There’s something miraculous about John Holiday’s voice…he’s a countertenor who sings in the range of a woman, and the result is a voice that possesses an almost angelic purity while still having the power to fill a room. But John is special even among countertenors – in addition to singing arias and art songs at the highest level, he also is able to sit down at the piano and accompany himself in soul-piercing performances of spirituals and jazz standards. I could spend hours describing his talent, but I would instead just urge you to watch two videos that make the case far more eloquently than I ever could: John singing Handel’s “Ombra Mai Fu,” and then the classic “Fly Me to the Moon.” John will sing a program in the Crypt that will include Italian Baroque arias, French chansons, a song cycle by African-American composer Margaret Bonds, and a selection of spirituals and standards near and dear to his heart. This is a singular, world class talent, who will take a break from touring with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and Gustavo Dudamel to sing for us in the Crypt. Don’t miss it.

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