son included singing the role of Figaro in Calgary Opera

’s The

Barber of Saville, Dandini in La Cenerentola withl’Opera de 

Montreal, and the role of the count ina Quebec Opera pro­

duction of Lenozzedi Figaro. Last summer he returned to the

Savonlinna Festival to reprise his protrayal ofSilvio in Ipagliacci.

His opera roles this season include his Lyric Opera ofChicago

debut as Peter Niles in Mourning Becomes Electra, and Harle­

quin in Opera de Nancy’s presentation ofAriadne aufNaxos.

Also much in demand as an oratorio singer, Brett Polegato has

sung Messiah with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, the Na­

tional Arts Centre Orchestra, and the Montreal Symphony 

under Nicholas McGegan; Bach’s“Coffee” and“Peasant” Canta­

tas with Tafelmusik; and the Saint Matthew Passion under the

baton of Seiji Ozawa. Renowned for his sensitivity in French 

melodies and German Lieder, Polegato is constantly in great de­

mand for recitals in the United States, Germany, France, and

England. He made his London recital debut in the Celebrity

Series at SaintJohn’s, Smith Square, in March 1996. In Canada 

he was featured by the CBC, singing Brahms’ Lieder, and in

recital on the Saint Lawrence Centre’s Music Toronto Series. 

He has recorded the Five Canticles of Benjamin Britten and

Kalman’s Die Herzogin von Chicago under the direction of Rich­

ard Bonynge. Brett Polegato appears at the National Gallery 

by arrangement with IMG Artists of New York.

Iain Burnside is one of Britain’s most popular musical per­

sonalities, witha career that spans performing, broadcasting,

and education. Asa performer, he is best known for his com­

mitment to song repertoire. He has worked witha wide range

of singers, from established artists such as Dame Margaret

Price, Elly Ameling, and Frederica von Stade to younger art­

ists, including Susan Chilcott, Janice Watson, and William

Dazeley. Asa chamber musician, Burnside has played with 

the Britten-Pears Ensemble and the Brodsky, Delme, and

Vanbrugh String Quartets. He is the presenter ofa weekly 

song program,“Voices,” for the BBC, and has been artistic di­

rector of the International Song Recital Series at the Purcell 

Room in London’s South Bank Centre.

-Progam notes by Elmer Booze

The Fifty-seventh Season of

THE WILLIAM NELSON CROMWELL and E LAMMOT BELIN CONCERTS

National Gallery of Art

2292d Concert

BRETT POLEGATO, baritone

IAIN BURNSIDE, pianist

Sunday Evening, January 3, 1999

SevenO’clock

West Building, West Garden Court

Admissionfree
Ludwig van Beethoven

(1770-1827)

PROGRAM

Andenken

WoO 136

Sehnsucht

Opus 83, No. 2

Der Kuss

Opus 128

Robert Schumann Fiinf Lieder, Opus 40

(1810-1856)

1. Marzveilchen 2. Muttertraum

3. Der Soldat 4. Der Spielmann

5. Verratene Liebe

Yrjo Kilpinen

(1892-1959)

Lieder um den Tod

Opus 62

1. Voglein Schwermut

2. Auf einem verfallenen Kirchhof

3. Der Tod und der einsame Trinker

4. Winternacht

5. Der Samann

6. Unverlierbare Gewahr

INTERMISSION

Gerald Finzi Selected Songs

(1901-1956)

1. Summer Schemes 2. To Lizbie Brown

3. Rollicum-Rorum 4. Channel Firing

5. Proud Songsters

Charles Ives

(1874-1954)

Selected Songs

1. In the Alley 2. Remembrance

3. Tom Sails Away 4. Charlie Rutlage

Aaron Copland From “Old American Songs II”

(1900-1990)

1. At the River 2. Zion’s Walls 

3. Ching-a-ring Chaw

Brett Polegato s appearance at the National Gallery has been assistedby a

grantfrom the Embassy ofCanada.

Brett Polegato is a native ofNiagara Falls, Ontario, whose powerful combination of talents in musical artistry and dramatic invention has placed him in the top rank of today’s young baritones. Polegato was hailed enthusiastically by both judges and

audiences when he became a winner in the prestigious Cardiff

Singer ofthe World Competition. Similar adulation was bestowed

upon him following his participation in Japan’s Pacific Music Festival and Finland’s Mirjam Helin International Competition. In

Ontario, Polegato received the distinguished William Matheus

Sullivan Foundation Grant for opera.

In January 1997, Brett Polegato made his “Opera in Concert”

debut as Taddeo in Rossini’s Eitaliana in Algeri, followed by an

appearance in Schubert’s Die Zwillingsbriider with the CBC

Vancouver Symphony, conducted by Mario Bernardi for broadcast on the CBC radio network. In the spring of the same year,

Polegato appeared as Masetto in concert performances of Don

Giovanni with Boston Baroque and returned to New York’s Alice

Tully Hall for performances as Claudio in Berlioz’ Beatrice et

Benedict with l’Opera Frangais de New York. A subsequent European tour included performances in Rameau’s Dardanus with Les

Musiciens du Louvre, and his debut at Finland’s Savonlinna Festival in the role of Silvio in Ipagliacci. His busy 1997—1998 sea-