An afternoon of art song with Lara Ciekiewicz and Michael Oike

The Little Opera Company invites audiences to take “Refuge” in well-known, well-loved songs to begin the new year.    

"It does feel like you come to this music looking for some comfort and some respite from whatever things are happening in the day, the month, the year,” says soprano Lara Ciekiewicz.  

Collaborating with pianist Michael Oike, the program features music by venerable art song masters like Britten, Duparc, Puccini, and Strauss, as well as contemporary composers such as Matthew Emery and Adam Guettel.  

“My first love is the piano/vocal repertoire,” says Oike, who relishes the opportunity to dive back into the literature. A long-time instructor at the Manitoba Conservatory of Music and the Arts, constraints and commitments kept him more removed from the genre than he would have liked to be.  

After reaching out to Little Opera Company’s Spencer Duncanson, Oike was paired with Ciekiewicz in a match seemingly made-to-be.  

Refuge takes place on Sunday, January 22 at St. Andrew’s River Heights United Church, beginning at 3 p.m. Tickets available through Eventbrite from $22.63 or www.littleopera.ca