Musical Associates: a
select group of singers and instrumentalists, dedicated to bringing the
finest in choral music to music lovers in the Susquehanna Valley.
Under the direction of Artistic Director Emery DeWitt, the thirty-seven
singers and instrumentalists include many of the area's top
soloists. Our repertoire includes great composers from the
Renaissance through the present day. Please join us for for our
summer, 2011 concerts - Saturday, August 27 at Lancaster Church of the Brethren (as part of the Starlight Tea Concert Series), and Sunday, August 28 at St. James Episcopal Church in Lancaster.
The concert is titled All That Jazz!, because this summer, Musical Associates
is stepping out a bit! The entire second half of the program will
consist of a wonderful set of vocal jazz arrangements of folks songs
from around the world, by composer Bob Chilcott. Choral music
fans will recognize the name - Mr. Chilcott spent several years singing
with the King's Singers in England, and his compositional style is
informed by the great jazz arrangements they performed. We will
be accompanied by a jazz trio of piano, bass and drums. Our hope
is that we, and you, will get our groove on!
The first half of the program will be from our more familiar classical repertoire. We'll sing Claudio Monteverdi's Mass for Four Voices,
published in 1650. Monteverdi died in 1643, so we are not certain
when the work was actually written, but we are certain that it is a
masterwork! While written to sound like the "ancient style" of
Rennaissance music, it also developed its thematic material in a way
that was quite new, and very much in Monteverdi's own musical style. We'll also sing a set of four songs from the late 20th century: There Is Sweet Music,
by composer Stephen Chatman. These are unusual in that the
accompaniment is oboe alone - no keyboard or strings allowed! Our
guest oboist will be Jill Marchione, known throughout the region for
her gorgeous tone and sensitive musicality. The first half will conclude with a piece that "turns the corner" into our jazz set. Wanting Memories by Ysaye Barnwell, was first performed by the all-female a cappella quintet Sweet Honey In The Rock.
Ms. Barnwell was that group's founder, and this composition is
one of her best. It combines longing for a lost loved one
with the wisdom and grace learned from them when they were here. As with all of Musical Associates' concerts, we will close with a much-beloved "song about singing": Sing Me To Heaven by Daniel Gawthrop. It is our sung blessing to our listeners!
Admission to our concerts is free, with a free-will offering taken. Please join us for a wonderful musical event!
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