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St. Olaf music professor performs in one-act opera

By Tom Vogel
April 26, 2007

Associate professor of music James McKeel recently reprised the role of "the Bishop" in Stephen Paulus' opera The Three Hermits. The opera was performed at Saint John's University in celebration of the school's 150-year anniversary.

Based on Leo Tolstoy's short story, The Three Hermits details the pilgrimage of a Russian Orthodox bishop who is taught the value of simple faith from three strange and saintly hermits. According to the Minneapolis Star Tribune, the one-act opera presented a "deceptively simple score with luminous choral writing, ample atmospheric and dramatic effects from an orchestra of 11 pieces, and vocal lines for the principal characters that sing nicely but never mask the words."

The opera, under the direction of Kaarin Johnston of the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John's Theater Department, also featured the CSB/SJU Chamber Choir.

Contact David Gonnerman at 507-786-3315 or gonnermd@stolaf.edu.