Isaac Hurtado, tenor
Nicolas Giusti, piano
September 30, 2023
7:00 p.m.
Intermission
Recondita armonia
Oh hidden harmony
Of contrasting beauties! Floria
Is dark, my ardent love.
And you, mysterious beauty…
Crowned with blond locks,
Your eyes are blue
And Tosca's are black!
Dissimilar beauties are together blended
By the mystery of art,
Yet as I paint her portrait, Tosca,
My sole thought is of you!
E lucevan le stelle, Tosca
And the stars shone and the earth was perfumed.
The gate to the garden creaked
And a footstep rustled the sand to the path …
Fragrant, she entered
And fell into my arms …
Oh soft kisses, oh sweet abandon,
As I trembling
Unloosed her veils and disclosed her beauty.
Oh vanished forever is that dream of love,
The hour is fled,
And now I die in despair
And never before have I loved life so much!
Ideale (Ideale one)
I followed you like a rainbow of peace
along the paths of heaven;
I followed you like a friendly torch
in the veil of darkness,
and I sensed you in the light, in the air,
in the perfume of flowers,
and the solitary room was full
of you and of your radiance.
Absorbed by you, I dreamed a long time
of the sound of your voice,
and earth's every cross, every torment
I forgot that day.
Come back, dear ideal, for an instant
to smile at me again,
and in your face will shine for me a new dawn.
La Serenata
Fly, o serenade:
My beloved is alone,
with her beautiful head hidden
under the sheets:
Fly, oh serenade!
Only the moonlight shines,
The wings of silence spread,
and behind the veils of the dark alcove
the lamp burns.
Only the moonlight shines.
Fly, o serenade, fly.
Ah!
Fly, o serenade:
My beloved is alone,
but still smiling, half asleep,
she has returned beneath the sheets:
Fly, oh serenade!
The waves dream on the shore,
and the wind through the branches;
and my kisses don’t result in a nest,
with my blonde lady.
The waves dream upon the shore.
Fly, o serenade.
Ah!
Tristezza (Sadness)
Look, far in the distance
the sun is dying on the waves
flocks of birds are flying
back to the plain.
I feel a sadness in my heart
and yet I don't know why.
Looking into your eyes my beauty,
I silently press you close to me.
A shadow cloaks creation
the sky and the sea,
I feel tears brimming
in my eyes.
The Angelus bell rings and sounds so sad
and yet I don't know why.
You pray devoutly, my beauty
and I pray with you.
Tenderly the prayer goes out
from our loving hearts
into the splendor
of the evening.
The sadness
makes me think
and yet I don't know why,
that one day, alas,
my heart will lose
this dream and you!
A Vucchella (A Sweet Mouth)
Yes, like a little flower,
You have got a sweet mouth
A little bit withered.
Please give it to me
it's like a little rose
Give me a little kiss,
give, Cannetella!
Give one and take one,
a kiss as little
as your mouth
which looks like a little rose
a little bit withered.
L’alba separa dalla luce l’ombra
(The Dawn Divides the Darkness from the Light)
The dawn divides the darkness from the light,
And my sensual pleasure from my desire,
O sweet stars, the hour of death is now at hand:
A more holy love sweeps you from the skies.
Gleaming eyes, O you who'll ne'er return,
sad stars, snuff out your uncorrupted light!
I must die, I do not want to see the day,
For love of my own dream and of the night.
Envelop me, O Night in your maternal breast,
While the pale earth bathes itself in dew;
But let the dawn rise from my blood
And from my brief dream the eternal sun
Je ne sais si je veille...Ô nature, pleine de grâce
(Oh Nature, Full of Grace)
I do not know if I'm awake or dreaming again!
Everything that surrounds me looks like a paradise;
the wood sighs as well as a sound harp,
A world is revealed to me dazzled!
O nature, full of grace,queen of time and space
Deign to welcome the one who passes and greets you,Humble mortal!
Mysterious silence!
O solemn calm!
Everything attracts me and I like it!
This wall, and this dark corner,
This limpid source and the freshness of the shadow;
it is not a hedge, it is not a bush where no flower blooms,where does a shiver go!
O nature! intoxicate me with perfumes,
Mother eternally young, adorable and pure!
O nature! And you, sun, come and flood me with your rays!
Traduire!...Pourquoi me réveiller
(Why Awaken Me, Oh Breath of Spring?)
Ah, very often my dream flew on the wings of these verses,
And it is you, dear poet,
who was my interpreter!
All my soul is here!
Why wake me up, oh breath of Spring,
Why wake me up?
On my forehead I feel your caresses,
And yet very close is the weather
Storms and sorrows!
Why awaken me, O breath of Spring?
Tomorrow in the valley will come the traveler
Remembering my former glory ...
And his eyes vainly seek my splendor,
They will find only mourning and misery!
Alas!
Why wake me up, O breath of Springt!
Rondine al nido (Swallow to the Nest)
Under the eaves of the old tower,
as the almond tree blossoms,
a friendly swallow has returned.
Every year she returns,
always on the same day.
She crosses mountains and sea
to get back here.
Only, love flees
and does not return.
It makes you hope in vain,
but it does not return.
It makes you hope in vain,
but it does not return.
In the soft twilight of evening
springtime is passing.
The swallows chatter in their flight —
They are drunk with light and air.
But I am sad and lonely.
You do not cross mountains and sea
to come back to me.
My little one,
You were my whole life,
but you ran away,
never to return.
You ran away,
never to return!
Non ti scordar di me (Don’t Forget Me)
The swallows left
From my cold and sunless country,
Searching for Springs full of violets
And lovely, happy nests.
My little swallow left
Without leaving me a kiss
She left without a goodbye
Don't forget about me:
My life is tied to you
I love you more and more
In my dreams you remain
Don't forget about me
My life is tied to you
There's always a nest
In my heart for you
Don't forget about me!
Mattinata (Dawn)
I followed you like a rainbow of peace
along the paths of heaven;
I followed you like a friendly torch
in the veil of darkness,
and I sensed you in the light, in the air,
in the perfume of flowers,
and the solitary room was full
of you and of your radiance.
Absorbed by you, I dreamed a long time
of the sound of your voice,
and earth's every cross, every torment
I forgot that day.
Come back, dear ideal, for an instant
to smile at me again,
and in your face will shine for me a new dawn.
Core n’grato (Ungrateful Heart)
Catarina, Catarina,
why do say
such bitter words;
Why do you speak
and torment my heart, Catarina?
Do not forget
I gave you my heart,
Catarina do not forget!
Catarina, Catarina, what meaning
Do your words hold,
Words that leave me shuddering?
You do not think of the pain I feel,
You do not think,
You do not care.
Ungrateful, ungrateful heart
You have taken my life,
All has passed
And I am in your thoughts no more!
Ungrateful, ungrateful heart
You have taken my life,
All has passed
And I am in your thoughts no more!
O sole mio (Oh, my sunshine)
What a beautiful thing is a sunny day!
The air is serene after a storm,
The air is so fresh that it already feels like a celebration.
What a beautiful thing is a sunny day!
But another sun, even more beautiful, oh my sweetheart.
My own sun shines from your face!
This sun, my own sun,
Shines from your face;
It shines from your face!
“Money-notes worth every penny,” “wonderful acting,” “movie star good looks,”and “passionate elegance” are just a few of the phrases used by critics to describe tenor Isaac Hurtado. Critically acclaimed for portrayals of Don José in Carmen, Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly, Werther in Werther, the Duke in Rigoletto, Tamino in Die Zauberflöte, Rodolfo in La Bohème, Edgardo in Lucia di Lammermoor, Alfredo in La Traviata, and Roméo in Roméo et Juliette, Mr. Hurtado is “the complete package.”
Upcoming for the 2023-24 season, Hurtado will make his Carnegie Hall solo debut in Nunes-Garcia's Missa de Requiem with New England Symphonic Ensemble for Midamerica Productions. He will appear twice with Opera Orlando in a solo concert and later as The Prince in Rusalka. He will also revisit the role of Don José in a Spanish version of Carmen with Opera Southwest.
In a busy 2022-23 season, Hurtado performed Don José in Carmen with Utah Festival Opera and covered the role of Cavaradossi in Tosca for Utah Opera. He sang Verdi's Requiem with Salt Lake Choral Artists, Beethoven's 9th Symphony with BYU Choirs and Orchestras, appeared in "A Night in Seville" with Amelia Island Opera, and debuted with Opera Roanoke in "Opera Gems," under the baton of Maestro Steven White. He performed and recorded the tenor solos in Deon Price's new oratorio, "Christus" at the Tabernacle at Temple Square in Salt Lake City, and his recording of Bigler's "Mosaic for Earth" was released worldwide on the Tonsehen label.
In concert, Mr. Hurtado has performed Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony with the West Michigan Symphony Orchestra, Liszt’s A Faust Symphony with the Traverse Symphony Orchestra, Bach’s Magnificat and G Major Mass with Sacramento Choral Society and Orchestra, Messiah with the Central United Methodist Church (MI), and gala concerts with Utah Symphony and Opera, Festival Opera at Walnut Creek, Temple Square Orchestra and Chorale of Salt Lake City, Santa Rosa Symphony and Martinez Opera.
Mr. Hurtado has been studying voice with Jack LiVigni since 2020, moving into the spinto tenor repertoire. He was trained as a young artist with Central City Opera, Opera North and Utah Festival Opera. He holds degrees in voice from Florida State University, Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, and Brigham Young University.
Nicolas Giusti is an acclaimed Italian composer and opera conductor. He has had great success with many operatic productions, such as Die Zauberflote by Mozart, Colyseum Opera House of Oporto (Portugal), Gianni Schicchi (Orbetello Festival with protagonist Giuseppe Taddei); Tosca (with Silvano Carroli, transmitted on RAI radio3); and La Boheme by Puccini at the State Opera House of Izmir (Turkey), the first production of the century in that country. Recently, he has directed and performed in highly competitive opera tournaments.
Utah Valley University acknowledges that we gather on land sacred to all Indigenous people who came before us in this vast crossroads region. The University is committed to working in partnership—as enacted through education and community activities—with Utah’s Native Nations comprising: the San Juan Southern Paiute, Paiute Indian Tribe of Utah, Uintah & Ouray Reservation of the Northern Ute, Skull Valley Goshute, Confederated Tribes of the Goshute Reservation, Northwestern Band of Shoshone Nation, Hopi Tribe, Navajo Nation, Ute Mountain Ute-White Mesa Community, and urban Indian communities. We recognize these Native Nations and their continued connections with traditional homelands, mountains, rivers, and lakes as well as their sovereign relationships with state and federal governments. We honor their collective memory and continued physical and spiritual presence. We revere their resilience and example in preserving their connections to the Creator and to all their relations, now and in the future.
With this statement comes responsibility and accountability. We resolve to follow
up with actionable items to make the School of the Arts at UVU and The Noorda Center
for the Performing Arts an inclusive, equitable, and just space for all. There is
much work to be done, and we are committed to putting these words into practice.
Artwork by Shane Walking Eagle (Sisseton Dakota).
Our mission is to produce and present artistic excellence, which would not be possible without the generous support of our sponsors. We thank them and express our deep gratitude to all patrons, supporters, and friends of The Noorda.
The arts possess the unparalleled power to inspire, educate, liberate, and transform. They elevate moments, mark milestones, soften edges, and generate profound meaning. Experience the beauty and wonder of the arts with us this season at The Noorda and begin at once to live!
Courtney R. Davis, J.D., M.A.
Dean, School of the Arts
Department Chair
JEFFREY O'FLYNN
Administrative Assistant
CHRIS GINES
Chamber Choir/Deep Green
REED CRIDDLE
Emerald Singers
CHERILYN WORTHEN
Concert Choir
DEMAREE BROWN
Opera Coordinator
ISAAC HURTADO
Voice Coordinator
MELISSA HEATH
Private Voice Instructors
AUBREY ADAMS-MACMILLAN
CECILY BILLS
ADRIENNE BRAUN
DEMAREE BROWN
ANTHONY BUCK
REED CRIDDLE
MELISSA HEATH
CHRISTOPHER HOLMES
ISAAC HURTADO
CONSTANCE JENSEN
SERENA KANIG BENISH
EMILY MERRELL
JOSEPH MOORE
