Bolivia
CubaOpus TWO
OPUS 4
AN ART SONG RECITAL
February 26, 2027
Merkin Hall at Kaufman Music Center, NYC
Opus two
“an outstanding pianist who will be well worth following”
Rorianne Schrade for New York Concert Review; New York, NY
José Navarro-Silberstein
February 28, 2025
Merkin Hall at Kaufman Music Center, NYC
Sergio Escalera Soria, piano
"Kantuta Concerts Op. 1 was a terrific experience. Very seldom do I have the opportunity to curate and perform a program in front of an audience that has so much to do with my Bolivian background and personal life story. Doing so at such a wonderful venue, surrounded and supported by top-notch music colleagues was definitely a highlight in my musician life."
Sergio Escalera Soria, piano
SELECTION COMMITTEE
Shelén Hughes Camacho
Bolivian soprano Shelén Hughes Camacho began her artistic journey as a Bolivian folklore singer and dancer in Cochabamba before pursuing classical music. A graduate of The Juilliard School and the Manhattan School of Music, she has established herself as a versatile artist across opera, concert, and recital repertoire.
Ms. Hughes Camacho is a winner of the 2025 George and Nora London Foundation Competition, the 2024 Opera Index Competition, First Prize at the 2024 Gerda Lissner Zarzuela Competition, and Third Prize at the 2025 Gerda Lissner Opera Competition. She was also a semifinalist in the 2026 Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition. Additional distinctions include finalist appearances in the Renata Tebaldi and Ottavio Ziino International Competitions, as well as semifinalist recognition at the Concours de Genève and the Alfredo Kraus Competition.
Recent operatic highlights include her debut with Oper Frankfurt as Morgana in Handel’s Alcina, her debut with The Cleveland Orchestra as soprano soloist in Orff’s Carmina Burana, and Musetta in La bohème with Opera Saratoga, where she returns to sing Adina in L’elisir d’amore. Other notable roles include Pamina in Die Zauberflöte at the Teatro Nacional de Chile, Servilia in La clemenza di Tito at Juilliard, and Pfc. Sonia Gonzales in Huang Ruo’s An American Soldier at the Perelman Performing Arts Center in New York.
In 2026, Ms. Hughes Camacho appeared at Carnegie Hall as soprano soloist in Handel’s Alexander’s Feast with the Oratorio Society of New York. An avid recitalist, she has appeared as a guest artist at the Cliburn and recently presented A Love Letter to the Americas at Lincoln Center, an original recital program celebrating the rich musical traditions of North and South America.
She made her Carnegie Hall debut in 2019 and has participated in prestigious young artist programs including the Gstaad Menuhin Festival and Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, where she appeared in Carmen and the world premiere of Awakenings.
Beyond the stage, Ms. Hughes Camacho is the founder of Voices for Bolivia, a nonprofit organization dedicated to using music in service of protecting the human rights of elderly individuals living in poverty.
ArgentinaMexico-AmericaLevi Hernandez
With a velvety tone and a stage presence which exudes confidence and charm, Levi Hernandez has made a name for himself in a wide variety of baritone repertoire. Opera News has praised him for his “voice with natural power,” and “warm, inviting baritone.”
The El Paso native has joined the rosters of leading opera companies including The Metropolitan Opera, San Francisco Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, LA Opera, and Houston Grand Opera (where he debuted as Sharpless in Madama Butterfly).
Mr. Hernandez’s 2025-2026 season includes performances of Don Magnifico in La Cenerentola with Virginia Opera and Sharpless in Madama Butterfly with Opera Colorado.
The 2024-2025 season saw his return to Madison Opera for Bartolo in Il barbiere di Siviglia, Lescaut in Manon Lescaut with the Washington Concert Opera, Handel‘s Messiah with the Tucson Symphony, a reprise of the role of Alvaro in Florencia en el Amazonas with North Carolina Opera, Mozart’s Requiem with the Utah Symphony, and La bohème with Lyric Opera of Chicago.
Recent seasons have included appearances with Opera San Antonio as the Father in Hansel and Gretel; Boston Lyric Opera as Dandini in La Cenerentola; Hawaii Opera Theatre as Tonio in Pagliacci; Opera Omaha as Diego Rivera in El último sueño de Frida y Diego; Alvaro in Florencia en el Amazonas with the Lyric Opera of Chicago, San Diego Opera, Madison Opera, and Arizona Opera; Lescaut in Manon Lescaut with North Carolina Opera; the title role in Gianni Schicchi with Tulsa Opera and Intermountain Opera (now Opera Montana); Sharpless in Madama Butterfly with Hawaii Opera Theatre, Arizona Opera, Nashville Opera, Minnesota Opera, Opera Montana, Virginia Opera, Lake George Operaand Cedar Rapids Opera; a continuation of his long-standing relationship with the work of composer Daniel Catan as Rappaccini in La hija de Rappaccini with Chicago Opera Theater; and cover assignments with The Metropolitan Opera as Papageno in Die Zauberflöte, Dulcamara in L’elisir d’amore, the title role in The Death of Klinghoffer, and productions of Die Frau ohne Schatten and Carmen.
Additional past appearances include Tonio in Pagliacci with Opera Colorado and El Paso Opera; Aba in El milagro del recuerdo with Houston Grand Opera; Pa Joad in The Grapes of Wrath with Michigan Opera Theatre and Opera Theatre of St. Louis; Marcello in La bohème with Opera Colorado, Opera Memphis, San Antonio Opera, and El Paso Opera; Inspector Kildare in Elizabeth Cree with Chicago Opera Theater; Ford in Falstaff with Opera Montana; Sonora in La fanciulla del West with Opera Omaha; Music Master in Ariadne auf Naxos with Opera Theatre of St. Louis; Don Magnifico in La Cenerentola with Opera Omaha; Dandini in La Cenerentola with Opera Roanoke and Opera North; Papageno in Die Zauberflöte with Opera Theatre of St. Louis and Madison Opera; Germont in La traviatawith Opera Roanoke and Opera Montana; Figaro in Il barbiere di Siviglia with Pine Mountain Music Festival; Guglielmo in Le Villi with the Spoleto Festival, USA; Guglielmo/Remigio in Le Villi/La Navarraise at Bard Music Festival; Tobias Mill in La cambiale di matrimonio with Opera Omaha; Leporello in Don Giovanni with Opera Theatre of St. Louis; Valentin in Faust with the Kalamazoo Symphony; Count Ceprano in Rigoletto, Moralès in Carmen, and Haly in L’italiana in Algeri, all with Opera Philadelphia; Don Lucas in Luisa Fernanda, Sciarrone in Tosca, and Crébillon in La rondine with LA Opera; a European début with Komische Oper Berlin as Tomski in Pique Dame and performances of the title role in Gianni Schicchi and Dulcamara in L’elisir d’amore with Teatro Nacional Sucre in Quito, Ecuador.
Mr. Hernandez has been seen on the concert platform as a soloist in Handel’s Messiah with the Kansas City Symphony, Virginia Symphony, Oregon Symphony, El Paso Symphony, Charlotte Symphony, Phoenix Symphony, Pennsylvania Ballet, and Cheyenne Symphony, among others; Mahler’s Songs of a Wayfarer with Cheyenne Symphony Orchestra; Handel’s Alexander’s Feast with Music of the Baroque; Dvorak’s Te Deum with Shippensburg Music Festival; and Orff’s Carmina Burana with the Pennsylvania Ballet.
A 2002 Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions finalist, Hernandez’s awards also include a Licia Albanese-Puccini Foundation grant as well as placing as a finalist in the 2002 Operalia competition. With degrees from Westminster Choir College and the University of North Texas, Mr. Hernandez also attended the Academy of Vocal Arts in Philadelphia and was a member of the prestigious Ryan Opera Center at Lyric Opera of Chicago.
UruguayPablo Zinger
Pablo Zinger is widely acclaimed as a conductor, pianist, composer, arranger, writer, lecturer and narrator, specializing on Astor Piazzolla, tango, Spanish zarzuela, and Latin American music.
He has worked with singers for over 45 years, coaching the Italian, French, Portuguese, Spanish, German and English repertoire, and running an audio/video studio out of his home.
He accompanied Plácido Domingo at Washington’s Constitution Hall, conducted for Paquito D’Rivera’s Carnegie Hall 50th. Anniversary Concert and the Moscow première of Piazzolla’s María de Buenos Aires, narrated Piazzolla’s Pueblo Joven at Tokyo’s Opera City and accompanied legendary Spanish diva Sarita Montiel in NYC.
He tours and records frequently with the Valencia-based Zinger Septet and has written for The New York Times, Opera News, and lectured for The New York Philharmonic.
His CD’s include Tango Apasionado with Astor Piazzolla, Chamber Music from the South and The Clarinetist, with Paquito D’Rivera, Las Puertas de la Mañana (songs of Carlos Guastavino) and two albums of music by Carlos Suriñach with Bronx Arts Ensemble.
