Clifford "Kip" Cranna, a UND alumnus and director of musical administration for the San Francisco Opera, will present two lectures March 5 in Grand Forks sponsored by the UND department of music.
Cranna, a native of Devils Lake, will speak at 2 p.m. about behind-the-scenes operations at a major opera company and at 3 p.m. about music careers, both at the Josephine Campbell Recital Hall of UND Hughes Fine Arts Center. Both events will be free and open to the public.
Cranna has been with the San Francisco Opera, America's second-largest opera company, for more than 30 years. His 2 p.m. presentation will cover such topics as the operations of an arts organization with a $70 million budget, the planning of its seasons, auditioning and choosing singers and more.
Cranna has extensive experience as a teacher and lecturer with such organizations as the Carmel Bach Festival, the San Francisco Conservatory of Music and the Smithsonian Institution.
He's worked with many important composers such as John Adams, André Previn, Philip Glass, Hugo Weisgall and Jake Heggie, as well as major conductors, directors and opera stars such as Luciano Pavarotti, Plácido Domingo, Marilyn Horne, Renée Fleming, Thomas Hampson and Deborah Voigt.
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At 3 p.m., he'll discuss the outlook on professional careers in the changing world of classical music, including how the business and audiences are changing, the role technology will play and finding a job in music.
Cranna has served as vocal adjudicator for groups including the Metropolitan Opera National Council. In addition to his Bachelor of Arts in choral conducting from UND, he holds a Ph.D. in musicology from Stanford University.
He was named 2006 "Man of the Year" by Il Cenacolo, a San Francisco men's Italian cultural organization, and in 2008 he was awarded the San Francisco Opera Medal, his Company's highest honor.
