51±¾É«

Jan. 25, 2022

Question posed on a New York City street corner: How do you get to Carnegie Hall?
Answer: Practice. Practice. Practice.

Question posed on a Waterloo street corner: How do you get to Carnegie Hall?
Answer: Ask Leslie Fagan, Order of Ontario, Soprano and Coordinator of the Voice Area at 51±¾É«. She’s performed at the esteemed musical venue eighteen times, most recently this past Christmas.

On December 21st, as Omicron was ravaging the planet, Broadway shows were closing and concerts were being cancelled, Leslie was featured as the Soprano soloist in the New York Oratorio Society’s annual performance of Handel’s Messiah. The performance was broadcast live, world wide on New York Public Radio WQXR.org. . 

“Singing live during this pandemic was a rare event and performing with 250 other musicians on the Carnegie stage was surrea,l" said Leslie Fagan. "It was the first time back in the hall in over two years for everyone, which made the excitement palpable. The assembled crowd cheered as we walked on stage, knowing that we were one of the few performances left standing in New York. It was a concert of hope and defiance that was heard around the world. Carnegie Hall made sure that the protocols for safety were of the highest standard for both performers and audience members, which allowed us to make music together that evening.”

Handel’s Messiah is a Holiday tradition. The Oratorio Society of New York, Carnegie Hall’s founding choral organization, has been performing Handel’s Messiah since Carnegie Hall first opened and Leslie is well known there as a soloist.

Next up, Leslie will be performing with Anna Ronai, Collaborative Pianist, on February 17 at noon in the Maureen Forrester Recital Hall at the Faculty of Music.