[Author]by the El Reportero’s news services[/Author]
Spanish tenor Placido Domingo returned to Rio de Janeiro and, two days before the World Cup final, again delighted fans after 20 years away from the Brazilian city.
The time and place of his Friday concert were not scheduled by chance by this lifelong soccer fan and Real Madrid supporter. Domingo wished to associate his music once more with a World Cup and so chose the city where Argentina will face off against Germany on Sunday for the soccer championship at Maracana Stadium.
In a tribute to the country that welcomed him with a full house after such a long absence, the tenor chose not to perform solo but surrounded himself with local musical talent including Paula Fernandes, the Brazilian Symphony Orchestra and the Brazil Opera Chorus, to bring the crowd at the HSBC Arena-Rio theater an unforgettable show.
Also accompanied, as on other occasions, by Puerto Rican soprano Ana Maria Martinez and U.S. orchestra conductor Eugene Kohn, the Spaniard captivated an audience that had longed to see him again, with a combination of opera, Spanish music, American musical comedy, operetta and typical Brazilian songs.
The duos by Domingo and Martinez were so charged with power and elegance they gave spectators the shivers and were some of the truly memorable moments of the night.
This was the fifth time the singer has given a concert in a World Cup context, after initiating the custom in Rome in 1990, where he teamed up with Jose Carreras and Luciano Pavarotti.
The tenor went on to conquer the public in the United States in 1994, in France in 1998, in Korea/Japan in 2002, and in Germany in 2006, and no way was he going to miss the chance of a repeat in Rio de Janeiro.
Come meet aspiring Latino muralists from Rosemont
Youth with an avid interest in the arts were selected from the Rosemont community, located 20-miles outside of Chicago, to participate in a unique project promoting the ancient art of muralism. And now you have the opportunity to meet and support their efforts. The group includes Guillermo Echeverria, Juana García Ramírez, Andrea García Chávez, Fabián Garcia, Francisco García, Felipe Rodela Trujillo, Luis García and María Hernández.
This group was given the incredible opportunity to work along side professional muralist Rahmaan Statik Barnes to conceptualize and create murals representative of their community.
When the project is completed there will be three murals, each 100 feet long by 15 feet tall, adorning wall space in the Rosemont Recreation Center located on Barry Street.
Murals have a long and revered history in Latin America and some of the greatest muralists were from Mexico including Diego Rivera and David Alfaro Siqueiros. Mexican muralism traces its roots to pre-Columbian times with murals often seen as the ideal way to inspire and celebrate community. The budding muralists were employed by Rosemont to work on every aspect of mural creation from thematic development to sketching to painting.
The “It’s Art Here” event was launched on Friday July 11 from 5-9 p.m. and the entire community weas invited to help kick off this initiative by painting a portion of the murals.
Rosemont Mayor Brad Stephens noted, “This project is remarkable for the benefits it brings to Rosemont. These benefits include the invaluable hands-on learning and arts experience these Rosemont students will gain through their creation of the murals.”
