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February 2004

Opera for Kids – Taking away the Fear Factor

From Bugs Bunny to take-out pizza commercials, popular films to sports car ads, the world is filled with the sound of opera. Almost everyone can recognize these timeless opera melodies, but for most people, the word ‘opera’ conjures up great fears, intimidating images and stereotypes. In an attempt to demystify opera for audiences of all ages, we present:

Opera Myth #1 – I don’t know anything about it. I don’t understand what they’re singing about.
You don’t have to know anything about opera. This popular misconception stems from the fact that most opera is sung in a foreign language. The World’s Very Best Opera for Kids CD strips away the intimidation and presents these best-loved melodies in English so that everyone can understand. Listen, sing along and enjoy – allow yourself to have an emotional response to the music.

Opera Myth #2 – Opera is outrageously expensive.
A survey of classical music radio stations conducted in June 2003 revealed that more than 360 hours of opera programming is available absolutely FREE each week in the United States and Canada, not to mention countless on-line classical music stations. Opera tickets are comparable to the prices of other live entertainment, and in some cases cost less than a major league sporting event.

For less than $20 your family can enjoy The World’s Very Best Opera for Kids CD for years to come.

Opera Myth #3 – Opera is for blue hairs only.
A landmark study published in March 2003 by the Performing Arts Research Coalition (www.operaamerica.org/parc) found no strong relationship between age and levels of attendance at performing arts events like opera, ballet and the symphony. In most communities, the study saw only a small percentage difference between opera-goers aged 25 to 54.

A 1997 National Endowment for the Arts survey found the median age of the opera audience dropped to 44 (hardly the old, white/blue/grey-haired crowd). Opera goers are the only arts audience in which the median age decreased.

One way to ensure that opera is enjoyed by all age groups for many years to come is to make opera a part of everyday life starting in childhood.

Opera Myth #4 – Opera is a dying art form.
The rumors of opera’s death have been greatly exaggerated. A National Endowment for the Arts report published in 1997 showed that 9.2 million adults (or 4.7% of the adult population) attended at least one opera performance.

In 2000-2001, North America’s professional opera companies gave 2,238 performances of 435 fully-staged main season and festival productions. (Source: Opera America)

Opera is one of the fastest growing of the performing arts with more than 20 million people attending annually. Not only are audiences growing, but they’re growing younger too! In fact, one of the fastest growing audiences at the opera is Generation X, whose attendance at opera grew by more than 18% in recent years. (Source: Atlanta Opera)

Of the twelve world-class performers featured on The World’s Very Best Opera for Kids CD, most are between the ages of 35 and 45. All these performers cited their exposure to opera as a child as a primary influence in pursuing an opera career.

The World’s Very Best Opera for Kids CD features a stellar cast of world-class opera stars – and some up-and-coming stars, too – proving that opera can be a rich and rewarding career opportunity and experience for young people.

Opera Myth #5 – Opera is boring
Opera is actually a great party – a visual, aural, emotional spectacle that electrifies all the senses. In many ways, it is the ultimate multi-media art form. In our society today, we look for and even expect entertainment that dazzles us from all around. Opera, with its spectacular sets and costumes, glorious voices, and stories that tear at our heartstrings, does exactly that. There is something in it for everyone.

Opera Myth #6 – It ain’t over ‘til the fat lady sings.
There were no fat ladies involved in the production of The World’s Very Best Opera for Kids CD. In fact, it ain’t over at all. The World’s Very Best Opera for Kids CD is a new beginning for a new generation of opera-lovers.

The World’s Very Best Opera for Kids CD makes opera understandable, fun and singable for children ages 4 and up. Just as The Children’s Group has changed a generation’s perception of classical music with our award-winning and best-selling Classical Kids series, we can change the public’s perception of opera for a lifetime, too…because everyone can love opera!

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For more information about The World’s Very Best Opera for Kids CD and Teacher’s Guide with CD, please contact:

Publicity & Promotion
905/831.1995 ext:27

November 24 , 2003

The World’s Very Best Opera for Kids …in English!
Receives iParenting Media Award

The World’s Very Best Opera for Kids …in English!, produced by The Children’s Group, has been awarded with a 2003 iParenting Media Award. iParenting Media’s Award Program provides a credible and objective method of determining the best products in the children’s media and juvenile products industry. They are committed to raising the overall standards of the current awards systems in the industry and are dedicated to informing, inspiring and uniting the parenting community it serves via multiple media platforms of the Internet, print magazines, syndicated newspaper column and radio show.

The World’s Very Best Opera for Kids features 14 best-loved arias performed in English by the world’s finest opera stars and rising stars featuring works from some of the most popular -- and important – operas across a wide range of genres, eras and composers.

Featuring world-class talent like tenor Michael Schade (La donna è mobile from Verdi’s Rigoletto), mezzo-soprano Jean Stilwell (Habañera from Bizet’s Carmen), baritone Allan Monk (Non più andrai from Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro), coloratura-soprano Tracy Dahl (The Doll Song from Offenbach’s Tales of Hoffman), countertenor Daniel Taylor (Ombra mai fù from Handel’s Xerxes), soprano Suzie LeBlanc in a duet with baritone Daniel Lichti (Papageno’s Song from Mozart’s The Magic Flute) and much, much more. In addition to 14 stellar performances in English, this CD includes five instrumental-only karaoke-style tracks so that anyone can sing-along and be an opera star.

The World’s Very Best Opera for Kids has been selected as one of the Top 20 Children’s CDs of 2003 by Nick JR. Magazine, has already earned a Parents’ Choice Gold Award and continues to receive rave reviews from the media:

“Winning offerings …accessible and useful for demystifying opera” - The Toronto Star

“A kid friendly Figaro” – Maclean’s Magazine

“Dazzling …stunning …absolutely recommended” – Halifax Chronicle Herald

“…a remarkable CD” – City Parent

The World’s Very Best Opera for Kids …in English! is marketed by The Children's Group, the leading producer of classical music entertainment for children on CD, video/DVD, live concert, books, educational resources and interactive multimedia.

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For more information on The World’s Very Best Opera for Kids …in English!, or to arrange an interview with our producer, librettist or performers, please contact:

Publicity & Promotion
905/831.1995 ext:27

Visit us online at www.childrensgroup.com High-resolution graphics are available at http://download.childrensgroup.com

November 13 , 2003

Opera For Kids CD: #24 Best-Seller in Canada!

The newly released CD – The World’s Very Best Opera for Kids …in English! has been reported going up to #24 on the Canadian Top 25 Classical Chart as reported by SoundScan. The recording debuted at #33 (tied with Placido Domingo) two weeks ago and is steadily climbing the Canadian chart.

The World’s Very Best Opera for Kids features 14 best-loved arias performed in English by the world’s finest opera stars and rising stars featuring works from some of the most popular -- and important – operas across a wide range of genres, eras and composers. Featuring world-class talent like tenor Michael Schade (La donna è mobile from Verdi’s Rigoletto), mezzo-soprano Jean Stilwell (Habañera from Bizet’s Carmen), baritone Allan Monk (Non più andrai from Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro), coloratura-soprano Tracy Dahl (The Doll Song from Offenbach’s Tales of Hoffman), countertenor Daniel Taylor (Ombra mai fù from Handel’s Xerxes), soprano Suzie LeBlanc in a duet with baritone Daniel Lichti (Papageno’s Song from Mozart’s The Magic Flute) and much, much more. In addition to 14 stellar performances in English, this CD includes five instrumental-only karaoke-style tracks so that anyone can sing-along and be an opera star.

“Winning offerings …accessible and useful for demystifying opera” - The Toronto Star

“A kid friendly Figaro” – Maclean’s Magazine

“Dazzling …stunning …absolutely recommended” – Halifax Chronicle Herald

“…a remarkable CD” – City Parent

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For more information on The World’s Very Best Opera for Kids …in English!, or to arrange an interview with our producer, librettist or performers, please contact:

Publicity & Promotion
905/831.1995 ext:27

Visit us online at www.childrensgroup.com High-resolution graphics are available at http://download.childrensgroup.com

November 7, 2003

Parents' Choice Honors
The World’s Very Best Opera for Kids …in English!

The World’s Very Best Opera for Kids …in English!, produced by The Children’s Group, has been recognized with a 2003 Parents' Choice Gold Award by Parents' Choice magazine. For more than 20 years, Parents' Choice has honored the best in children's books, video, toys, audio, software, television and magazines.

Featuring world-class talent like tenor Michael Schade (La donna è mobile from Verdi’s Rigoletto), mezzo-soprano Jean Stilwell (Habañera from Bizet’s Carmen), baritone Allan Monk (Non più andrai from Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro), coloratura-soprano Tracy Dahl (The Doll Song from Offenbach’s Tales of Hoffman), countertenor Daniel Taylor (Ombra mai fù from Handel’s Xerxes), soprano Suzie LeBlanc in a duet with baritone Daniel Lichti (Papageno’s Song from Mozart’s The Magic Flute) and much, much more. In addition to 14 stellar performances in English, this CD includes five instrumental-only karaoke-style tracks so that anyone can sing-along and be an opera star.

“The Parents’ Choice Awards program received many strong entries this season” said Claire Green, President of the Parents’ Choice Foundation, “The World’s Very Best Opera for Kids is among the small percentage selected to receive a Parents’ Choice Award”. The World’s Very Best Opera for Kids was selected as one of the Top 20 Children’s CDs of 2003 by Nick JR. Magazine and has received rave reviews from the media:

"Winning offerings …accessible and useful for demystifying opera" - The Toronto Star

"A kid friendly Figaro” – Maclean’s Magazine

"Dazzling …stunning …absolutely recommended” – Halifax Chronicle Herald

“…a remarkable CD” – City Parent

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For more information on The World’s Very Best Opera for Kids …in English!, or to arrange an interview with our producer, librettist or performers, please contact:

Publicity & Promotion
905/831.1995 ext:27

Visit us online at www.childrensgroup.com
High-resolution graphics are available at http://download.childrensgroup.com

June 27, 2003

New Release Announcement: Coming September 16, 2003
The World’s Very Best Opera for Kids…in English!
Star-studded line-up includes Michael Schade, Jean Stilwell, Allan Monk,
Tracy Dahl, Daniel Taylor, Suzie LeBlanc and more!

The Children’s Group, celebrated for its best-selling and award-winning classical music recordings for children, is pleased to announce the forthcoming release of The World’s Very Best Opera for Kids… in English – a CD that will change the way children -- their parents, grandparents, and teachers – perceive opera for generations to come. The World’s Very Best Opera for Kids features 14 best-loved arias performed in English by the world’s finest opera stars and rising stars featuring works from some of the most popular -- and important – operas across a wide range of genres, eras and composers.

The World’s Very Best Opera for Kids CD includes a synopsis of each opera, performers’ biographies and complete lyrics so the whole family can enjoy singing along. Producer Mark D. Goldman and librettist Daniel Libman have taken care to ensure that each translation retains the original language’s rhyme scheme, meter and rhythm and that each performance is perfectly articulated and imaginatively interpreted. The result is highly-singable, child-appropriate opera “songs” the whole family will enjoy.

Published for simultaneous release with the CD is The World’s Very Best Opera for Kids Teacher’s Guide. This 48-page guide, for use with the CD, is designed to bring opera to life in the classroom with connections across the curriculum for music specialist or generalist teachers of grades 2-8. Each Teacher’s Guide includes complete lyrics, composer biographies, opera synopses, individual and group activities, suggested lesson plans, assessment and evaluation summaries, a glossary of opera and musical terms plus an opera pronunciation guide. The World’s Very Best Opera for Kids Teacher’s Guide was developed in consultation with world leaders in opera and education, based on the National Standards for Arts Education and is congruent with established music curricula guidelines.

The World’s Very Best Opera for Kids is produced by The Children’s Group, best-known for the award-winning and best-selling Classical Kids (Beethoven Lives Upstairs, Mozart’s Magnificent Voyage, Tchaikovsky Discovers America and more) CDs, DVD, video, live symphony concerts, books, interactive multimedia and educational resources for children. The World’s Very Best Opera for Kids CD and Teacher’s Guide/CD combination are distributed in Canada and the United States by Naxos, the world’s leading independent classical music label. Available September 16, 2003 wherever fine music for families is sold.

For more information, visit our website at www.childrensgroup.com or call toll-free 1-800-757-8372. In Canada: CD $13.99 SRP / Teacher’s Guide CD $27.34 - In the US: CD $15.99 SRP / Teacher’s Guide CD $31.98.

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High-resolution graphics of The World’s Very Best Opera for Kids CD and Teacher’s Guide/CD are available at http://download.childrensgroup.com. To request a review copy or to interview our producer, librettist or performers, please contact:

Publicity & Promotion
905/831.1995 ext:27