BIOGRAPHY: KIP CRANNA
Dr. Clifford (Kip) Cranna is Dramaturg Emeritus of San Francisco Opera, where he served on the staff for over 40 years, 30 of them as Director of Music Administration. As Dramaturg he dealt with educational and community outreach projects, commissions of new operas, and musicological support to the staff. In 2008 he received the San Francisco Opera Medal, his Company’s highest honor. In 2012 his work was honored with the Bernard Osher Cultural Award for distinguished efforts by an individual to bring excellence to a cultural institution. In 2014 he received the Star of Excellence Award for outstanding service to the programs of the San Francisco Opera Guild.
In May of 2016 he served as Dramaturg for Washington National Opera’s presentation of Wagner’s Ring at the Kennedy Center.
He received his B.A. in choral conducting at the University of North Dakota, and his Ph.D. in musicology at Stanford University, where he specialized in Renaissance and Baroque music history and theory.
He has managed the commission or co-commission of more than twenty new operas, including Esther (1993) by Hugo Weisgall, The Dangerous Liaisons (1994) by Conrad Susa, Harvey Milk (1996) by Stewart Wallace, A Streetcar Named Desire (1998) by André Previn, Dead Man Walking (2000) by Jake Heggie, Earthrise (2003) by Lewis Spratlan, Doctor Atomic (2005) by John Adams, Appomattox (2007) by Philip Glass, The Bonesetter’s Daughter (2008) by Stewart Wallace, Three Decembers (2008) by Jake Heggie, Heart of a Soldier (2011) by Christopher Theofanidis, Moby Dick (2012) by Jake Heggie, The Gospel of Mary Magdalene (2013) by Mark Adamo, The Secret Garden (2013) by Nolan Gasser, Dolores Claiborne (2013) by Tobias Picker, La Ciociara (Two Women) (2015) by Marco Tutino, Dream of the Red Chamber (2016) by Bright Sheng, Girls of the Golden West (2017) by John Adams, and If I Were You by Jake Heggie, for the Merola Opera Program (2019).
Dr. Cranna has served as Dramaturg and Jurist for Opera For All Voices, a consortium of seven opera companies working to commission new American chamber operas.
He has served as vocal adjudicator for numerous groups including the Metropolitan Opera National Council. For thirty years he was Program Editor and Lecturer for the Carmel Bach Festival. He has taught at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, and currently teaches at the Fromm Institute at the University of San Francisco, and the Osher Lifelong Learning Institutes at Dominican University and U.C. Berkeley. He often moderates panel discussions such as the Opera Guild “Insights.”
He has conducted a number of choral groups in the San Francisco Bay Area, and has been active as a director of church music programs. He has served as a grant-award panelist for the Santa Clara County Arts Council. He was a longtime member of the Board of Trustees of Chanticleer, a professional vocal ensemble, and is currently on the board of Humanities West and the advisory board of the contemporary music group Opera Parallèle.
As a frequent guest lecturer throughout Northern California in the field of music appreciation, and has presented programs for such diverse groups as the San Francisco Symphony, Phi Beta Kappa, the Commonwealth Club of California, the Glimmerglass Festival, the Wagner Society, the Yung Institute, the Exploratorium, the National Opera Association, and the alumni groups of Stanford, Yale, and Columbia. He has written numerous articles on opera andrecording liner notes, and music reviews for the online service San Francisco Classical Voice. He has also served as a musical Study Leader for Smithsonian Study Tours as well as for opera patron tours for San Francisco Opera, and as intermission host for the San Francisco Opera radio broadcasts. He was named 2006 “Man of the Year” by Il Cenacolo, a San Francisco men’s Italian cultural organization.
7/25/2019
622 words
(shorter version)
BIOGRAPHY: KIP CRANNA
Dr. Clifford (Kip) Cranna is Dramaturg Emeritus of San Francisco Opera, where was a member of the administrative staff for over 40 years, 30 of them as Director of Musical Administration. In 2008 he received the San Francisco Opera Medal, the Company’s highest honor. In 2012 his work was honored with the Bernard Osher Cultural Award for distinguished efforts by an individual to bring excellence to a cultural institution. In 2014 he received the Star of Excellence Award for outstanding service to the programs of the San Francisco Opera Guild.
In May of 2016 he served as Dramaturg for Washington National Opera’s presentation of Wagner’s Ring at the Kennedy Center. He has also served as Dramaturg and Jurist for Opera For All Voices, a consortium of opera companies commissioning new chamber operas.
He received his undergraduate degree in choral conducting at the University of North Dakota, and his Ph.D. degree in musicology at Stanford University.
He has served as vocal adjudicator for numerous organizations including the Metropolitan Opera National Council Regional Auditions, the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, The Henry Holt Memorial Auditions, and the New National Theater of Tokyo, Japan.
Dr. Cranna was associated for 30 years with the Carmel Bach Festival as program editor, lecturer, and program advisor. He has conducted a number of choral groups in the San Francisco Bay Area, and has been active as a director of church music programs. He has served as a grant-award panelist for the Santa Clara County Arts Council, and was a longtime member of the Board of Trustees of Chanticleer, a professional vocal ensemble. He is currently on the board of Humanities West and the advisory board of the contemporary music group Opera Parallèle.
He is a frequent guest lecturer throughout Northern California in the field of music appreciation, and has written numerous articles on opera. As Dramaturg, Dr. Cranna managed commissions for new operas, worked with education and community outreach programs, acted as staff musicologist, and as emeritus editor-in-chief of the company's "supertitles." He is a regular host of the Opera Insights presented by the Opera Guild. He has taught at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, and currently teaches opera appreciation at the Fromm Institute at the University of San Francisco, and the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) at Dominican University and U.C. Berkeley. He also taught on-line courses for Opera America. He has served as radio interview host for the San Francisco Opera broadcasts, and has worked as a Study Leader for Smithsonian Study Tours and patron tours for San Francisco Opera. He was named 2006 “Man of the Year” by Il Cenacolo, a San Francisco men’s Italian cultural organization.
7/25/2019kc 444 words
[short version] BIOGRAPHY: KIP CRANNA
Clifford (Kip) Cranna, Dramaturg Emeritus of San Francisco Opera, served on the staff for over forty years and was Director of Music Administration for over thirty years. In 2008 he was awarded the San Francisco Opera Medal, the company’s highest honor, and in 2012 he received the Bernard Osher Cultural Award for distinguished efforts to bring excellence to a cultural institution. In 2014 he received the Star of Excellence Award for outstanding service to the programs of the San Francisco Opera Guild. He holds a B.A. in music from the University of North Dakota and a Ph.D. in musicology from Stanford University. For thirty years he was Program Editor and Lecturer for the Carmel Bach Festival. He lectures and writes frequently on music, teaches at the Fromm Institute at USF and the OsherLifelong Learning Institute at U.C. Berkeley and Dominican University, and moderates the SF Opera Guild “Insight” panel discussions.
7/25/2019kc 151 words
Dr. Clifford (Kip) Cranna is Dramaturg Emeritus of San Francisco Opera, where he served on the staff for over 40 years, 30 of them as Director of Music Administration. As Dramaturg he dealt with educational and community outreach projects, commissions of new operas, and musicological support to the staff. In 2008 he received the San Francisco Opera Medal, his Company’s highest honor. In 2012 his work was honored with the Bernard Osher Cultural Award for distinguished efforts by an individual to bring excellence to a cultural institution. In 2014 he received the Star of Excellence Award for outstanding service to the programs of the San Francisco Opera Guild.
In May of 2016 he served as Dramaturg for Washington National Opera’s presentation of Wagner’s Ring at the Kennedy Center.
He received his B.A. in choral conducting at the University of North Dakota, and his Ph.D. in musicology at Stanford University, where he specialized in Renaissance and Baroque music history and theory.
He has managed the commission or co-commission of more than twenty new operas, including Esther (1993) by Hugo Weisgall, The Dangerous Liaisons (1994) by Conrad Susa, Harvey Milk (1996) by Stewart Wallace, A Streetcar Named Desire (1998) by André Previn, Dead Man Walking (2000) by Jake Heggie, Earthrise (2003) by Lewis Spratlan, Doctor Atomic (2005) by John Adams, Appomattox (2007) by Philip Glass, The Bonesetter’s Daughter (2008) by Stewart Wallace, Three Decembers (2008) by Jake Heggie, Heart of a Soldier (2011) by Christopher Theofanidis, Moby Dick (2012) by Jake Heggie, The Gospel of Mary Magdalene (2013) by Mark Adamo, The Secret Garden (2013) by Nolan Gasser, Dolores Claiborne (2013) by Tobias Picker, La Ciociara (Two Women) (2015) by Marco Tutino, Dream of the Red Chamber (2016) by Bright Sheng, Girls of the Golden West (2017) by John Adams, and If I Were You by Jake Heggie, for the Merola Opera Program (2019).
Dr. Cranna has served as Dramaturg and Jurist for Opera For All Voices, a consortium of seven opera companies working to commission new American chamber operas.
He has served as vocal adjudicator for numerous groups including the Metropolitan Opera National Council. For thirty years he was Program Editor and Lecturer for the Carmel Bach Festival. He has taught at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, and currently teaches at the Fromm Institute at the University of San Francisco, and the Osher Lifelong Learning Institutes at Dominican University and U.C. Berkeley. He often moderates panel discussions such as the Opera Guild “Insights.”
He has conducted a number of choral groups in the San Francisco Bay Area, and has been active as a director of church music programs. He has served as a grant-award panelist for the Santa Clara County Arts Council. He was a longtime member of the Board of Trustees of Chanticleer, a professional vocal ensemble, and is currently on the board of Humanities West and the advisory board of the contemporary music group Opera Parallèle.
As a frequent guest lecturer throughout Northern California in the field of music appreciation, and has presented programs for such diverse groups as the San Francisco Symphony, Phi Beta Kappa, the Commonwealth Club of California, the Glimmerglass Festival, the Wagner Society, the Yung Institute, the Exploratorium, the National Opera Association, and the alumni groups of Stanford, Yale, and Columbia. He has written numerous articles on opera andrecording liner notes, and music reviews for the online service San Francisco Classical Voice. He has also served as a musical Study Leader for Smithsonian Study Tours as well as for opera patron tours for San Francisco Opera, and as intermission host for the San Francisco Opera radio broadcasts. He was named 2006 “Man of the Year” by Il Cenacolo, a San Francisco men’s Italian cultural organization.
7/25/2019
622 words
(shorter version)
BIOGRAPHY: KIP CRANNA
Dr. Clifford (Kip) Cranna is Dramaturg Emeritus of San Francisco Opera, where was a member of the administrative staff for over 40 years, 30 of them as Director of Musical Administration. In 2008 he received the San Francisco Opera Medal, the Company’s highest honor. In 2012 his work was honored with the Bernard Osher Cultural Award for distinguished efforts by an individual to bring excellence to a cultural institution. In 2014 he received the Star of Excellence Award for outstanding service to the programs of the San Francisco Opera Guild.
In May of 2016 he served as Dramaturg for Washington National Opera’s presentation of Wagner’s Ring at the Kennedy Center. He has also served as Dramaturg and Jurist for Opera For All Voices, a consortium of opera companies commissioning new chamber operas.
He received his undergraduate degree in choral conducting at the University of North Dakota, and his Ph.D. degree in musicology at Stanford University.
He has served as vocal adjudicator for numerous organizations including the Metropolitan Opera National Council Regional Auditions, the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, The Henry Holt Memorial Auditions, and the New National Theater of Tokyo, Japan.
Dr. Cranna was associated for 30 years with the Carmel Bach Festival as program editor, lecturer, and program advisor. He has conducted a number of choral groups in the San Francisco Bay Area, and has been active as a director of church music programs. He has served as a grant-award panelist for the Santa Clara County Arts Council, and was a longtime member of the Board of Trustees of Chanticleer, a professional vocal ensemble. He is currently on the board of Humanities West and the advisory board of the contemporary music group Opera Parallèle.
He is a frequent guest lecturer throughout Northern California in the field of music appreciation, and has written numerous articles on opera. As Dramaturg, Dr. Cranna managed commissions for new operas, worked with education and community outreach programs, acted as staff musicologist, and as emeritus editor-in-chief of the company's "supertitles." He is a regular host of the Opera Insights presented by the Opera Guild. He has taught at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, and currently teaches opera appreciation at the Fromm Institute at the University of San Francisco, and the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) at Dominican University and U.C. Berkeley. He also taught on-line courses for Opera America. He has served as radio interview host for the San Francisco Opera broadcasts, and has worked as a Study Leader for Smithsonian Study Tours and patron tours for San Francisco Opera. He was named 2006 “Man of the Year” by Il Cenacolo, a San Francisco men’s Italian cultural organization.
7/25/2019kc 444 words
[short version] BIOGRAPHY: KIP CRANNA
Clifford (Kip) Cranna, Dramaturg Emeritus of San Francisco Opera, served on the staff for over forty years and was Director of Music Administration for over thirty years. In 2008 he was awarded the San Francisco Opera Medal, the company’s highest honor, and in 2012 he received the Bernard Osher Cultural Award for distinguished efforts to bring excellence to a cultural institution. In 2014 he received the Star of Excellence Award for outstanding service to the programs of the San Francisco Opera Guild. He holds a B.A. in music from the University of North Dakota and a Ph.D. in musicology from Stanford University. For thirty years he was Program Editor and Lecturer for the Carmel Bach Festival. He lectures and writes frequently on music, teaches at the Fromm Institute at USF and the OsherLifelong Learning Institute at U.C. Berkeley and Dominican University, and moderates the SF Opera Guild “Insight” panel discussions.
7/25/2019kc 151 words