It takes the right kind of motivation to travel across the country when you're eight months pregnant. For soprano Lindsay Robison Killian, it was the chance to sing with her father, bass Clayne Robison, that prompted her to return to Utah, if only for a short time. "I'm looking forward to singing with dad again," the Utah native said.
Killian and Robison join mezzo-soprano Linda Caple-Adams, tenor Lawrence Vincent, the Wasatch Chorale, the Valley Choral Society from Sacramento, Calif., and the Utah Valley Symphony next weekend in two performances of Giuseppe Verdi's powerful Requiem. Bryce Rytting will conduct. The concerts will be dedicated to the memory of Beverly Dunford, who passed away on March 31. She was a member of the Utah Valley Symphony's violin section and its business manager for 45 years.
Killian is expecting her first child in June, but that hasn't slowed her down yet. However, she said that singing while pregnant can be a challenge. "It's different, especially with breathing. It's interesting how my baby works with me — I can feel him moving around."
Both Killian and Robison have sung the Verdi Requiem before. They performed it together in Wyoming with the Cheyenne Symphony, and Robison has sung it a few other times as well, including performances in Seattle, at Utah State University and in Kingsbury Hall.
Robison said that the Requiem is one of those works that's on every singer's list. "Everybody wants to do it. Just like everyone wants to do the 'St. Matthew Passion' and 'Carmina Burana.' " The reason for that is simple. "The work is so tuneful. I come home from rehearsals and I can't sleep, because I have this wonderful music in my mind."
"Everybody is happy with the Requiem," Killian added, "even the choir and orchestra. It's so dramatic, and the dynamics are so extreme. The writing is just fabulous."
Both said that they enjoy working with Rytting. For Killian, this is the first time she's had the opportunity of collaborating with the Utah Valley Symphony's music director. "I've always wanted to work with him," she said. "He's very musical, and I always thought that he is the right conductor for Italian repertoire."
Killian and Robison have sung together on many occasions in the past. Besides the Verdi Requiem in Wyoming, the two have been featured soloists in the Utah Symphony's "Concert in the Park" (now known as "Summer Serenade") and in "The Redeemer" with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir and the Orchestra at Temple Square.
Killian has been living in New York City for the past three years, so performing with her dad is a treat. She studied voice at Brigham Young University, and she is a past winner of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions. She's appeared with the Nashville Opera, Caramoor Opera, Utah Opera and Long Island Opera. She's done a couple of recitals at Lincoln Center, and last year she performed with pianist Grant Johannesen in the New York Library Performing Arts Series.
Robison said that one of the most memorable performances that he and his wife, Vivian, had seen of Verdi's "La Traviata" was with Killian as Violetta, a role she has sung a number of times. "Vivian said that she was wiped out after seeing the final scene and couldn't go to the second performance. Lindsay's performance reminded me of Beverly Sills' interpretation, because it was so subtle."
If you go . . .
What: Giuseppe Verdi's Requiem with the Utah Valley Symphony, Bryce Rytting, conductor
Where: Provo Tabernacle, 100 S. University Ave.
When: 7:30 p.m., Friday and Saturday
How much: $5 at the door
E-mail: ereichel@desnews.com