Walkure, conducted by James Levine. During her seven seasons at the Met she also appeared in Philip Glass’ Satyaraha; both of these were broadcast worldwide in movie theaters and on PBS television. She sang over 25 roles at the Cologne Opera, performed title roles with San Francisco Opera, and Arizona Opera as well as appearances with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Seattle Symphony, Detroit Symphony Orchestra, at Carnegie Hall, Avery Fisher Hall, Kennedy Center, Spoleto Festival and Tanglewood Festival. She is now Chair of the Division of Vocal Studies and Professor of Voice at the University of North Texas College of Music.

Taiwanese pianist Szu-Ying Huang will perform with Julie and Molly. She has performed extensively as soloist and chamber musician in major cities throughout the United States, Canada, Austria, China and Taiwan. She will soon receive her Doctor of Musical Arts degree in piano performance at the University of North Texas where she held assistantships in opera accompanying, collaborative piano and choral accompanying.

This promises to be a truly memorable program as well as a festive holiday celebration. Linda and Tom live at 6614 Forestshire Dr., 75230 and we meet at 3:00 p.m. If you haven’t replied please do so now in order for us to have adequate seating. I’ll look forward to seeing you there!

Marilyn Halla

Puccini Society 2019/2020 Season

Hello friends!  We’re definitely at the end of summer this weekend, and most groups are well into their plans for the coming year.  While I was in Santa Fe I contacted several singers whom we want to have this year, and whom I had talked with previously.  It looks like another good year of programs.  I sent out our dates and the singers made their choices. We can still book one more program if anyone has suggestions.

This is what it looks like so far:

  • Oct. 19;  Francisco Bedoy, tenor
  • Nov. 16; Rachel Davies, mezzo
  • Dec. 14; Julie Johnson, mezzo at the home of Linda and Tom Smith
  • Jan. 18 or 25; Mary Dibbern with Gabby Gifford and Malcom Payne, baritone
  • Feb. 15 or March 21; hopefully Lauren McNeese, sop. singing Strauss songs
  • April 18; Josefina Maldonado, soprano

I look forward to seeing everyone again soon, and welcome any suggestions. 

I hope everyone has had a good summer,

Marilyn Halla

End of Season Supper – May 5, 2019

The Puccini Society of Dallas Presents

Ed Flaspoehler and Friends
A Program of New Music by Dallas Composers


Sunday, May 5, 2019, 5:30 PM

Join us in celebrating the end of the season with supper and an evening of music by Dallas Composers. Program includes the premiere performance of the Sonata for Flute and Piano (2018) by Gregory Sullivan Isaacs, and the Piano Trio, “Moments in Memory,” by Mark Landson.

Ed Flaspoehler Flute
Gregory Sullivan Isaacs Composer
Mark Landson Composer and Violin
John LandefeldCello
Sunny Heesun YunPianoS

Hosted by Bettie Francis
3600 Princeton Avenue
Dallas, TX 75205

Members $40, Guests $45

Valet Parking

R.S.V.P. to Bettie Francis
at 214.528.4554 or
P.O. Box 25105
Dallas, TX 75225 or
puccinisociety@aol.com

Gregory Sullivan Isaacs is an American musician, composer, classical music critic and music director who has held musical directorships of opera, choral, and symphonic organizations. Since 2014, he has been the senior classical music critic for the online arts magazine TheaterJones, as well as a freelance writer for other publications, including The Fort Worth Star Telegram.  He is a member of ASCAP and the Music Critics Association of North America.

Mark Landson is a violinist, violist, composer, the founder and Director of Open Classical, and the founder and violist of contemporary music group Neo Camerata. He has been featured by the Dallas Observer in their “Top 100 Creatives in Dallas” series, by DFW arts website TheaterJones in their “Forward Thinkers” series, and through numerous other broadcast interviews and press articles as a prolific contributor to the creative culture of North Texas.

Pianist Sunny Heesun Yun is from South Korea. As a solo pianist, she has performed throughout America, Europe, and South Korea. She won the first place in several international competitions, including Rose Petroff Foundation Piano Competition in San Antonio, Texas, American Protégé International Piano and String Competition in New York City, American Protégé International Concerto Competition in New York City, and International Symphonic Workshops Piano Competition in Varna, Bulgaria. Sunny Yun is a member of the piano faculty at Eastfield College in Dallas.

Puccini Society member Ed Flaspoehler is an accomplished flutist. In 2018, he commissioned his friend, Gregory Sullivan Isaacs, to write a Sonata for Flute and Piano, which will receive its first public performance with Puccini Society of Dallas on May 5, 2009. Ed also performs frequently at Open Classical, hosted by Mark Landson, and has invited Mark to perform his piano trio, “Moments in Memory,” on the same program.

Cellist, John Landefeld, will perform as part of the piano trio.

Puccini’s Manon Lescaut – February 23, 2019

The Puccini Society of Dallas Presents

Dr. Stephen Dubberly, UNT Opera
A Lecture and Performance on
Puccini’s Opera Manon Lescaut

featuring
Alisa Magallon, Soprano, and
James Chamberlain, Tenor

Hosted by
Enika and Richard Schultz
5042 Lakehill Court
Dallas, TX 75220

Valet Parking
Members $25 – Guests $30

R.S.V.P. to Bettie Francis
P.O. Box 25105
Dallas, TX 75225 or
puccinisociety @ aol.com
http://www.puccinidallas.com

STEPHEN DUBBERLY Associate Professor and Music Director at UNT’s Opera Department

Our February program will be presented by Stephen Dubberly, UNT School of Music Director of Opera.  Many of you know Stephen and will welcome him back again.  He will discuss Puccini’s “Manon Lescaut” which will be presented by the Dallas Opera in early March.  Along with his informative talk on the composition and history and story of this work, he will bring singers from the UNT Opera Program to sing arias from this opera.  Enika and Richard Schulze will host us once again, and members of the Dallas Opera Guild will be invited to attend.  

Please put Saturday, Feb. 23 on your calendar and plan to attend this program.  “Manon Lescaut” is one of the less familiar Puccini operas, and your attendance of a performance will be greatly enhanced by learning more about it.

In 2016 The Dallas Opera presented the French version of this story, “Manon” by Jules Massenet, but the Italian version is an entirely different work, and is one of Puccini’s most beautiful compositions.

I look forward to seeing you there.

Marilyn Halla

Wind Song Trio – January 13, 2019

The Puccini Society of Dallas Presents

The Wind Song Trio
Haley Sicking, Soprano,
Robin Korevaar, Clarinet, and
Jonathan Tsay, Piano

Sunday, January 13, 2019, 3:00PM

Hosted by Bill and Leslie Cornog
6812 Hunter’s Glen Road
Dallas, TX 75205

Valet Parking
Guests $30 – Members $25

R.S.V.P. to Bettie Francis
P.O. Box 25105
Dallas, TX 75225 or
puccinisociety @ aol.com
http://www.puccinidallas.com

Haley Sicking

Puccini Friends:  Happy New Year!  We begin the new year with a program presented by the Wind Song Trio on Sunday ( not the usual Sat.) afternoon, Jan. 13.  You may recall this trio presented our program a few years back at the home of Faye Briggs and were enthusiastically received by all.

Haley Sicking, soprano recently sang on the program given in conjunction with the Dallas Opera’s Women Conductors Symposium with the Dallas Opera Orchestra under the direction of Emmanuel Villaume.  She will sing for us along with Robin Korevaar, clarinet and Jonathan Tsay, piano.  This fine professional trio has presented various programs throughout the community, among which is the Basically Beethoven summer series at the Moody Performance Hall.

Our program is given in memory of our well remembered member, Gus Hoehn.  Gus was a music enthusiast and life long clarinet player in addition to being a successful engineer.  Many of Gus’ friends will join us to remember and honor him.

We meet at the lovely, art filled home of Bill and Leslie Cornog, 6— Hunter’s Glen, 75205, at our regular 3:00 time.  I hope to see you there!

Marilyn Halla

A Night in Berlin – November 30, 2918

The Puccini Society of Dallas recommends

Opera in Concert presents

A Night In Berlin

“A Night in Berlin”, features complete performances in English of
Mahagonny Songspiel by Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill and
The Tide by Boris Blacher

Come experience the jazzy opera that created a riot when it premiered in 1927! Also on the bill is a tense psychological drama of four characters trapped by the tide on a half-sunken wreck.

Featuring: Rachel Catlett, Gabrielle Gilliam, Stephanie Smittie, Stephen Brennfleck, Doug Brunker, Edward Crafts, Joshua Hughes and John Kuether. Stephen Dubberly directs from the keyboard.

Kurth Hall in Sammons Center, Friday, November 30, 2018
Address: 3630 Harry Hines Blvd, Dallas, TX 75219

Tickets are $20 ($10 for students)

www.operainconcert.org