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MEET THE ARTISTS
Michael A.M. Aoun (they/them) is a Lebanese-American bass-baritone whose passion for interdisciplinary and collaborative art inspires their professional work and their continual self-development. An all-or-nothing person, Michael views music as a means of exploring one’s whole self and creating something entirely unique. They feel strongly about their art reflecting their personal values of authenticity and human connection.
With such a passion for collaboration, Michael is deeply dedicated to advocacy and social justice. Their gender expression/identity and neurodivergence (ADHD) have taught them to listen to those who are different and to stay engaged as an activist. Through their art, they seek to elevate and facilitate difficult conversations around xenophobia and systemic oppression.
Michael has most recently performed and collaborated at The Fisher Center in the Hudson Valley. In November 2021, they co-arranged and performed Charles Trenet’s cabaret classic “Que reste-t-il de nos amour?” with collaborative pianist Elias Dagher. This was part of Songs From The Real World: The French Cabaret with Stephanie Blythe and the Bard Vocal Arts Program. In December 2021, they performed Handel’s Messiah under the baton of Leon Botstein, and in March sang the parallel roles of Badger and Parson in Leoš Janáček’s opera The Cunning Little Vixen with The Orchestra Now (TON).
They made their New York City debut on May 18th, 2022, performing in the concert series Continuing Evolution: Yiddish Folksong Today at the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research.
Visit MichaelBassBaritone.com to learn more.
Chinese American soprano Abagael Cheng (she/her) is a singing artist who strives to break the boundaries of traditional performance art and bring social activism to the forefront of her work. Ms. Cheng sees her role in social justice and performance art to be one and the same: that of a storyteller. She works towards deepening relationships within and between communities by engaging audiences with relatable narratives and centering collaboration in her productions.
Ms. Cheng curates her own productions as a form of ultimate collaboration in all aspects of the art, combining song and poetry to create unique narratives. During the pandemic, she produced her own recital, Spirals, at the Greenwich House Music School. The production demonstrates the journey of creating one’s own sense of closure after experiencing isolation and loss, exploring how the work of healing can generate a new and empowered sense of self.
This past season, Ms. Cheng was featured in the world premiere of The Final Veil (Cabaret
Soloist) by JL Marlor at the cell theatre, as well as Janáček’s The Cunning Little Vixen (Chocholka) at The Fisher Center at Bard. A New York City-based artist, she holds a Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance and a Bachelor of Arts in Mathematics from Oberlin College & Conservatory. She is currently pursuing her Master’s degree in the Graduate Vocal Arts Program at Bard College Conservatory of Music, where she studies under the tutelage of Stephanie Blythe, Kayo Iwama, Erika Switzer, and Lucy Fitz Gibbon. For more information, visit www.abagaelcheng.com
Maria Giovanetti is an adept and versatile soprano who endeavors to bring classical music to a broad audience, making it accessible and engaging for all. Her repertoire spans from early music to contemporary compositions, with a focus in art song, opera, and oratorio repertoires.
This past December, Maria performed as a soprano soloist in Handel’s Messiah with The Orchestra Now at Bard’s Fisher Center. She was also seen performing at the Fisher Center earlier last fall in Songs from the Real World: The French Cabaret. This spring, Maria performed the roles of Cricket and Frantík in Janáček’s The Cunning Little Vixen. She also participated in a concert with the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research, featuring songs in Yiddish, where she sang the live premiere of a new work.
Maria completed her undergraduate degree in vocal performance at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, MA, where she studied with Carole Haber. She also holds a Performance Certificate from the Lamont School of Music at the University of Denver. Maria is now pursuing her master’s degree in vocal performance from the prestigious Graduate Vocal Arts Program at Bard College Conservatory. In 2019, Maria competed in the NATS Boston Chapter vocal competition and took first place in the upper classical division. In 2020, she was a finalist in the NATS West Central Chapter Advanced Classical division. Maria has participated in several training programs, including Opera Steamboat’s young artist program, as well as the American Institute of Musical Studies in Graz, Austria.
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Sadie Spivey has been recognized for her diverse performance abilities as a vocal artist and as an actor. Whether it is creating new work or giving a unique voice to established repertoire, Sadie believes that stories help us feel seen and heard, fulfilling our innate desire to connect.
This summer, Sadie returned to The Ohio Light Opera to sing Mabel in The Pirates of Penzance and Luisa in The Fantasticks. She began the 2022 season singing the Vixen in Janáček’s The Cunning Little Vixen. In 2021, Sadie performed alongside Stephanie Blythe and members of the Bard Graduate Vocal Arts Program in Songs From The Real World: The French Cabaret. Sadie was also featured as a soloist in Handel’s Messiah at the Fisher Center, in collaboration with The Orchestra Now.
Sadie was named an Encouragement Award Winner of the 2020 Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions (Pittsburgh District). That same year, she received an Emerging Artist Award from the International Lotte Lenya Competition. Sadie worked as a Young Artist at The Ohio Light Opera for the 2018 and 2019 summer seasons performing in twelve productions. She appeared as Little Red in Into The Woods, Sieglinda in Kern's Music in the Air, Anina in the American Premiere of Kalman’s The Devil’s Rider, and as Leila in Gilbert and Sullivan’s Iolanthe.
Sadie is currently pursuing a Master’s in Vocal Arts at the Bard College Conservatory of Music under the tutelage of Stephanie Blythe. Sadie is a student of Edith Bers. A graduate of Penn State, Sadie received a Bachelor of Music in voice performance as well as a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Acting.
For more information, see www.sadiespivey.com.
Nhi Huynh made her orchestral debut with the Ho Chi Minh City Symphony Orchestra in Vietnam at the age of thirteen. During her time at the Conservatory of Music in Vietnam, she was a regular performer on various concert programs and made frequent appearances on national television channels. Nhi took five years away from the piano while she continued her academic education in New Zealand. She started her professional musical career at the University of Denver, where she earned her Master of Music with Steven Mayer. Nhi recently completed her Doctor of Musical Arts at Stony Brook University and was awarded the Ackerman Prize for Excellence in Graduate Studies (Performance), under the instruction of Gilbert Kalish.
Nhi is an advocate of new music with a strong passion for promoting contemporary music, bringing the genre to a wider audience. As a winner of Stony Brook University Concerto Competition 2020, she performed Sheila Silver’s Piano Concerto with the Stony Brook Symphony Orchestra in 2022. Nhi has premiered and performed many works by living composers such as William Bolcom, Sheila Silver, Unsuk Chin, Wang Lu, and the Grammy-nominated Metropolis Ensemble. She has also appeared in Stony Brook Contemporary Chamber Players concerts and collaborated with Stony
Brook University composers. Nhi is an avid chamber musician and was in Gilbert Kalish’s Chamber Intensive program 2018-2020. Her trio performed a concert for the Embassy of Armenia celebrating Komitas’ 150th birthday at the Kreeger Museum in Washington, D.C. Nhi’s other important mentors include Christina Dahl, Sheila Silver, Kyungwha Chu.
Besides her active performance career of solo and chamber music, Nhi is a dedicated teacher. She was an undergraduate piano instructor at the University of Denver and Stony Brook University, and recipient of the Suffolk Piano Teachers Foundation Award in 2020 for her excellence in teaching. After a long hiatus of live music due to Covid, Nhi founded a Hospital Outreach Project - Ear to H(ear)t - that brings live musical performances to cancer patients and staff at the Stony Brook University Hospital & Cancer Center.
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