A List
10/31/05

SLU HOSTS TENOR JUAN CARLOS FRANCO FOR CONCERT

CANTON - Tenor Juan Carlos Franco is the Gretchen Bence Young Artist at St. Lawrence University for 2005, presenting a concert on Sunday, November 6, at 2 p.m. in Gilbert Recital Hall, Griffiths Arts Center. The event is open to the public, free of charge.

Franco's professional credits include engagements with the New Orleans Opera, Cleveland Opera, New Jersey Symphony and Colombian National Opera among others. In 1995 Franco reached the European finals of the Pavarotti International Voice Competition held in Modena, Italy. He qualified in his native Colombia, where Luciano Pavarotti selected him as winner.

He is a graduate of the Oberlin Conservatory, after which he joined the Cleveland Opera for the 1994 and 1995 seasons. Franco then moved to the New York area to complete a master's degree in music at Rutgers. He also holds an electrical engineering degree, summa cum laude, from Bradley University.

The concert will include selections by Beethoven and Dvorak, among others. Franco will also present a vocal workshop for University students on Saturday, November 5, at 11 a.m., in Gilbert Recital Hall.

The Young Artists Series was established by contributions from the family and friends of Gretchen Bence, a 1950 graduate of St. Lawrence and a professional opera singer, following her receipt of an honorary degree from St. Lawrence in 1985. For more information, contact the music department at 315-229-5192.

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