NATHAN GUNN – In Recital at First Congregational Church, Berkeley, 3/9

After receiving rave reviews as Papageno in the San Francisco Opera’s recent production of The Magic Flute, Nathan Gunn fans have a chance to hear him perform in the intimate setting of First Congregational Church in Berkeley on Saturday, March 9 at 8:00 p.m. With his compelling stage presence and musical versatility, Gunn will give a program that blends classical and contemporary songs. The first half of the concert will consist of Franz Schubert and Robert Schumann lieder, while the second half will feature works by Samuel Barber, Charles Ives and William Bolcom. Gunn will be accompanied on piano by Julie Gunn, his collaborator and wife. On their performance of Schubert's Die Schöne Müllerin, SanFranciscoSentinel.com declared, "Nathan Gunn’s lyric baritone and easy-going manner make him the ideal choice for Schubert’s innocent and romantic martyr. At the piano – and as the voice of the brook – Julie Gunn’s technical precision and sensitivity to the text completely supports the wide range of psychological underpinnings within the dramatic flow."

Nathan Gunn was born in 1970 in South Bend, Indiana. After graduating from the University of Illinois he participated in the Metropolitan Opera’s Lindemann Young Artists Program and, at 24, won the Met’s National Council Audition. He has since won accolades and awards, including the 2006 Beverly Sills Career Grant and in 2008 was included in People magazine’s “The Sexiest Men Alive” list.

Known for his dramatic talents, Gunn recently played the title role in Billy Budd, a recording of which won the 2010 Grammy for Best Opera Recording. This season, Gunn will return to the Metropolitan Opera as Raimbaud in Le Comte d’Ory before heading to the Dallas Opera to play the Lodger in Dominick Argento’s The Aspern Papers. In addition to his opera roles, Gunn maintains a busy recital and concert schedule. He has appeared with the New York Philharmonic, San Francisco Symphony, Cleveland Orchestra, and the Chicago, Boston and London symphony orchestras. Recital appearances have been given at Alice Tully Hall and Carnegie Hall.

Julie Gunn, who sits on the faculty at University of Illinois, is a pianist and arranger of songs from the classical repertoire to Broadway show tunes. She has appeared at Carnegie Hall Pure Voice Series, Lincoln Center Great Performers, and Manhattan’s Carlyle Cafe. Abroad, she has performed at Queen Elizabeth Hall in London, Theatre de la Monnaie in Brussels, and Roy Thompson Hall in Toronto. Her opera credits include Metropolitan Opera Young Artist Program, Wolf Trap Opera, Saint Louis Opera Theatre, Opera North, Chicago Opera Theater, and Cincinnati Opera. Julie and Nathan Gunn live in Champaign, Illinois, with their five children.

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