Sioux City Symphony and the Legendary John Osborn Preview

♪ Singing in foreign language ♪

We have such a rich, vibrant

art scene here in Sioux City and in northwest Iowa.

And the Sioux City Symphony

is sort of the central hub of that art scene.

We are going into our 108th season.

We're one of the longest continuously running

symphony orchestras in the country.

We are so very proud to be presenting

John Osborn, who of course, was born

and raised right here in Sioux City, Iowa, has gone on

to become one

of the most outstanding tenors in the entire opera world

and his very beautiful, talented wife, Lynette Tapia.

The planning of this program was really centered around

what could we present best to this audience.

I grew up in Sioux City, so kind of a tour,

so to speak, of how my career has gone since starting in Iowa

and then traveling all over the world

and doing, you know, operas. And it's

fun. It's exciting.

Always an adventure.

John is just an incredible human being and an absolute

genuine individual when it comes to his artistry.

♪ Singing in foreign language ♪

There is power and character

and nuance that many singers won't ever achieve.

And to bring John and Lynette together allows us

to experience a whole new side of John.

But at the same time, be introduced

to this fantastic voice that Lynette brings.

She has a way to keep it natural and genuine

and just give you enough to make your heart beat

just a little faster.

♪ Singing in foreign language ♪

I was so blessed to meet John

and we really did have an instant connection

and we really have grown together.

We really wanted to put together something that put across

his journey in this opera life that we share together,

as well as a journey for the audience to understand

what opera is in

Italian, in French, in German,

and how it can tie into our life.

So just because it's in a foreign language

doesn't mean it's a foreign emotion.

And I think John and I really love to play on stage with that.

We're really trying to make the most beautiful mix

of sounds together, just like our relationship.

This is brought to life in a new way,

a genuine organic approach to music when it evolves.

It changes in the moment, and not many artists can do that.

So we can rehearse the heck out of this entire program.

But until we get to the performance,

we don't know what we're going to see.

And that's the energy that's required in a performance

that is impactful and meaningful.

This is one of the

things that makes a live performance

so unique because it's literally unique.

It can never be reproduced

in that way ever again.

It requires so much concentration

It requires so much concentration

from the orchestra to be flexible enough

to bend and twist and turn to fit perfectly

into what John and Lynette are doing.

The beauty of this concert is that it tells a story.

It brings to life important concepts, important ideas

that yeah, maybe they were written 100 years ago.

But the greatest thing about music

is that it still lives and breathes today.

There's a reason why it's part of our culture, our heritage.

It saves us. It allows us to survive.

It allows us to heal.

It allows us to celebrate.

It is the most beautiful thing that is in existence

that allows us to be true, good human beings.

And that's what we celebrate in this concert tonight.