Mr. Foster has appeared with the Spoleto Festival International singing Der Rosenkavalier (Richard Strauss), Výlety pánĕ Broučkovy (Leos Janacek), and Falstaff (Verdi); and as the organist and pianist with the international award-winning Antioch Chamber Ensemble at Piccolo Spoleto. He has sung the Pitten Festival in Austria, appearing as Nanki-Poo in The Mikado (Gilbert and Sullivan), and as Gaston in La Traviata (Verdi) and many concert tours in Taiwan, Korea, France, Holland, Italy and Nova Scotia.
Mr Foster has performed and recorded extensively with the New York Philharmonic, the Philadelphia Orchestra, The New Jersey Symphony and the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, performing and recording many masterworks including the Mass in B-Minor, Johannes-Passion (J.S. Bach), Ein Deutches Requiem (Johannes Brahms), Jeanne d’Arc au Bûcher (Arthur Honegger), and War Requiem (Benjamin Britten) under the baton of Maestros Kurt Masur, Wolfgang Sawallisch, Zdeněk Mácal, Esa-Pecca Salonen and Helmuth Rilling. Closer to home, he is a frequent guest conductor of The Voices of Cooperstown and tenor soloist with prestigious groups across the Northeast including Albany Pro Musica and Crescendo Berkshires.
A lifelong advocate for contemporary composers, Mr. Foster conducted the premieres of Timothy Luby’s Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis, Magnificat and Te Deum by Larry G. Nuckolls, The Joseph Triptych by Thomas F. Savoy and Canticles for Advent: The Season of the Now by Bertrand Fay and Thomas F. Savoy. Last year Mr. Foster performed in the premiere of a new children’s opera by Bruce Craig Roter and on March 19th, performed in the preview and subsequent premiere of Mr. Savoy’s sublime chancel opera The Agon of St. Joseph.
Mr. Foster engages in critical research to revive forgotten masterpieces of early music. Aoede Consort’s 2009 revival of Grand Motet “Exaudiat te Dominus” by Jean-Baptiste Lully was the first performance in the Americas and produced the first publication of performing scores for this great work. This, and his other authoritative early music editions are published by Schirmer Cengage at Yale University. For the benefit of the greater musical community, some are freely available here on the Aoede Consort website.
Mr. Foster is the music director of The New Opera, Williams College, Williamstown Massachusetts where he conducts his ensemble from the harpsichord, recently leading Handel’s Giulio Cesare and Purcell’s Dido and Æneas. Last year, in collaboration with Mosaic Arts Opera Company and Nacre Dance, he twice lead a revival production of Gluck’s Orfeo ed Euridice.
A fervent supporter of quality education, Mr. Foster teaches a handful of highly motivated private students, gives frequent master classes and volunteers at local schools. In March he will conduct the All County Festival Orchestra in Hadley Lazerne as part of his extensive educational outreach.
Aoede Consort will, from time to time, sponsor an exceptional young apprentice.
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