LSM Newswire

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

Berkshire Choral Festival in/ Montral

Internationally Renowned Berkshire Choral Festival debuts in Montral

Hear "the voices of summer" perform Mendelssohn's captivating oratorio Paulus

Montral, QC The internationally renowned Berkshire Choral Festival makes its Montral debut, performing Felix Mendelssohn's Paulus (St. Paul) at the glise Saint-Jean-Baptiste on Friday, July 3 at 8pm Led by distinguished composer and conductor Julian Wachner, and accompanied by L'Orchestre Metropolitan du Grand Montral, more than 180 singers will perform the glorious biblical work in its native language of German.
The 2009 season marks the Berkshire Choral Festival's first visit to Montral, which joins the internationally recognized list of Berkshire Choral Festival venues along with Sheffield, Massachusetts, and Prague, Czech Republic. Already in its 28th season, the festival provides choral singers from around the globe with the opportunity to live on the sprawling campus of McGill University, while participating in a weeklong singing intensive from June 26 to July 4, 2009.
Under the direction of world-class conductor Julian Wachner, former music director for the Bach-Academie de Montral and current director for the Grammy award-winning Washington Chorus, participants will rehearse daily and also take classes in musical history and theory, while learning best audition practices and caring for their voice. The week culminates with a breathtaking performance of Paulus at the historic glise Saint-Jean-Baptiste.
The Berkshire Choral Festival will perform one concert only on Friday, July 3 at 8pm at the glise Saint-Jean-Baptiste. Tickets are Adults: $25 and Seniors/Students (with valid ID): $10, and may be purchased online at Admission.com, or by calling 1.514.780.1245.
About Berkshire Choral Festival
The Berkshire Choral Festival was founded in 1982 with a unique purpose: to provide choral singers with the opportunity to rehearse and perform masterpieces of the choral repertoire under the direction of world-class conductors and with the help of a professional musical staff.
Twenty-eight years later, the Berkshire Choral Festival still holds to this philosophy that choral music is best when it is studied, absorbed, discussed and mulled over by choristers and conductors together in total immersion until it makes sense as a genuine revelation and expression of the human spirit.
Paulus Felix Mendelssohn
Felix Mendelssohn (18091847), a German composer, pianist, organist, and conductor, is now recognized as one of the most popular composers of the Romantic era.
In 1834, Mendelssohn began to compose his sweeping oratorio Paulus, which tells the story of Paul's conversion from Judaism to Christianity. Widely considered to be central to the revival of the German oratorio tradition in the early 19th century, Paulus was first performed on May 22, 1836 at the Rhenish Music Festival in Dsseldorf, German.
Containing a wealth of wonderful music, Paulus is a carefully calculated mixture of recitative, arias, and choruses. Especially noteworthy is the diversity of the choruses, several of which offer complex and challenging contrapuntal fugues. These are balanced by the varied chorales, which appear as beautiful "resting points" spread throughout the work. Today, Paulus remains one of Mendelssohn's most performed and popular works, holding a distinct place of reverence in the choral repertoire.
Julian Wachner, Music Director, Washington Chorus
Born California, conductor-composer Julian Wachner began his musical education at age 4 with cello and piano lessons and studied improvisation, composition, organ and theory under Gerre Hancock while a boy chorister at the St. Thomas Choir School in New York City.
He earned the Doctor of Musical Arts degree from Boston University's School for the Arts, and in 1990, was appointed University Organist and Music Director of Boston University's Marsh Chapel with subsequent appointments to the faculty of the BU School of Theology and School for the Arts. He quickly became one of Boston's most prominent musicians, and in 2001, following a decade of extraordinary conducting activity and compositional output in New England, Wachner was appointed to the faculty of the Schulich School of Music at McGill University.
Today, Wachner is one of the most active and versatile artists of his generation, having appeared with such esteemed companies as the Toronto Operetta Company (Candide), Montreal Symphony Orchestra, The Boston Pops, Calgary Philharmonic, San Diego Symphony, National Arts Centre Orchestra, Handel & Haydn Society, The Metropolis Orchestra (Chicago), Pro Arte Chamber Orchestra, and L'Orchestre Mtropolitain du Grand Montral.


Le rput Berkshire Choral Festival Montral

Entendez les voix d't performer le captivant oratorio Paulus de Mendelssohn.

Montral (QC) Le Berkshire Choral Festival, un vnement de renomme internationale, fait ses dbuts Montral avec l'interprtation de la pice Paulus (Saint-Paul) l'glise Saint-Jean-Baptiste, le vendredi 3 juillet 20h00. Mens par le distingu compositeur et chef d'orchestre Julian Wachner et accompagn de l'Orchestre Mtropolitain du Grand Montral, plus de 180 chanteurs performeront la clbre pice biblique en allemand.

L'dition 2009 marque la premire visite du Berkshire Choral Festival Montral. Ainsi, Montral se joint une liste slecte d'endroits visits par le Berkshire Choral Festival avec Sheffields, au Massachussetts, et Prague, en Rpublique tchque. Entamant dj sa 28e saison, le festival offre aux chanteurs de musique chorale, qui proviennent d'un peu partout au monde, l'occasion de vivre sur le campus de l'Universit McGill tout en participant une semaine intensive de chant du 26 juin au 4 juillet 2009.

Sous la direction du renomm chef d'orchestre Julian Wachner, ancien directeur de la Bach-Acadmie de Montral et actuel directeur du Chur de Washington, rcipiendaire d'un Grammy, les participants auront des rptitions quotidiennes et suivront des classes d'histoire de la musique et de thorie, apprendront les meilleures tactiques d'audition tout en en s'occupant de leur voix. La semaine se terminera avec une performance poustouflante de la pice Paulus l'glise Saint-Jean-Baptiste.

Le Berkshire Choral Festival prsentera un seul concert, le vendredi 3 juillet 20h00, l'glise Saint-Jean-Baptiste. Billets pour adultes : 25$ et billets pour sniors/tudiants (avec preuve d'identit valide) : 10$. Les billets peuvent tre achets en ligne l'adresse suivante : Admission.com ou en composant le 1-514-780-1245.

propos du Bershire Choral Festival
Le Bershire Choral Festival a t cr en 1982 avec un seul but : offrir aux chanteurs de chorale une opportunit de rpter et performer des clbres pices du rpertoire de musique chorale sous la direction de chefs d'orchestres renomms avec l'aide d'employs professionnels de musique.
Vingt-huit ans plus tard, le Berkshire Choral Festival conserve toujours cette philosophie que la musique chorale est meilleure lorsqu'elle est tudie, absorbe, value et interprte par des choristes et des chefs d'orchestres travaillant ensemble dans une symbiose totale jusqu' ce que l'on y retrouve une rvlation vritable de l'esprit humain.

Paulus Felix Mendelssohn
Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847), compositeur allemand, pianiste et chef d'orchestre, est aujourd'hui reconnu comme tant l'un des compositeurs les plus populaires de l're romantique.

En 1834, Mendelssohn a commenc composer son clbre oratorio Paulus qui raconte l'histoire de la conversion de Paul du judasme au catholicisme. Paulus, qui est grandement considr comme tant central la renaissance de la tradition d'oratorios allemands au dbut du 19e sicle, a t perform pour la premire fois le 22 mai 1836 au Festival de musique du Rhenish Dsseldorf en Allemagne.

Comportant une richesse de musique incroyable, Paulus est un mlange consciencieusement calcul de rcitatif, d'arias et de refrains. La diversit des refrains est notable, plusieurs offrent des fugues en contrepoints complexes et dfiantes. Celles-ci sont balances par les chorales varis qui apparaissent comme des jolis points de repos tout au long de la pice. Aujourd'hui, Paulus demeure l'une des uvres les plus performe et populaire de Mendelssohn. Il tient aussi une place distincte de rvrence dans le rpertoire de chorale.

Julian Wachner, directeur musical, Washington Chorus
Ne en Californie, le compositeur et chef d'orchestre Julian Wachner a dbut son apprentissage de la musique l'ge de 4 ans en suivant des leons de piano et de violoncelle et en tudiant l'improvisation, la composition, l'orgue et de la thorie sous la supervision de Gerre Hancock tout en tant choriste la St Thomas Choir School New York.

Il s'est mrit le doctor of Musical Arts degree la Boston University's School for the Arts et a t nomm comme organiste de l'universit et directeur de musique de la Boston University's Marsh Chapel ainsi que des nominations ultrieures la Facult de thologie et l'cole des arts de la Boston University. Il est rapidement devenu l'un des musiciens les plus prominents de Boston et en 2001, la suite d'une dcennie extraordinaire d'activits de chef d'orchestre et de compositions en Nouvelle-Angleterre, Wachner a t nomm la Facult de l'cole de Musique Schulich, l'Universit McGill de Montral.

Aujourd'hui, Wachner est l'un des artistes les plus actif et versatile de sa gnration, ayant apparu avec des compagnies importantes comme le Toronto Operetta Company (Candide), l'Orchestre Symphonique de Montral, The Boston Pops, Calgary Philharmonic, San Diego Symphony, l'Orchestre du Centre national des Arts, Handel & Haydn Society, The Metropolis Orchestra (Chicago), Pro Arte Chamber Orchestra, et l'Orchestre Mtropolitain du Grand Montral.


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Friday, March 13, 2009

Symphony Nova Scotia presents Bach to Bach: A Choral Celebration

Symphony Nova Scotia presents Bach to Bach: A Choral Celebration
Halifax, NS Conductor Jeff Joudrey and the Halifax Camerata Singers combine with Symphony Nova Scotia and soloists Shannon Mercer (soprano), Christianne Rushton (mezzo soprano), Ryan Billington (tenor), Peter Groom (bass), and Richard Simoneau (trumpet) to bring you the timeless choral works of J.S. Bach on Sunday, March 22 at 2:00 pm at St. Andrew's Church.

The program of music exclusively by Bach includes Cantata no. 4, Mass in G Major, and Cantata no. 51, "Jauchzet Gott in allen Landen."

"I can't wait to share this incredible music with our baroque audience!" says chorus master Jeff Joudrey.

"The great Cantata no. 4 for Easter Sunday with its solos, duets, and fantastic choruses is a perfect contrast to Cantata no. 51 "Jauchzet Gott in allen Landen" (Praise God in every Nation), written for soprano soloist and trumpet. The Lutheran Mass in G major will round out the program perfectly."

Don't miss this opportunity to experience music that has stood the test of time, performed by world-class singers and musicians from across our region.

Get your tickets now! General admission seats to Symphony Nova Scotia concerts at St. Andrew's United Church are $47.50 (HST included), or you can pick up a subscription and save up to 30%. Student and group discounts are also available. Call 494.3820 or 1.800.874.1669, or visit www.SymphonyNovaScotia.ca.

About Jeff Joudrey

Conductor Jeff Joudrey is highly regarded for his vision, musical leadership, and standards of excellence in choral music. Founder of the First Baptist Girls' Choir (1983) and Halifax Camerata Singers (1986), his leadership has provided challenging and rewarding choral opportunities for many Nova Scotia singers. In addition to being Director of Music at First Baptist Church, Jeff is Chorus Master of the Symphony Nova Scotia Chorus and is in demand as a guest conductor, choral clinician, teacher, and adjudicator.

About the Halifax Camerata Singers

The Halifax Camerata Singers are an auditioned ensemble of dedicated singers from across Nova Scotia. They are the province's leading chamber choir, performing an extensive repertoire covering all periods and styles. Camerata has a reputation for performance excellence that sets a high standard, even in a province known for its rich musical tradition.

About Shannon Mercer

Shannon Mercer is taking on the opera world as one of Canada's most promising young stars. Critically acclaimed by the international press for her musical artistry, she has been hailed as "one of Canada's most promising young sopranos" and a "Leader of Tomorrow" (Maclean's). She has been particularly praised for her performances of baroque and contemporary music.

About Christianne Rushton

Recognized as a rising talent in a new generation of Canadian artists, mezzo-soprano Christianne Rushton's recent performances have included the title roles of Orpheus in Gluck's Orpheus and Eurydice with Opera Nova Scotia and l'Enfant in Ravel's L'Enfant et les Sortilges, with the Juilliard Opera Center. Christianne is currently head of the voice faculty at Acadia University in Wolfville, Nova Scotia where she teaches voice, vocal pedagogy and opera history.

About Ryan Billington

Ryan Billington is an assistant professor at St. Francis Xavier University, where he teaches voice, vocal improvisation, arranging, and vocal jazz ensembles, while conducting a growing family of university choirs. He is currently building a comprehensive performance program at St. FX for vocal musicians, which includes classes in voice pedagogy, diction for contemporary singers, vocal arranging, art song literature, and conducting.

Peter Groom, baritone

Baritone Peter Groom moved to Sackville, New Brunswick in 2006 from Regina, Saskatchewan, where he was head of the Voice Department at the University of Regina Conservatory of Performing Arts. A frequent performer in oratorio and recital, Peter has performed works by Bach, Beethoven, Brahms, Handel, Haydn, Mozart, Vaughan Williams and others with the Regina Symphony Orchestra and other Western Canadian ensembles.

About Richard Simoneau

Principal trumpet with Symphony Nova Scotia since 1996, Richard Simoneau has become well-known as a soloist with Symphony Nova Scotia audiences. Born in 1970 in Quebec City, he pursued his studies at the Quebec and then Montreal Conservatories, graduating in May 1994. Richard has since played with the Montreal Symphony Orchestra, Hamilton Philharmonic and the National Arts Center Orchestra in Ottawa before moving to his current position with Symphony Nova Scotia.

About Symphony Nova Scotia
Expect the Unexpected with Symphony Nova Scotia from Baroque to Berlioz to bluegrass! Each year the 37-member ensemble performs for more than 40,000 audience members (including 14,000 young music lovers) in communities across Nova Scotia. Under the inspirational leadership of Bernhard Gueller, Symphony Nova Scotia is recognized as one of the finest orchestras in the country. Join the orchestra in celebrating its 25th anniversary this season!

Symphony Nova Scotia is grateful to the Canada Council for the Arts, Nova Scotia Tourism, Culture, and Heritage, and the Halifax Regional Municipality for their continued support.

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Tuesday, February 3, 2009

Feb 13 Choral Concert - Vox Femina




Faculty of Music Choral Concert Celebrates Music for Female Voices

TORONTO On Friday, February 13, 2009, the University of Toronto Womens Chorus is joined by guest choir, the University of Guelph Chamber Choir, in Vox Femina, a concert featuring music for female voices spanning 500 years. Conducted by Robert Cooper C.M. and Marta McCarthy, the program includes music by Palestrina, John Tavener, Francis Poulenc, Pavel Chesnokov, Eric Whitacre, Brahms, Duke Ellington and folksong arrangements. The concert takes place at 7:30 pm in Christ Church Deer Park, 1570 Yonge Street (NW corner of Yonge & Heath). Tickets ($14 adults, $8 students/seniors) can be purchased at the Faculty of Music box office in person or by calling 416-978-3744 and are also available at the door on performance night.

One of Canadas foremost choral conductors, Robert Cooper C.M. is currently Artistic Director of Chorus Niagara, Orpheus Choir of Toronto, the Opera in Concert Chorus, and the University Womens Chorus, University of Toronto, Faculty of Music. Mr. Cooper has had the honor of conducting the National Youth Choir of Canada and made his Carnegie Hall debut in 1997 for a Celebration of Canadian Choral Music. He has conducted symphony orchestras in Halifax, Winnipeg, Edmonton and London (ON), opera companies in Victoria, Ottawa and Winnipeg, leading choirs across Canada, as well as Toronto Operetta Theatre and Opera in Concert. Acknowledged as an innovative programmer, Mr. Cooper has also commissioned and premiered many new works by both Canadian and international composers. Mr. Cooper has adjudicated the international choral competition Let The Peoples Sing on many occasions, guest conducted Newfoundlands Festival 500, Parry Sounds Festival of the Sound, the 2007 Ontario Youth Choir, and Ottawas Thirteen Strings to which he returns once again in December 2008 to conduct works by Haydn and Britten. In addition to his work as a popular clinician, Mr. Cooper will conduct Toronto Operetta Theatres spring production of Iolanthe. Mr. Cooper recently left CBC Radio Two after 31 years of bringing fine choral music and operatic performances to all of Canada as Executive Producer of Opera and Choral Music. He has served as President of the Ontario Choral Federation and the Association of Canadian Choral Conductors and presently serves on the Board of Directors of Chorus America. Robert Cooper is the recipient of an Honorary Doctorate from Brock University for his significant contribution to the Canadian choral community and is a member of the Order of Canada.

Dr. Marta McCarthy, conductor, is an Assistant Professor at the University of Guelph, where she has been directing the choirs and teaching musicianship for thirteen years. She also conducted the University of Waterloo Choir, and taught choral techniques at Wilfrid Laurier University and at the University of Toronto. Marta is a graduate of Westminster Choir College of Princeton (M.Mus), the Royal Conservatory of Music (ARCT, piano performance) and of the University of Toronto (B.Mus, B.Ed., Ph.D.). Recent honours include the 1999 Elmer Iseler Conducting Fellowship, an Ontario Volunteer Service Award, and being named a member of the June Callwood Circle of Caring. In 2005, she was awarded the Guelph Woman of Distinction for Arts & Culture.

Part of Canadas top university, the University of Toronto Faculty of Music has an illustrious history as one of North Americas leading centres for the scholarly and professional study of music, offering a rich array of degree and diploma programs from the undergraduate to post-graduate levels. The Faculty of Music presents an annual concert season of over 100 public events. Highlights of the 2008-09 season include cellists Steven Isserlis and Shauna Rolston, baritone Sherrill Milnes, composer Maria Schneider, conductors David Briskin and Miah Im, jazz great Phil Nimmons, the Mir, and St. Lawrence String Quartets, the Gryphon Trio and Nexus. For more information, please visit our website at www.music.utoronto.ca or contact the Box Office at 416-978-3744.

The Faculty of Music 2008-2009 concert season is made possible by the generous support of our pillar sponsors: Manulife Financial, MBNA Canada, and TD Meloche Monnex Insurance.


Ticket sales and general inquiries:
Faculty of Music Box Office
Hours: 1 7 pm, Monday to Friday, with extended hours on performance nights.
Phone: 416-978-3744
Address: Lobby level, Edward Johnson Building, 80 Queens Park, Toronto ON M5S 2C5

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Thursday, January 22, 2009

Concert de la Saint-Valentin par trois grands choeurs montralais en appui La Scena Musicale

[English version]

Montral, 19 janvier 2009- Le milieu choral de Montral salue Wah Keung Chan, fondateur et diteur de la revue de musique classique La Scena Musicale, par un concert bnfice donn au profit de la publication le 14 fvrier 20 h la salle Pollack de la facult de musique de l'Universit McGill. L'vnement runira trois des meilleurs churs de la mtropole: Concerto Della Donna, Musica Orbium et le Studio de Musique ancienne de Montral, dirigs respectivement par les piliers de la musique chorale Montral que sont Iwan Edwards, Patrick Wedd and Christopher Jackson. Au programme, des chants d'amour de toutes les poques, depuis Gabrieli et Palestrina jusqu' Copland et Gershwin. Ayant excut chacun une portion du programme, les trois ensembles uniront leurs voix pour le grand finale.

Iwan Edwards, directeur artistique de la soire et membre de l'Ordre du Canada (1995), explique: Patrick Wedd, Christopher Jackson et moi avons runi nos choeurs deux fois dj, pour des concerts du matin de Pques la radio de CBC. Je suis ravi que mes minents collgues acceptent de renouveler l'exprience. Ce concert de gala est une occasion pour nous d'exprimer la profonde admiration que nous portons Wah Keung Chan pour l'incomparable apport la vie musicale qu'est La Scena Musicale.

L'aventure de La Scena Musicale commenait en 1996, lorsque Wah Keung Chan publiait un calendrier musical sur deux pages des concerts prsents Montral; avec le temps, le petit bulletin s'est transform en revue nationale des arts de la scne et de la musique avec articles de fond, critiques de disques et guides de l'enseignement de la musique ; plus rcemment, La Scena Musicale s'est porte la dfense de la musique et des arts. En assistant cette soire, dit l'diteur, les amateurs de musique feront plus que s'offrir un magnifique concert, ils participeront avec La Scena Musicale la promotion de la belle et grande musique partout au pays.

Billets:

30 $ - rguliers

20 $ - tudiants et ans (se les procurer La Scena Musicale, au guichet de la facult de musique de McGill ou aux points de vente Admission).

130 $ - les meilleurs siges et rception pr-concert en compagnie des trois chefs de chur (s'adresser directement La Scena Musicale)

Pour voir le programme.

La Scena Musicale
Tl. : 514-948-2520
Courriel : gala2009@scena.org
(cartes VISA, MasterCard et AMEX)

Guichet de McGill:
Tl. : 514-398-4547.
(cartes VISA et MasterCard)

Points de vente Admission. Frais de service.

514-790-1245 or 1-800-361-4595

Info: Dawna Coleman, 514-948-2520, dawnacoleman@scena.org

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posted by Wah Keung Chan at 7:06 AM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Three of Montreal's top choirs support La Scena Musicale in Valentine's Benefit Concert

[Version franaise]

Montreal--January 19, 2009-- Montreal's choral community is expressing their support for Wah Keung Chan, founding editor and publisher of the classical music magazine La Scena Musicale, by collaborating in a benefit concert supporting the publication. The event, scheduled for 8 p.m. on February 14, 2009, features three of Montreal's top choirs: Concerto Della Donna, Musica Orbium, and the Studio de Musique ancienne de Montral, conducted by stalwarts of the Montreal choral scene Iwan Edwards, Patrick Wedd and Christopher Jackson, respectively. The ensembles will perform choral love songs from Gabrieli and Palestrina to Copland and Gershwin, with each choir singing their own segment and then joining forces for the finale.

Edwards, a Member of the Order of Canada since 1995 and the concert's artistic director, says, "Christopher, Patrick and I had worked together on the CBC Radio Easter Morning Sunrise Service from Montreal on two separate occasions, so I was delighted when these outstanding directors and their ensembles agreed to collaborate once again, particularly since it gave us the opportunity to express our admiration for Wah Keung Chan and the tremendous contribution he has made to classical music through La Scena Musicale."

Chan started the publication in 1996, as a 2-page newsletter focusing on Montreal concert listings; it soon grew to a full-fledged magazine covering arts and music nationwide, including articles, CD reviews, music education guides, and recently, it has come to the defense of music and the arts. Chan says, "by attending this concert, music lovers will not only be treated to a great evening of choral love songs, they will be partnering with La Scena Musicale in promoting high quality music-making across the country."

Tickets are $30 (regular price) and $20 (student/senior), available at La Scena Musicale, the McGill Box Office, and local Admission outlets. VIP seating and the chance to meet the conductors at a pre-concert reception are available for $130.

For more info about the concert and the programme, click here.

La Scena Musicale
Tel: (514) 948-2520
E-mail: gala2009@scena.org
(VISA, MasterCard, or AMEX accepted, VIP admission only available directly through LSM)

McGill box office:
514-398-4547.
(VISA or MasterCard accepted)

Admission outlets. Service charges apply.

514-790-1245 or 1-800-361-4595

Info: Dawna Coleman, 514-948-2520, dawnacoleman@scena.org

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posted by Wah Keung Chan at 6:51 AM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Tuesday, November 18, 2008

Portland's CAS Holds Sing-Along and Food Drive to Benefit Project FEED, Dec. 15


PORTLAND'S CHORAL ART SOCIETY HOLDS ANNUAL MESSIAH SING-ALONG AND FOOD DRIVE TO BENEFIT PROJECT FEED, DECEMBER 15

PORTLAND, Maine The Choral Art Society (CAS) of Portland continues its tradition of holiday celebration and giving back to their community by holding their Messiah Sing-Along and Handel-on-Hunger Food Drive to benefit Project FEED, Portland's emergency food pantry. The event will be held this year on Monday, December 15 at 7:30 p.m. at St. Patrick's Catholic Church, 1342 Congress Street in Portland.

Handel's Messiah Sing-Along will be led by CAS Music Director Robert Russell, with the Southern Maine Symphony Orchestra accompanying. Admission to the Sing-Along is $5.00, students are admitted free. Attendees are asked to bring Messiah music scores, but CAS will have some to borrow at the event. Sing-Along participants can bring food and/or cash donations to benefit Project FEED's mission.

Other upcoming CAS holiday events include their annual Christmas at the Cathedral concerts, Saturday, December 6 (preview at noon, full concert at 8:00 p.m.) and Sunday, December 7 (2:30 and 7:00 p.m.) at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, 307 Congress Street in Portland. An Epiphany Celebration will be held Saturday, January 3 at 7:30 p.m. at the Immanuel Baptist Church in Portland. Visit www.choralart.org for ticketing and further information.

About The Choral Art Society:
The Society has more than 150 members who perform in three distinct ensembles: the symphonic Masterworks Chorus, the mid-sized Choral Art Singers, and the intimate a cappella Camerata. All singers are skilled amateurs, selected by audition. The Society offers an annual concert series and appears regularly as guests of the Portland Symphony Orchestra. Robert Russell, professor of music at the University of Southern Maine, is the conductor and artistic director of The Choral Art Society.

For more information about The Choral Art Society and the 2008-09 performances visit www.choralart.org or call (207) 828-0043.

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posted by Wah Keung Chan at 10:00 AM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Wednesday, October 29, 2008

Renowned Berkshire Choral Festival seeks Montreal singers for weeklong choral festival

Renowned Berkshire Choral Festival seeks Montreal singers for weeklong choral festival




Montreal, QC The internationally renowned Berkshire Choral Festival is seeking applications from Montreal singers, ages 18 and up, for the prestigious weeklong singing festival, June 26 to July 4, 2009.

With a handful of spots set aside for local talent, successful applicants will join singers from around the world and be immersed in an intense learning experience under the direction of distinguished composer and conductor Julian Wachner, former music director for Bach-Academie de Montreal and current director for the Grammy award-winning Washington Chorus.

The weeklong choral festival will culminate with a performance of Mendelssohns oratorio Paulus (St. Paul) sung in German and accompanied by Orchestre Metropolitain du Grand Montreal at the Eglise Saint-Jean-Baptiste on July 3.

We are extremely excited for our inaugural visit to Montreal, says Trudy Weaver Miller, President and CEO, Berkshire Choral Festival. Montreals rich cultural heritage, old-world architectural charm, and world class amenities make it an ideal city in which to host the Berkshire Choral Festival. We look forward to an artistically stimulating summer.

The 2009 season marks the Berkshire Choral Festivals first visit to Montreal, which joins the internationally recognized list of Berkshire Choral Festival venues along with Sheffield, Massachusetts, and Prague, Czech Republic in providing choral singers from around the globe with the opportunity to rehearse and perform masterpieces of the choral repertoire in a weeklong singing intensive.

More than 180 singers will not only rehearse, but also live on the sprawling campus of McGill University for the entire week. It is a musically and physically demanding program designed for singers who want to reach more deeply into the choral music experience.

Berkshire Choral Festival will begin accepting on-line registrations October 29, 2008. For further information, or to apply online, visit the Berkshire Choral Festival website at: www.choralfest.org.


About Berkshire Choral Festival
The Berkshire Choral Festival was founded in 1982. It was a new idea about a unique way of learning and singing choral music in a rich and artistically stimulating setting.
Twenty-eight years later, the Berkshire Choral Festival still holds to this philosophy that choral music is best when it is studied, absorbed, discussed and mulled over by choristers and conductors together in total immersion until it makes sense as a genuine revelation and expression of the human spirit.

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posted by Wah Keung Chan at 12:39 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Monday, September 15, 2008

Nathaniel Dett Chorale's 10th anniversary


A NEW HOME, NEW TOURS, MORE CONCERTS, MORE OUTREACH!
THE NATHANIEL DETT CHORALE'S 10TH ANNIVERSARY SEASON
Founder, Artistic Director Brainerd Blyden-Taylor

The 2008-2009 season gives Canada's acclaimed Nathaniel Dett Chorale more reason than ever to sing! The Chorale presents its 10th anniversary season from a new home in downtown Toronto with more concerts, old friends, two tours, and a new program to cultivate the next generation of Chorale vocalists.

Through a partnership with the Corporation of Massey Hall and Roy Thomson Hall, the Nathaniel Dett Chorale moves to the acoustically dazzling Glenn Gould Studio in the Canadian Broadcasting Centre. The ever-popular concerts will once again be centred around the themes of "An Indigo Christmas" as the holiday offering; "Voices of the Diaspora" will be performed in February, and "And Still We Sing" in May. The February concert will also feature famous Chorale alumni. Throughout the season, the Chorale will give two performances of each program, with concerts on Wednesday and Saturday evenings.

Two major tours also highlight the 2008-2009 season. From the end of September through October, the Nathaniel Dett Chorale tours the United States with stops in Michigan, Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas, Louisiana, and Tennessee. In February 2009, the Chorale heads out west for concerts in Alberta, British Columbia, and the Yukon.

This season, the Chorale also launches its first training choir for senior high school students. Working in cooperation with the Toronto District School Board, the Chorale will select talented students of African Heritage from across the Greater Toronto Area to participate in this initiative, which includes vocal coaching, sight singing and ear training instruction, mentoring in choral technique, and immersion in Afrocentric repertoire, history, and philosophy. Participating students will be given the opportunity to interact and perform with the professional singers of The Nathaniel Dett Chorale, and will be encouraged to demonstrate leadership and mentorship in their home schools. This pilot project is made possible through the generous support of The Bennett Family Foundation (Toronto) and the RBC Foundation.

The Nathaniel Dett Chorale is Canada's first professional choral group dedicated to Afrocentric music of all styles, including classical, spiritual, gospel, jazz, folk and blues. These 21 classically-trained, outstanding vocalists have shared the stage with internationally recognized artists such as Juno Award-winning jazz pianist Joe Sealy, opera star Kathleen Battle, and the Toronto Symphony Orchestra. The Nathaniel Dett Chorale's vision is to build bridges of understanding, appreciation, and acceptance between communities of people, both Afrocentric and other, through the medium of music. They seek to dissolve the barriers of stereotype, to empower humans in general, and those of African descent in particular.

The Nathaniel Dett Chorale's 2008.09 Concert Season in Toronto
An Indigo Christmas Great Joy!: Wednesday, December 17, and Saturday, December 20, 2008, at 8pm
Voices of the Diaspora Dett to Africa: Wednesday, February 25, and Saturday, February 28, 2009, at 8pm
And Still We Sing All o' We Is One: Wednesday, May 27, and Saturday, May 30, 2009, at 8pm
Glenn Gould Studio, 250 Front Street West, Toronto
Subscribe to all 3 concerts for $99; individual tickets $39.50, students/seniors $35
Tickets available in person at the Roy Thomson Hall box office, 60 Simcoe St.,
by calling 416.872.4255 or online at www.roythomson.com
www.nathanieldettchroale.org

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Sunday, September 14, 2008

The Waterloo Region Composers Choral Song Circle

The Waterloo Region Composers Choral Song Circle will feature the choral music of Glenn Buhr, Barrie Cabena, Leonard Enns, Jeff Enns, Michael Purves-Smith and Carol Ann Weaver.


Where: Kitchener City Hall Rotunda, 200 King Street West, Kitchener, Ontario

Date: Saturday, September 27, 2008

Time: 7:00 pm

Admission: Free

Information: 519 894-5308, or www.chestnuthallmusic.com/choral


Overview

A unique event patterned on the popular singer songwriter circles, the Waterloo Region Composers Choral Song Circle features the choral music of Glenn Buhr, Barrie Cabena, Leonard Enns, Jeff Enns, Michael Purves-Smith and Carol Ann Weaver.


The Event

The Waterloo Region Composers Choral Song Circle is a unique concert event, patterned after the Songwriter Circles that have become popular in the pop world. Audiences attend the events and have an opportunity to interact with the songwriters, who often introduce works that are new or unique, and perform them by themselves or with participation from other songwriters who are all present on stage.


The Choral Song Circle will be similar to this pattern, except choral classical composers are not obviously able to accompany themselves SATB on stage. With the help of a Waterloo Region Arts Fund grant, we have formed a professional core choir reinforced with the best singers from the region's two university music schools.


The choir conducted by Wilfrid Laurier University's Dr Lee Willingham will perform choral music of the composers who make their homes or places of work in the Waterloo region, with the six composers present on stage.


Hosted by Jurgen Petrenko, there will be opportunities to hear the composers talk about their music, and for audiences to meet with them and become familiar with who they are and to develop awareness of their craft and their sound, and how they are a vital part of the cultural fabric of the Waterloo region, Canada and abroad. Jurgen will moderate interaction between the composers and the audience as we talk about the music and the compositional process.


The Participants

  • Six Waterloo region composers, including Glenn Buhr, Barrie Cabena, Leonard Enns, Jeff Enns, Michael Purves-Smith and Carol Ann Weaver.
  • A newly formed professional choir joined by the Laurier Singers will be conducted by Dr Lee Willingham, who is an Associate Professor at WLU where he leads the Laurier Singers and is Director for the new Laurier Centre for Music in the Community.
  • Jurgen Petrenko, former producer of CBC's Music and Company, will be acting as host for the event.

The Venue

The event is being held at the city of Kitchener's unique Rotunda, situated on ground floor of the building. The hall is very open and accessible to the public, and the choir, composers and audience will be arranged so that there is a close sense of interaction and community. The acoustics are amazing and the hall is four stories high, with a circular floor layout... perfect for a choral song circle.

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Wednesday, September 10, 2008

Elmer Iseler, Choral Visionary


VISIONARY Concert & Book Launch

Celebrating 30th Anniversary Season

Sunday, September 21 at 7:00 p.m. at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church

Toronto, September 10, 2008: The Elmer Iseler Singers and conductor Lydia Adams launch their 30th anniversary season with a performance featuring the glorious music of Canadian composers John Beckwith, Ruth Watson Henderson and Imant Raminsh. The evening also includes the moving mystical works of Maurice Durufl, Henryk Gorecki and Eric Whitacre. This concert is the perfect occasion to launch Walter Pitmans new book, Elmer Iseler, Choral Visionary, a biography that outlines the spectacular career (spanning five decades) of the legendary Elmer Iseler. The event takes place on Sunday, September 21 at 7PM at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church (78 Clifton Road) in Toronto.

In addition to celebrating the Elmer Iseler Singers 30th anniversary season, this concert marks the 10th anniversary of Lydia Adams as Artistic Director and Conductor. Special guest Walter Pitman (O. C., O. On.) joins Canadas foremost vocal ensemble to introduce Elmer Iseler, Choral Visionary (Dundurn Press 2008) - the first-ever biography of the choirs founder. With a personalized forward written by Jessie Iseler and over 50 black & white photos, the Iseler story belongs to the thousands of singers and hundreds of conductors that have ever sung and worked with Elmer Iseler. All proceeds of sales through the Elmer Iseler Singers go towards the work of the Elmer Iseler Singers.

Elmer Iseler was pivotal to the development of choral music in Canada. Though he passed away on April 3, 1998, his impact will continue undiminished through his many recordings, the work of the Elmer Iseler Singers, through The Elmer Iseler Chair in Conducting, the Elmer Iseler National Graduate Fellowships in Choral Conducting at the University of Toronto and through this biography.

The September 21 performance features John Beckwiths Sharon Fragments; Imant Raminshs Ave Verum Corpus; Ruth Watson Hendersons Missa Brevis; Maurice Durufls Quatre Motets (Ubi caritas, Tota pulchra es, Tu es Petrus and Tantum ergo); Henryk Mikoaj Greckis Totus Tuus, Op. 60; and Eric Whitacres When David Heard.

The Elmer Iseler Singers Board of Directors is pleased to announce that this 2008/2009 Toronto 30th Anniversary Series is very generously sponsored by Hooey Remus LLP a premier law firm based in Toronto.

VISIONARY Concert and Book Launch: Sunday, September 21, 2008 at 7:00 p.m.

Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church 78 Clifton Road at St. Clair, Toronto (West of Mt. Pleasant)

Special Guest: WALTER PITMAN, O.C., O. On.

Author of Elmer Iseler, Choral Visionary (Dundurn Press)

Tickets: $35/ regular - $30/Seniors - $10/Students (with valid student i.d.)

Please call Janet Johnson at 416-217-0537 for tickets and information.


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Friday, August 29, 2008

Waterloo Region Composers Choral Song Circle


Waterloo Region Composers Choral Song Circle


The Waterloo Region Composers Choral Song Circle will feature the choral music of Glenn Buhr, Barrie Cabena, Richard Cunningham, Leonard Enns, Jeff Enns, Michael Purves-Smith and Carol Ann Weaver.


Where: Kitchener City Hall Rotunda, 200 King Street West, Kitchener, Ontario

Date: Saturday, September 27, 2008

Time: 7:00 pm

Admission: Free

Information: www.chestnuthallmusic.com/choral


Overview

A unique event patterned on the popular singer songwriter circles, the Waterloo Region Composers Choral Song Circle features the choral music of Glenn Buhr, Barrie Cabena, Richard Cunningham, Leonard Enns, Jeff Enns, Michael Purves-Smith and Carol Ann Weaver.


The Event

The Waterloo Region Composers Choral Song Circle is a unique concert event, patterned after the Songwriter Circles that have become popular in the pop world. Audiences attend the events and have an opportunity to interact with the songwriters, who often introduce works that are new or unique, and perform them by themselves or with participation from other songwriters who are all present on stage.


The Choral Song Circle will be similar to this pattern, except choral classical composers are not obviously able to accompany themselves SATB on stage. With the help of a Region of Waterloo Arts Fund grant, we have formed a professional core choir reinforced with the best singers from the region's two university music schools.


The choir conducted by Wilfrid Laurier University's Dr Lee Willingham will perform choral music of the composers who make their homes or places of work in the Waterloo region, with the seven composers present on stage.


Hosted by Jurgen Petrenko, there will be opportunities to hear the composers talk about their music, and for audiences to meet with them and become familiar with who they are and to develop awareness of their craft and their sound, and how they are a vital part of the cultural fabric of the Waterloo region, Canada and abroad. Jurgen will moderate interaction between the composers and the audience as we talk about the music and the compositional process.


The Participants

  • Seven Waterloo region composers, including Glenn Buhr, Barrie Cabena, Richard Cunningham, Leonard Enns, Jeff Enns, Michael Purves-Smith and Carol Ann Weaver.
  • A newly formed professional choir will be conducted by Dr Lee Willingham, who is an Associate Professor at WLU where he leads the Laurier Singers and is Director for the new Laurier Centre for Music in the Community.
  • Jurgen Petrenko, former producer of CBC's Music and Company, will be acting as host for the event.


The Venue

The event is being held at the city of Kitchener's unique Rotunda, situated on ground floor of the building. The hall is very open and accessable to the public, and the choir, composers and audience will be arranged so that there is a close sense of interaction and community. The acoustics are amazing and the hall is four stories high, with a circular floor layout... perfect for a choral song circle.


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Monday, May 19, 2008

C4: the Choral Composer/Conductor Collective Concert Press Release

For Immediate Release
May 13, 2008
Contact: Jonathan David, (917) 596-9931
info@c4ensemble.org

C4 Presents Hit It!
New Yorks Premier New Music Chorus Offers up Voices + Crotales, Lions Roar, Tam-tam, Spatulae, Marimba, Coffee Grinders, and a Plethora of Other Percussion

Saturday, June 7, 2008
St. Josephs Church
404 East 87th Street between 1st and York Avenues, NYC
8 PM
$10
Closest Subway: 4, 5 or 6 to 86th St. Station

C4: the Choral Composer/Conductor Collective will present the third concert of its season on Saturday, June 7, offering a wide range of music by living composers in collaboration with percussionists Levy Lorenzo and Dennis Sullivan.

The concert will include five world premieres, by C4 composers Jonathan David, Asia Mei, Ian Moss, Malina Rauschenfels, and Karen Siegel. Davids Kallyope Yell sets the ecstaticly deranged words of eccentric Amercian poet Nicholas Vachel Lindsay, complete with a whip-snapping reciter/ringmaster and a battery of circus percussion. Eine kleine morning music captures Rauschenfelss morning routine, from that first cup of coffee to her daily fried eggs. Siegels Hellgate Beach, a mini-concerto for two percussionists and choral obbligato, is inspired by a moment in time at the deserted Queens beach. In Remember Eternity, Mei offers a sumptuous treatment of a mystical poem by Andres D.S. Wilson. Mosss She Didnt Mean To Do It represents a departure from his usual intricate and thickly-textured style, racing through a tale of deception with a cynical, hard-edged sheen.

The evening will also feature the East Coast premiere and second performance of Lisa Bielawas The Marriage of Heaven and Hell. In this multi-movement work for chorus and percussion, commissioned and premiered by the Dale Warland Singers, Bielawa sets excerpts from William Blakes monumental, Dante-inspired guidebook to Hell. She draws on musical techniques from the ancient to the modern to illuminate the texts that Blake himself illustrated with his remarkable copper-plate etchings. The concert will also include favorite choral works by Veljo Tormis and Eric Whitacre, both of which include prominent roles for percussion.

C4 is a unique chorus that is directed and operated collectively by its singing members, functioning not only as a presenting ensemble in its own right but also as an ongoing workshop and recital chorus for the emerging composers and conductors who form the core of the group. The ensemble exists in both 16-voice chamber choir and larger symphonic chorus formats, allowing for flexibility in presentation depending on the needs of each work. It is the first organization of its kind and one of the few choral groups in the nation to focus exclusively on the music of our time.

For booking, interviews and complimentary tickets for reviews, please contact:
Jonathan David, (917) 596-9931
info@c4ensemble.org
www.c4ensemble.org


Samuel D. McCoy
Litigation Paralegal
Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP
590 Madison Avenue
New York, New York 10022
212-407-3142


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Tuesday, March 25, 2008

Choral Art Society to Present Rachmaninoff's All-Night Vigil

PORTLAND, Maine The Choral Art Society (CAS) singers will present Sergei Rachmaninoff's beautiful a cappella All-Night Vigil on Sunday, May 4 at 3:00 p.m. at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, located at 307 Congress Street in Portland. All advance tickets are $15, admission at the door will be $20.

All-Night Vigil is an a cappella choral composition written and originally premiered in 1915. It is one of Rachmaninoff's most admired works, as well as one of his personal favorites. The piece is comprised of the settings of texts taken from the Russian Orthodox liturgical services, and is widely considered "the greatest musical achievement of the Russian Orthodox Church." The a cappella chorus is so richly textured that the blending of singers' voices evokes the sound of an orchestra.

Sunday's performance at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception is sponsored by the Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church in Portland . Tickets are available through CAS and all CAS ticket outlets, call 207-828-0043 or visit www.choralart.org for more information.

In addition to Sunday's performance, CAS will also perform All-Night Vigil on Saturday, May 3 at 8:00 p.m. at the Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul, 27 Bartlett Street in Lewiston , Maine . Suggested donations at the door will benefit the Basilica's organ restoration fund. There is a third performance planned for Saturday, May 10th at 7:30 p.m. at the St. Vasilios Greek Orthodox Church, 5 Paleologos Street in Peabody, Massachusetts.

About The Choral Art Society:
The Society has more than 150 members who perform in three distinct ensembles: the symphonic Masterworks Chorus, the mid-sized Choral Art Singers, and the intimate a cappella Camerata. All singers are skilled amateurs, selected by audition. The Society offers an annual concert series and appears regularly as guests of the Portland Symphony Orchestra. Robert Russell, professor of music at the University of Southern Maine , is the conductor and artistic director of The Choral Art Society.

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Monday, February 11, 2008

[Vancouver] Choral Tapestry: Laudate Singers, March 8

For Immediate Release February 11, 2008

LAUDATE SINGERS present

CHORAL TAPESTRY

Saturday March 8, 2008 8:00 pm

St. Andrews United Church

10th & St. Georges, North Vancouver

Tickets ($25/$20) & Information: 604-831-3158

www.laudatesingers.com

In their first concert of 2008, Laudate Singers and conductor Lars Kaario weave a rich and lively Choral Tapestry out of music from across centuries and world cultures. The radiant sounds of the North Shores premier chamber choir will be accompanied by a colourful display of scarves, dresses, tapestries, dolls, kelp baskets and other art pieces by members of the Vancouver Guild of Fibre Arts.

The musical programme will feature the world premiere of a new work by Laudate Singers award-winning young composer-in-residence Bruce Sled, as well as Gregorio Allegris glorious medieval Miserere, Mei Deus, Samuel Barbers moving Agnus Dei, a trio of sacred pieces by 19th-century German composer Josef Rheinberger, Claude Debussys Trois Chansons, and newer works by Einojuhani Rautavaara, Juhani Komulainen (both from Finland) and Vancouvers own Moshe Denburg.

Laudate Singers are pleased to join with local artists in creating this Choral Tapestry, full of vibrant textures both aural and visualĶa warm, bright blanket of sounds and colours.

Music to make your ears sing!

www.laudatesingers.com

Media Contact: Melanie Thompson, 604-224-6201 or melaniethompson@shaw.ca

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