[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 53 (Wednesday, April 27, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E797-E798]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         TRIBUTE TO JANE EAGLEN

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                           HON. JIM McDERMOTT

                             of washington

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, April 27, 2005

  Mr. McDERMOTT. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in tribute to Jane Eaglen, 
among the foremost sopranos on the stages of international opera, 
renowned for her performances on concert platforms around the globe, 
and for her classical recordings.
  Teachers in her native England encouraged her unique voice from a 
young age, and she was trained in the style of both Bellini and Wagner. 
From the time she joined the English National Opera, Ms. Eaglen 
garnered acclaim in a variety of roles until her breakthrough casting 
as Donna Anna in Mozart's Don Giovanni at the Scottish Opera.
  In the two decades since then, she has achieved success in roles such 
as Isolde (for the Metropolitan Opera, Seattle Opera, Teatro Liceu 
Barcelona, Lyric Opera of Chicago, and in Puerto Rico). She has won 
worldwide applause for her rendition of Brunnhilde (performed in 
Seattle, Chicago, San Francisco, Milan, New York and the United 
Kingdom), and recently triumphed as Ariadne in Seattle.
  Jane Eaglen is equally accomplished as a concert artist. She has 
worked with distinguished orchestras from Boston to Salzburg, and with 
the world's leading maestros including Daniel Barenboim, Zubin Mehta, 
Danielle Gatti and Claudio Abbado. Her performances with the Seattle 
Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Gerard Schwartz, have thrilled 
audiences. Her extensive discography of classical recordings has won 
over fans of the music of masters from Strauss to Beethoven to Mahler. 
Her recording of Tannhauser with Barenboim received a Grammy Award in 
2003 for Best Opera Recording.
  Mr. Speaker, Jane Eaglen has been a resident of my district for the 
past several years, and it is with pride that I note that Seattle's 
Rainier Club has named her Laureate for 2005-2006. She joins previous 
laureates author Jonathan Raban, glass artist Dale

[[Page E798]]

Chihuly, jazz virtuoso Ernestine Anderson, Pulitzer Prize winning 
cartoonist David Horsey, and playwright August Wilson. Her memorable 
performances with the Seattle Opera and the Seattle Symphony merit the 
Rainier Club adulation.
  We look forward to future renditions of the world's great music by 
the versatile Jane Eaglen. I would invite you to Seattle to hear her in 
the complete Ring cycle this August, but the Seattle Opera says it's 
sold out.

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