About Us
The Sag Harbor Song Festival, the vision of Lena Kaplan, made its successful debut in September 2022, in collaboration with The Church, a spectacular cultural venue in Sag Harbor founded by April Gornik and Eric Fischl.
Audiences are welcomed into a unique and special "salon" setting of brilliant music in three performances on consecutive days. The singers are all rising young stars. Over the course of the Festival they will present musical selections from the operatic repertory, operetta, lieder, song and musical theatre.
The Festival is led by Brad Woolbright, Artistic Director, who served for 43 years at the world-renowned Santa Fe Opera. Brad is working closely with Robert Tweten, Musical Director, whose skill and musical prowess is well celebrated. The 2023 Festival also featured the highly regarded pianist, John Arida, who is on the Vocal Faculty at the Juilliard School.
The first two Festivals were both sold out and the audience reaction was brilliantly enthusiastic. We very much look forward to sharing this special and wonderful Festival with devoted music aficionados - and those who are just beginning to dip their toes into the magic of music.
Our Team
Founder, Lena Kaplan
Artistic Director, Brad Woolbright
Music Director, Robert Tweten
Board and Officers of Sag Harbor Song Festival, Inc.
Lena Kaplan
Dinah Nissen
David Frye
Brad Woolbright (Treasurer)
Danielle St. Marie (Secretary)
Testimonials
“Singing in the inaugural season of the Sag Harbor Song Festival felt so much like we were preparing this marvelous jewel to release into the world. I had a wonderful, uplifting experience, collaborating with superb artists and friends. Sharing incredible music and palpable energy with an audience so close to us in that beautiful acoustic space was extraordinary.”
— Anna Christy, soprano | SHSF 2022
“My time at the Sag Harbor Song Festival was a highlight of my year. Not only did the organization care for their artists, but they gave us the most beautiful opportunity to make art in a gorgeous setting. My fellow singers were incredibly talented and our pianist Robert Tweten helped to make it an incredibly rewarding artistic experience. I’d recommend this experience to any singer and I know audiences would love anything that Sag Harbor Song Festival puts on!”
—Sarah Coit, mezzo-soprano | SHSF 2022
“Performing in the inaugural year of the Sag Harbor Song Festival still holds a special place in my heart. I cherish the opportunity SHSF created to make music with stellar artists, now friends, in a one of a kind space like The Church. Collaborating each day in the heart of Sag Harbor was lovely in that you really felt like a part of community for a short, beautifully intense period of time. When the hall filled with people is when things really became special. Seeing the same faces night after night smiling back at us made me feel as though we were performing for our own friends and family, an experience I will not soon forget. Thank you, Sag Harbor. ”
—Jarrett Ott, baritone | SHSF 2022
“Sag Harbor Song Festival 2022 was one of those truly great experiences that every singer longs for. Each singer was absolutely world-class, each collaboration was a true pleasure, and every day felt jam-packed without being overwhelming. Often, leaving a busy gig like this, I would have felt the need to take a couple days off, but, on the contrary, this experience was so moving that I left and absolutely couldn't wait to get to my next gig. Because of the nature of the Festival, I also had the opportunity to watch colleagues perform, and it was striking the extent to which everyone was just able to do their very best, most genuine work in this context: singers I've known for a decade clearly felt comfortable being their authentic selves in a room full of total strangers, which speaks to the miraculous nature of a Festival like this. The team of Brad Woolbright and Bob Tweten is absolutely unmatched, and I would gladly have bought a ticket for any event that they put together, but this surpassed even those very high expectations.”
— David Leigh, bass | SHSF 2022