American Opera with Floyd and Heggie
Carlisle Floyd is one of the preeminent composers of American opera, with a career that spans over fifty years. His operas Susannah, Of Mice and Men and Cold Sassy Tree have become a part of the operatic cannon, and have laid a foundation for a wider acceptance of American opera around the world. His honors include a Guggenheim Fellowship (1956), induction into the American Academy of Arts and Letters (2001) and National Medal of Arts (2004). Jake Heggie is a composer of operas from a younger generation that can credit Floyd’s achievements with playing a profound influence on their careers.
Classical 90.5’s Daniel Gilliam, also a composer, had a conversation with Mr. Floyd and Mr. Heggie about the current state of American opera. The conversation came while Mr. Floyd was in Louisville for the Kentucky Opera’s production of Of Mice and Men.
