Anthony "Tony" Amato passed away Tuesday morning (December 13th) after a long battle with cancer. He was 91 years young. Though I am saddened by his passing, knowing that he is now with his loving wife Sally singing love duets and making delicious pasta, I can smile.
I was lucky enough to play flute for Tony from mid-1990s until 2009, when Tony decided to close his beloved opera company. But I was even more lucky to have had a chance to conduct in his last production, Mozart's Le Nozze di Figaro. What is truly amazing is to know that my own father, tenor In Soo Park, sang in Tony's productions back in the 1980-81 season, Rodolfo in Puccini's La Boheme and Ernesto in Donizetti's Don Pasquale! I learned a great deal from Tony, especially the way one should accompany singers in a traditional manner, without the silly ego of a modern conductor or an accompanist. I was most impressed by his complete understanding of opera as a genre. He was a genius!!
Read about his passing in some of the obituaries below.
WQXR:
http://www.wqxr.org/#/blogs/operavore/2011/dec/13/anthony-amato-impresario-small-grand-opera-dies-91/
The New York Times:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/15/arts/music/anthony-amato-founder-of-amato-opera-is-dead-at-91.html?_r=3&ref=todayspaper
Amato Opera Home:
http://www.amato.org/Home.html
Theater News:
http://www.theatermania.com/new-york-city/news/12-2011/anthony-amato-has-died_46688.html
Farewell, Maestro Amato!
