The (San Diego County, CA) will launch a six-part music series in two local venues this fall: the historic 1928 Tudor Revival H. Lee House, 3205 Olive Street in Civic Center Park, and the 1874 English Gothic Church of St. Philip-the-Apostle, 2660 Hardy Drive.  

The series will kick off on Sept. 21 at 2 p.m. at St. Philip-the-Apostle when U.S. composer, Myron Fink, provides a sneak peek at his new opera, “Edith Wharton:  A Self Portrait,” based on the life of the famous novelist.  Joining Fink will be the opera’s librettist, Donald Moreland, soprano Patricia McAfee and tenor Richard Geiler. “Myron Fink and Friends” will perform and discuss excerpts from the opera.

Fink was trained at the University of Illinois, the George Eastman School of Music and Juilliard before studying as a Fulbright Scholar in Vienna, Austria.  A composer of operas, symphonies, chamber and vocal works, Fink’s epic opera, “The Conquistador,” premiered at the San Diego Opera in 1997.  With Moreland as librettist, he earlier composed the operas “Chinchilla” and “Judith and Holofernes.”  He has just completed “Edith Wharton:  A Self Portrait” and is at work on a symphony.

Donald Moreland graduated from the Yale School of Drama.  He has acted and directed Off Broadway and at the Arena Stage in Washington, D.C. and staged such operas as Verdi’s “Macbeth,” Rossini’s “The Barber of Seville,” and Hindemith’s “News of the Day.”  He has collaborated with Fink since their student days at the University of Illinois.

MUSIC AT LEE honors the 70^th anniversary of the music program in Lemon Grove Schools.  The series is made possible in part by a Community Enhancement Grant from the County of San Diego and by the generous support of these area businesses:  New Pacific Productions, Inc., RCP Block & Brick, WalMart, and Western Graphics, Inc.

Links of interest:

Myron Fink's website

Don Moreland's website

Animalopera by Fink and Moreland
Fink and Moreland have also recently collaborated on "Animalopera" an opera for children which was commissioned by the San Diego Opera and produced by the company's Education and Outreach Program in partnership with several San Diego area schools. "Animalopera" is now available both on Enhanced CD and as a production package.

The Music at Lee 2003-04 Music Series

The Tudor Revival H. Lee House
This recent San Diego Union-Tribune article provides more information about the newly renovated historical house, now a venue for musical programs in the San Diego, CA. area.

The Lemon Grove Historical Society