Free and Open to the Public

Juliet Petrus and Lydia Qiu are proud to present an evening of song selections from their 2015 debut CD release, “A Great Distance 千里之外.” “A Great Distance 千里之外,” sung in Mandarin and English, explores the cross-cultural influence of China and the West in art song. The catalogue of Chinese art song represented is rarely heard outside of China, even more rarely interpreted by a Western artist. Since 2011, Ms. Petrus has devoted much of her performance energy to the connection of China and the United States through music. Petrus and Qiu are proud to return to the University of Michigan, their alma mater, to perform after completing a three-city tour of China. We hope you will join them for an intimate evening of art song celebrating the Chinese New Year.

Featuring musicians:

Juliet Petrus, soprano, is recognized for her effortless coloratura and steadily making her mark as a versatile and captivating performer in the world of recital, concert, and opera. Ms. Petrus is in high demand in the United States and China as one of the few Western interpreters Chinese music. She spent the summers of 2011 and 2012 with the acclaimed iSing Beijing program (now known as iSing International) working with famed Metropolitan-Opera bass, Hao Jiang Tian, and making her National Center for the Performing Arts debut in Beijing. This also led to her Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall debuts in 2013, as well as a tour of the US and Paris, France. In 2014, she made her solo recital debut with a concert of Chinese repertoire with pianist, Fugen Wei. She also recently returned as a guest artist with iSing International making her concert debuts in Hangzhou and Suzhou. In summer of 2015, she made her solo debut with the Shanghai Symphony. In fall of 2015, she released her first solo CD, A Great Distance: A Collection of Chinese and American Art Song.

Lydia Qiu, collaborative pianist, is faculty at the University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance, serving as a vocal coach, staff accompanist, and the coordinator of accompanying services. She oversees the accompanying needs for all vocal, wind, and string studios, classes, and choral ensembles. Lydia has remained committed to her work in China. In recent years, Lydia has taught at Central Conservatory, China Conservatory, Shanghai Conservatory, Tianjin Conservatory, Shandong Normal University, and Sichuan Conservatory in her hometown of Chengdu. During these visits, Lydia conducted master classes for both voice and accompanying students, gave lectures on vocal literature to voice teachers, taught diction classes, and performed in recitals with her students.