I first met bass-baritone Ryan Speedo Green when he was an Opera Colorado Young Artist. Just a few years before our meeting, Speedo was in solitary confinement in a juvenile detention facility. Now he sings at the Met (here he is giving a tour of the opera house with fellow star Susanna Phillips) and the Vienna State Opera, is happily married and has a child on the way. Between singing gigs, he has been on a year-long book tour after a book about him, Sing for Your Life, became a bestseller. The heart-wrenching story of his youth, the racial issues he has had to face, and his ultimate success on the world's greatest opera houses is a modern-day legend he'll be talking about. He'll also fill the room with his rich, booming voice as he sings some of his operatic favorites.
This is the second year of the Aspen Music Festival and School Salon, serving to enlighten and nurture a new generation of classical music lovers by providing a space for intellectual and social exchange through these unique cultural events. Members can attend for free, or tickets are available at the door. This event takes place Sunday, July 9 at 6:00 pm at Paepke Auditorium. Here is a brief interview I just had with Speedo:
