In August, nothing ever happens in the classical world, because all the musicians are on vacation. That was my assumption, anyway, when I moved to Minnesota from Britain two years ago. How wrong I was!
The state boasts not one, not two, but three full-fledged festivals to make the dog days more livable. For art-song lovers, the wonderful Source Song Festival will rise again at venues throughout the Twin Cities, featuring world premieres by Minneapolis composers Libby Larsen and David Evan Thomas, not to mention a keynote contribution from outstanding English accompanist Julius Drake. Another August highlight will be the intrepid Twin Cities Early Music Festival, whose enticingly varied menu will include rare performances of "Jonas" and "Noah," two oratorios by 17th-century Italian composer Giacomo Carissimi.
For opera, I'll head north to Brainerd, where Bizet's simmering masterpiece "Carmen" spearheads the three-week Lakes Area Music Festival. Looks like my summers will be a lot more interesting now that I live in Minnesota.
