Founded in 2015, the Greve Opera Academy and Music Festival is a collaborative effort between the American performing organizations Connecticut Lyric Opera and Connecticut Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra and the municipality of Greve-in-Chianti in the province of Florence. The inaugural festival featured a fully staged production of Le Nozze di Figaro performed in the Teatro Boito in Greve, the Teatro Niccolini in San Casciano and in the public square – Piazza Metteotti – of Greve, as well as additional performances in Greve and else wherei. 2016 saw performances of “La Boheme” in Greve and San Gimignano and of “Don Giovanni” in Greve, with additional concerts and recitals in Florence and Greve; and 2017 saw performances of both “Tosca” and “Cosi fan Tutte” in San Gimignano and Greve, with additional concerts and recitals in Florence and Greve. In the first three seasons, attendees have come from the US, Italy, Canada, China, Austria, Poland, Cypress and Australia.

Connecticut Lyric Opera

Now in our fifteenth season, Connecticut Lyric Opera is Connecticut’s only full-season professional opera company, and the fastest growing company in New England. The mission of Connecticut Lyric Opera is threefold:

• Inspire: To contribute to the cultural life of Connecticut with high quality operas, concerts and recitals from the traditional and contemporary repertoires.
• Involve: To encourage the development of Connecticut-based singers and musicians through their participation in professional opera productions and other public performances.
• Instill: To present opera to people of all ages in such a way as to foster a love and appreciation of the art form.

To these ends, CLO produces three fully staged opera productions per season with orchestra and chorus, an adapted opera production by Young Artists for student audiences for our OPERAtunities program, as well as a number of other concerts and recitals throughout the year featuring CLO soloists and orchestra members. – See more at: http://ctlyricopera.org

Connecticut Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra

Established in 1997, The Connecticut Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra is Connecticut’s premier professional chamber orchestra dedicated to presenting both traditional and contemporary classical chamber works to the public. The Orchestra, led by founder and Artistic Director, Adrian Sylveen, continues to grow in size and repertoire, presenting approximately twenty five regular and educational performances each year in New Britain, Hartford, New London, Middletown and New York.  The mission of the Virtuosi is to preserve and perpetuate the great traditions of orchestral music through the expansion of its public performance season, its education series, and, by showcasing the excellence of regional and international talent. In the choice of repertoire special attention is given to music from Eastern Europe. The Orchestra collaborates on many projects with the New Britain Chorale, CCSU, Middletown Concert Association, Chopin Foundation in NY, and others. We co-produce fully staged opera productions with Connecticut Lyric Opera, the Virtuosi also collaborates on a community music school project with Tunxis College in Farmington. A frequent guest at the Kosciusko Foundation’s Chamber Music Series, in 2003 the Virtuosi was invited to perform at the Gala Concert celebrating the 25th anniversary of John Paul II’s papacy. See more at: http://thevirtuosi.org