Classical Music Winter Preview
By Robin McNeil
There are a number of fantastic opportunities to hear wonderful seasonal music over the winter season. In this preview, I’ll highlight the Denver Brass, St. Martins Chamber Choir, the Littleton Symphony Orchestra, Kantorei, the Jefferson Symphony Orchestra, Colorado Hebrew Chorale, Denver Young Artists Orchestra, Denver Philharmonic Orchestra, Colorado Wind Ensemble, The Colorado Chamber Players, Boulder Symphony, Boulder Chamber Orchestra, Boulder Bach Festival, Aurora Symphony Orchestra, Augustana Arts, Ars Nova Singers, and Arapahoe Philharmonic. Don’t miss some of these fantastic holiday offerings.
Denver Brass at the Newman Center
A Rocky Mountain Christmas
Sunday, December 23, 2012 at 4:00 PM, at the Newman Center
Warren Deck – Conductor & Rick Crandall – Host
Dave LeMieux and House of Soul
Newman Center for the Performing Arts
Colorado Christmas – O Come, Emmanuel – O Holy Night – Sleigh Ride – Carol of the Brass – Joy!
All along the Rockies you can feel it in the air, a Colorado Christmas resounding everywhere! Cozy up with The Denver Brass and guest artists Dave LeMieux and House of Soul for an evening of inspiring seasonal harmonies, warmth and good cheer. It’s the Premier brass event of the season!
Tickets: $44-$24 Website
St. Martin’s Chamber Choir
The Saint Martin’s Chamber Choir is another of the outstanding chamber groups in Colorado. Their conductor, Dr. Timothy J Krueger, is not only a remarkable musician, he is also a scholar, and more importantly, he is a scholar of the music that this organization performs. Note the different dates for the performances of the same program: you will have a chance to hear this extraordinary organization perform. It will be a performance that you will remember for a very long time.
Timothy J. Krueger studied musicology at the Wheaton Conservatory of Music, the University of Colorado, Boulder, the Universität Hamburg, Germany, and the University of London’s Royal Holloway College, where his doctoral dissertation was on the sacred music of Charles Villiers Stanford. He has studied conducting with Dr. Paul Wiens, and privately with Dennis Keene of the Voices of Ascension. He has sung professionally with the Santa Fe Opera, the Santa Fe Desert Chorale, Chicago A Cappella, the Vox Early Music Ensemble, and the Ars Nova Singers, as well as several Episcopal cathedral choirs. In addition to being the founding Artistic Director of St. Martin’s Chamber Choir, Krueger has served as Chorus Director for the Boulder Bach Festival, and has served in a similar capacity for the Colorado Music Festival and the Boulder Philharmonic. He is an Affiliate Faculty member in the Music Department of Metropolitan State College of Denver, where he also directs the Men’s Choir. He is Choirmaster of St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church, overseeing one of Denver’s finest classical church music programs.
Lo, How a Rose: Christmas with St. Martin’s
Hugo Distler’s haunting and poignant Die Weihnachtsgeschichte (“The Christmas Story”) tells the Nativity narrative in the style of a Passion, with six variations on the lovely Christmas carol “Lo, how a Rose e’er blooming,” setting the delicate and tender mood of the work. Other rose-themed Christmas works complement the Distler work.
- Sunday, December 9, 3:00 p.m. Broomfield Auditorium, Broomfield
- Friday, December 14, 7:30 p.m. Saint John’s Episcopal Cathedral, Denver
- Saturday, December 15, 7:30 p.m. Montview Blvd. Presbyterian Church, Denver
Littleton Symphony
Maestro Jurgen de Lemos
The Littleton Symphony Orchestra (LSO) began as a twelve-member string ensemble in the fall of 1984 under the direction of Glenn McCune. The next year, the group added wind, brass, and string players, performing as the Littleton Chamber Orchestra with William Skoog conducting. In 1990, the group grew to a full-size symphony under the direction of its present conductor, Jurgen de Lemos, and changed its name to the Littleton Symphony Orchestra. His expertise and leadership have been largely responsible for the LSO’s reputation as one of Colorado’s most respected and versatile community orchestras. The LSO is dedicated to the growth and quality of its musicians and to the cultural life of the south suburban area. It has participated in concerts during the Western Welcome Week, at the Riverfront Festival, Hudson Gardens, Elitch Gardens, Littleton Museum, Roxborough Park, Littleton Town Hall, and at many community churches.
December 7, 2012
Annual Holiday Concert
Doors open at 7:00 PM – Performance begins at 7:30 PM
Our yearly gift of festive holiday favorites from around the globe.
Kantorei
Kantorei, or singers, formed in 1997 under the leadership of 6 friends who decided to form a choir capable of singing a broad range of a cappella choral music. With the addition of Richard Larson as artistic director and a handful of additional singers, the group quickly found a footing in the cultural fabric of Denver, Colorado.
Now in its 16th full season of performing, the group has expanded into an auditioned ensemble of 54 volunteer singers who meet weekly to rehearse. Many of the singers come from schools with strong choral music programs, such as Augustana, Brigham Young, Concordia, Luther, St. Olaf, Wartburg, and the University of Northern Colorado.
Kantorei established itself as one of the nation’s premier choral ensembles after performing as an auditioned choir for the 2003 National American Choral Directors Association Conference at Carnegie Hall in New York City. In June 2007, Kantorei embarked on its first-ever international tour to France and Italy. The tour culminated with the distinct honor of singing for Mass at St. Peter’s Basilica.
- Thursday, November 29th, 2012, 7:30pm, Augustana Lutheran Church
**Please Note: This concert is not included in our season ticket package
Cherry Creek High School’s fine Meistersingers join us for our annual joint holiday concert. Join us at Augustana Lutheran Church, for an evening of traditional Christmas carols and familiar songs of the season. - Friday, December 7th, 2012, 7:30pm, Saint John’s Cathedral
- Saturday, December 8th, 2012, 7:30pm, Augustana Lutheran
- Sunday, December 9th, 2012, 7:30pm, Christ the King Catholic Church
Kantorei will go Southwest this holiday season. They will be performing Conrad Susas’ Carols and Lullabies Christmas in the Southwest, a collage of Spanish, Catalonian, Andalucian, and Mexican carols accompanied by traditional folk instruments associated with Hispanic carols. Other fantastic and season warming traditional carols and anthems from around the world will be performed in the second half of the concert. There will be something for everyone. You will not want to miss this fabulous annual holiday concert. Mark your calendars to the heart-warming atmosphere of listening to your favorite Christmas tunes and international favorites with your family, friends and neighbors.
Jefferson Symphony
Sunday December 2, 2012 at 3:00 pm
Traditional Holiday Concert
Britten – Serenade for Tenor, Horn and Strings, Op. 31
Respighi – Pines of Rome
Traditional Holiday Music, Various
Guest Artists: Judy Shay Burns, Soprano and Brian Stinar, Tenor
Silent Auction and Wine Reception
Green Center, Colorado School of Mines, Golden
December 8, 2012 at 7:00 pm – Central Presbyterian Church, 1660 Sherman Street, Denver, CO
December 9, 2012 at 3:30 pm – Rockland Community Church, 17 South Mt. Vernon Country Club Road, Golden, CO, Handel – Messiah – with Evergreen Chorale
Maestro William Morse has been music director and principal conductor of the Jefferson Symphony Orchestra since 1999. The orchestra continues to develop and flourish under his leadership.
Dr. Morse holds bachelor and master degrees in music from Oberlin Conservatory and a doctorate in orchestral conducting from the University of Arizona. He has also studied at the Mozarteum Academy of Music in Salzburg, Austria. He is professor emeritus at Metropolitan State College in Denver where he conducted the Metropolitan State Symphony Orchestra and taught advanced conducting and music theory.
Evergreen Chorale
Maestra Christine Gaudreau – Christine was born and raised in Europe, where she studied dance and voice. Following a move to San Diego, she received a bachelor’s degree in voice performance and music history and an master’s degree in choral conducting. Since then, Christine has conducted choral and also orchestral music in California, Italy, and North Carolina and, since 2002, in Colorado. Recent projects include collaborations with Altezza Chamber Chorale and Evergreen Chamber Orchestra and study at the International Bach Festival with Helmuth Rilling. During the 2010/2011 season, Christine will serve also as chorus master for Jefferson Symphony.
Colorado Hebrew Chorale
This chamber group performs and sponsors many wonderful programs throughout the concert season. Do not fail to check their website often because they not only have excellent concerts, but they also have superior programs about music.
Music Director Carol Kozak Ward organized CHC in September 1993. Since its inception, this highly dedicated volunteer chorus, whose membership draws from all areas within greater Denver, has literally given voice to the legacy and culture of the Jewish experience through song. Throughout its more than 15 year history, the CHC performances have enhanced the cultural landscape of the greater Metro Area in four different types of programs:
- Multi-cultural Education
- Interfaith outreach
- Jewish community involvement
- Collaborations with other local music organization
Colorado Hebrew Chorale and Four Mile Historic Park present
Third Annual Chanukah Celebration:
Festival of Lights at Four Mile Historic Park
Monday, December 10, 2012, 5:30 p.m.
Four Mile Historic Park
715 South Forest Street, Denver, CO 80246
Tickets: (720)865-0800
Colorado Hebrew Chorale in Concert:
Chanukah Celebration at Allied Jewish Senior Housing
Tuesday, December 11, 2012, 6 p.m.
22 South Adams Street, Denver, CO 80206
Free and open to the public
A Musical Send-Off for Chanukah:
Chanukah Celebration at Children’s Hospital, Aurora
Sunday, December 16, 2012, 11 a.m. and noon.
Children’s Hospital, 13123 East 16th Ave, Aurora CO 80045
Free and open to the public
Colorado Hebrew Chorale in Concert:
Annual Chanukah Program at Shalom Cares
Sunday, December 16, 2012, 3:30 p.m.
14800 East Belleview Drive, Aurora, CO
Free and open to the public
Denver Young Artists Orchestra
The Denver Young Artists Orchestra (DYAO) was formed in 1977 under the auspices of the Denver Symphony Orchestra, now the Colorado Symphony Orchestra (CSO). Founders Betty Naster and Carl Topilow organized the orchestra as a means for Colorado’s most talented young musicians to rehearse and perform together under demanding professional standards. DYAO has operated independently since 1979, and has maintained a close relationship with the CSO.
DYAO has become one of the leading youth orchestras in the United States, fostering the growth of young artists for 30 years. Its mission is to provide the finest possible youth orchestra programs, inspiring and educating young musicians through the performance of great works of music and offering valuable cultural opportunities to the community.
Denver Young Artists Orchestra consists of five orchestras: DYAO, two Conservatory Orchestras, and two String Ensembles. The ensembles are composed of approximately 250 musicians representing 90 schools across the region. Some drive from as far as Fort Collins, Colorado Springs, Estes Park and other mountain communities. Competitive auditions are held each spring and musicians aged 8 to 23 are eligible. Repertoire for DYAO and the Conservatory Orchestras includes full orchestral and symphonic works in their original form, while the String Ensembles perform music geared toward younger string players.
Thursday, December 06, 2012, 7:00pm – 9:00pm
Conservatory Orchestra-North & Denver School of the Arts Side-by-Side Concert
Adams City High School, 7200 Quebec Parkway, Commerce City
Adams City High School
Sunday, December 09, 2012, 2:30pm – 5:00pm
DYAO December Concert
Bunker Auditorium, 924 16th St, Golden
Colorado School of Mines
Denver Philharmonic Orchestra
With its 2012/2013 season, the Denver Philharmonic Orchestra (DPO) celebrates 65 years of providing high-quality symphonic concerts and outreach.
This community orchestra was founded in 1948 as the Denver Businessmen’s Orchestra by Dr. Antonia Brico, an internationally acclaimed musician, conductor and teacher. The two major issues driving establishment of the orchestra were a need for affordable classical music concerts in the Denver area and the need for an organization that would nurture, develop and showcase the talents of classically trained musicians, many of whom had relocated to Denver following World War II. The orchestra quickly became known for its ambitious collaborations and performances. It was also recognized as an excellent orchestra for area amateur and professional musicians to hone and display their musicianship. In 1968, to honor its founder, the name of the orchestra was changed to the Brico Symphony, and the tradition of musical excellence and community service continued.
Adam Flatt was appointed the orchestra’s fourth music director/conductor in June, 2010. Mr. Flatt first led the DPO as guest conductor in May, 2009. Everywhere he works, Adam brings a warm and engaging stage presence, rigorous music making, and a tireless artistic advocacy. He has been making music in Denver since 2001 when Marin Alsop invited him to join the Colorado Symphony as associate conductor. During his five-year tenure he conducted over 250 performances with the orchestra. He also served an acclaimed seven year tenure as music director of the Denver Young Artists Orchestra, and has led many productions for Emerald City Opera in Steamboat Springs. Adam began his tenure as music director of Colorado Ballet in 2007 and has now led hundreds of performances with the company.
Friday December 14, 2012
HOLIDAY CONCERT, 7:30 pm at KPOF Hall
Adam Flatt, conductor
Emily Levin, harp
HERBERT: March of the Toys from Babes in Toyland
TCHAIKOVSKY: March from Suite Nr. 1
MOZART: Three German Dances
PIERNÉ: Morceau de Concert for Harp and Orchestra
KUZMA: A World Premiere holiday piece for harp and orchestra!
Deck The Hall
Around The World At Christmastime
GOULD: Skiers’ Waltz
I Wonder As I Wander
Stille Nacht
MANCINI: Carol for Another Christmas
O Holy Night: Medley Sing Along
Joy To The World: Medley
Colorado Wind Ensemble
“What is a wind ensemble? Think of it as a “wind orchestra” – the orchestral wind and percussion sections with added “color” instruments from the concert band, such as saxophones and euphonium. A wind ensemble is much like a traditional concert band, but each musician plays more as a soloist within a large group rather than as one member of a large section playing the same part. The Colorado Wind Ensemble’s mission is to provide opportunities for musicians to create, and audiences to experience, exceptional live performances of wind ensemble music. Over seventy-five percent of the CWE’s musicians have degrees in music, over forty percent have advanced music degrees, and over fifty percent make their living in music fields. The CWE is the only wind ensemble in the metro area outside of academia.
“We perform music from all eras and for groups of all sizes, including Renaissance ensembles, Baroque works, classical chamber pieces, marches, military and symphonic band works, and contemporary compositions that use all combinations of wind instruments imaginable. From Bach to Holst, Stravinsky to Schwantner, we love the challenge, excitement, and pleasure of playing diverse music of all kinds.
The CWE is in its 30th season. We are led by conductor and musical director Matthew J. Roeder, DMA. Dr. Roeder is also the associate director of bands at the University of Colorado at Boulder.”
“Making Merry”
Saturday, December 15, 2012 – 7:30 p.m.
Littleton United Methodist Church, 5894 South Datura Street, Littleton, CO 80120
Max DiJulio – For Uncommon Valor
Jaromir Weinberger/Bainum – Polka and Fugue from Schwanda the Bagpiper
Alfred Reed, arr. – Greensleeves
Leroy Anderson – A Christmas Festival
Vincent Persichetti – Divertimento
Soper – No Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen
Reed – Russian Christmas Music
The Colorado Chamber Players
The Colorado Chamber Players is celebrating their 19th year in Colorado. This is a rare group of individuals, all of whom are world-class performers, and all of whom have established, beyond a doubt, that Denver has become a genuine center for the musical arts in the Rocky Mountain Region.
Paul Primus, Violinist; Margaret Soper Gutierrez, Violinist; Barbara Hamilton-Primus, Artistic Director & Viola; Judith McIntyre, Cellist; Susan Cahill, Double Bass; Andrew Cooperstock, Piano; Nanette Shannon, Pianist; Paul Nagem, Flutist; Daniel Silver, Clarinetist; Lisa Brende Martin, Oboist; Masakazu Ito, Guitarist; and Mare Trevathan, Actor. The newest member of the organization is the violinist Margaret Soper Gutierrez, and in a press release the CCP states:
“We are delighted to announce the appointment of Margaret Soper Gutierrez as a core artist with the CCP. An avid chamber musician, Margaret was a member of the Maia Quartet, the faculty Quartet-in-Residence at the University of Iowa. Margaret has served on the faculty of CU/Boulder, and currently is adjunct faculty at the University of Northern Colorado. She plays frequently with the Colorado Symphony and with the Colorado Ballet Orchestra. She served as concertmaster of the Washington Bach Consort and the Baltimore Opera Orchestra and performed regularly as a soloist and chamber musician on concert series at the National Gallery of Art, the Holocaust Memorial Museum and the National Cathedral.”
The Colorado Chamber Players is participating in a very important and singular event: the performance of all 83 string quartets by Franz Joseph Haydn. Please read the paragraph below for all of the details of this major event, and please follow the link in the last sentence of the paragraph. The concerts of the Haydn Quartets will be given throughout the 2012 – 2013 concert season. This is truly something that cannot be missed, and it is also something that is seldom done in any other major city in the world.
The Haydn Quartet Slam is a joyful collaborative project taking place in Colorado from September 2012 to September 2013, with performances of all 83 string quartets by Franz Josef Haydn. Cultural partners include the Colorado Symphony Orchestra, Colorado Chamber Players, Friends of Chamber Music, Colorado School of Mines and Denver Eclectic Concerts, along with 30 community partners. The CCP will present Haydn in London in March 2013; Haydn at the Opera in May 2013; Effervescence: Haydn and Johann Tost in September 2013; and a theatre/chamber music piece about Haydn and George Washington called Revolutionary Times in February 2013 and April 2013. Go to https://www.facebook.com/HaydnQuartetSlam201213 for complete information.
Boulder Bach Festival
The mission of the Boulder Bach Festival is to celebrate the music of Johann Sebastian Bach by providing high quality performances and educational opportunities that will not only satisfy those who already love Bach’s music, but will also introduce Bach’s music to others.
It is the vision of the Boulder Bach Festival board of directors that the BBF be the premier festival in the Rocky Mountain Region dedicated to the propagation of the legacy of Johann Sebastian Bach.
The Boulder Bach Festival offers a concentrated series of concerts, symposia, and educational events each spring, focused on the music of Johann Sebastian Bach, arguably the greatest composer of Western music, augmented by a number of outreach concerts and other events for youth, seniors and various community groups throughout the year. The Festival features prominent artists from the region as well as nationally recognized Bach virtuosos. The high quality of the performances has built the outstanding reputation of the Festival and placed it among the top festivals of its kind in the state and nation.
Friday, December 14, 2012, 2:30 PM
Bach in the Community – Friday Afternoon Concert and Art Show
Sponsored by the Longmont Arts Council
Longmont Senior Center
901 Longs Peak Avenue, Longmont
Boulder Bach Festival Chamber Choir
Gregg Cannady, chorus master; Susan Olenwine, piano
Tickets ($8) are available for sale at the door.
Boulder Symphony
Maestro Devin Patrick Hughes
The 2012-13 Season: A Symphonic Universe features audience choice concerts, with all your favorite classical masterworks featuring Czech, French, German and American music to John Denver. The Boulder Symphony continues to present multiple world premieres throughout the year, highlight local and emerging talents in the realms of composition and performance, and serves as a stage where musicians of all different backgrounds and ages come together to make music for the greater community. We look forward to joining you for our music-making this season!
The Boulder Symphony, originally founded in September 1992 as the Boulder Community Orchestra and Timberline Symphony shortly thereafter, recently moved its home base to the First Presbyterian Church in Boulder to commence its 2010 – 2011 inaugural concert season. In only its third season back in Boulder, the Symphony has already become a musical staple of the regional community, sharing its passion for music though thrilling and critically acclaimed performances, world premieres, education and outreach throughout the greater Boulder and Denver metro areas. The world premiere of composer in residence Austin Wintory’s Gray Rain recently won the Boulder Symphony a Global Music Award. The Symphony was also featured in award winning documentarian Chuck Fryberger’s Song of the Untouchable.
November 30 at 7 PM
Sibelius- Symphony Nr. 5,
Wintory- Double Concerto,
Rebekah Durham, violin and Patrick Sutton, guitar
Grieg- Peer Gynt Suite
December 14, 7:00 PM, and December 15, 3:00 PM Matinee, and 7:00 Evening Performance (Symphony Series-3)
“Glory of Christmas”
First Presbyterian Church of Boulder
A collaboration with the First Presbyterian Church Choirs
Arcangelo Corelli’s Christmas Concert
Other Holiday works
Boulder Chamber Orchestra
The Boulder Chamber Orchestra, conducted by Maestro Bahman Saless, has so many outstanding musicians in it that I have always wondered if they have ever found it necessary to repeat performances three times instead of just two. Usually they perform only two: one in Boulder, and one in Broomfield. Their woodwind section is well-nigh perfect, and truly, all of the rest of the orchestra is as well. This November they are hosting pianist, Aldo Ragone, from Rome, Italy. I have heard him perform many times, both as soloist, and with an orchestra. It has not been announced what will be on the program that evening, but I urge you to attend.
Their December 14 and December 15 programs will be memorable as well because they feature the Boulder Chamber Orchestra’s outstanding flautist, Cobus du Toit. And, if that weren’t enough, ask yourself when the last time was that you heard the Vivaldi Concerto for Four Violins performed live.
November 28, 2012, 7:30 PM – “A Musical Soirée with Aldo Ragone”
A Mini-Chamber Concert
“Gift of Music”
December 14, 7:30 PM – Broomfield Auditorium
December 15, 7:30 PM – First Congregational Church, Boulder
Special Holiday Concert – Cobus du Toit, flute
Bahman Saless, Music for Handbells and Strings
Handel, Concerto Grosso
Vivaldi, La Notte
Vivaldi, Concerto for 4 Violins
Selection of Holiday Music
Aurora Symphony Orchestra
The ASO is using this concert season to audition a new conductor. For details, click on the link above.
The Aurora Symphony Orchestra was founded in 1978 by local civic leader and musician Alice Lee Main when a young conductor named Gloria Olsen approached her with an idea to start a community orchestra. After a few newspaper articles to attract musicians, the fledgling orchestra — the Aurora Civic Orchestra — began with 15 musicians. Their first public performance was at Bicentennial Park for the AurorArts Festival in 1979. From that modest start, the orchestra steadily grew into Aurora’s only symphony orchestra when it became a non-profit corporation in 1996.
The ASO has given an identity to the community, according to Main. From a 15-member orchestra playing in lunchrooms, to middle school auditoriums, the ASO has come a long way. Over the years, Main has seen the orchestra grow in quality and size, which she contributes to the ASO setting their standards higher every year and continually doing so.
The ASO makes people in the community proud, according to Main. People take pride in good schools, beautiful parks, etc., the ASO is one of those things, Main said.
Holiday Masterworks – “Making Spirits Bright”
Geoffrey Pope, Music Director
Dec 15, 7:30pm – Vista Peak Preparatory Academy
Dec 16, 2:30pm – Gateway Center for the Performing Arts
Borodin: Polovetsian Dances
Palestrina/Stokowski: Adoramus Te
Humperdinck: Dream Pantomime
Bizet/Sarasate: Carmen Fantasy (Elizabeth Dickenson, violin)
Anderson: Sleigh Ride
Augustana Arts
The Matter of Music: Stone
Calling All Dawns by Christopher Tin
Featuring MUSICA SACRA CHAMBER ORCHESTRA, David Rutherford, Music Director
Joined by Fairview High School Music and Kim Robards Dance.
The bedrock of any culture is its sacred scriptures. Christopher Tin has set ancient sacred texts of cultures and religious traditions from around the world in a beautiful and moving song cycle that earned him two Grammy awards in 2010. This concert is a fusion of orchestra, choir, soloists and dance, with settings of texts in Swahili, Japanese, French, English, Polish, Latin, and even Maori. One of the songs, Baba Yetu, is well-known as the theme music for the internationally popular video game Civilization IV, and is the first video game music to win a Grammy. This is contemporary music at its most exciting and relevant in a breathtaking collaboration with MSCO, Fairview High School Music and Kim Robards Dance.
Friday, November 30, 2012 at 7:30pm
Fairview High School
1515 Greenbriar Blvd., Boulder
$15/ $10/ $10/ $8 Purchase Tickets
Saturday, December 1, 2012 at 7:30pm
Fairview High School
1515 Greenbriar Blvd., Boulder
$15/ $10/ $10/ $8 Purchase Tickets
Carols & Lullabies Christmas in the Southwest
Featuring KANTOREI, Dick Larson, Artistic Director
Kantorei will go Southwest this holiday season. They will be performing Conrad Susas’ Carols and Lullabies Christmas in the Southwest, a collage of Spanish, Catalonian, Andalucian and Mexican carols accompanied by traditional folk instruments associated with Hispanic carols. Other fantastic and season warming traditional carols and anthems from around the world will be performed in the second half of the concert. There will be something for everyone. You will not want to miss this fabulous annual holiday concert. Mark your calendars to the heart-warming atmosphere of listening to your favorite Christmas tunes and international favorites with your family, friends and neighbors.
Saturday, December 8, 2012 at 7:30pm
Augustana Lutheran Church
5000 E. Alameda Ave., Denver
$20 / $15 / $15 / $8 Purchase Tickets
Ars Nova Singers
The Ars Nova Singers is another chamber ensemble that has made everyone take notice. Thomas Edward Morgan, the artistic director and conductor of the Ars Nova Singers, has a remarkable knack for auditioning and choosing the members of this choir. It is one of the most outstanding chamber choirs in the United States.
“The Artistic Director and Conductor of the Ars Nova Singers has been acknowledged as a leading interpreter of new music in Colorado. Under his leadership, the choir has become one of the premiere ensembles in the region.
“Mr. Morgan received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Music from Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota, and the Master of Music degree in Composition from the University of Colorado. In addition to his work with Ars Nova Singers, he currently serves as Music Director of St. John’s Episcopal Church in Boulder, a position he has held for twenty years. Mr. Morgan studied choral and orchestral conducting with Dale Warland, Helmut Rilling, Giora Bernstein, and has taken master classes with Eric Ericson and Herbert Blomstedt. In addition to his work with Ars Nova, Morgan has assembled and prepared choruses for the Boulder Bach Festival, the Colorado Music Festival, the Colorado MahlerFest, and the Boulder Philharmonic. Recent collaborative efforts include the Colorado premiere of Carol Barnett’s The World Beloved: A Bluegrass Mass with Jake Schepps and Expedition (September, 2010); a production of Prokofiev’s Alexander Nevsky with the Boulder Philharmonic (February, 2008); a critically acclaimed performance of Terry Riley’s Sun Rings with the renowned Kronos Quartet (July, 2006); and an unusual production of Carmina Burana with the Colorado aerial dance company Frequent Flyers. He recently prepared Ars Nova Singers for the Colorado premiere of Osvaldo Golijov’s cantata Oceana, presented in collaboration with the professional chamber orchestra Pro Musica Colorado.”
A Colorado holiday tradition! Celebrate the season with a colorful array of mysterious medieval harmonies, joyous polyphony from the Renaissance, and modern carols, presented with unique Ars Nova flair. Our featured guest instrumentalist is Lucille Reilly on the hammered dulcimer. She is an award- winning performer on the hammered dulcimer and has performed at The Academy of Music in Philadelphia, The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the New Jersey State Council on the Arts, the Philadelphia Folk Festival, the Buell Theater and St. John’s Cathedral in Denver, Westminster Choir College, and others, as well as on numerous concert series.
Midwinter Collage: Christmas with Ars Nova
Friday, Dec. 7, 7:30 PM – St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, 1600 Grant Street, Denver
Saturday, Dec. 8, 7:30 PM – St. John’s Episcopal Church, 1419 Pine Street, Boulder
Friday, Dec. 14, 7:30 PM – St. John’s Episcopal Church, 1419 Pine Street, Boulder
Saturday, Dec. 15 – Bethany Lutheran Church, 4500 E. Hampden Blvd., Denver (2:00 p.m. matinee)
Arapahoe Philharmonic
Arapahoe Philharmonic has a new venue!
Mission Hills Church, 620 Southpark Drive, Littleton, Colorado
Founded in 1954, the Arapahoe Philharmonic is amongst the most long-established of Colorado’s musical resources, presenting concerts nearly every month throughout a fall/winter/spring performance season. Our 2012-2013 season will showcase four exceptional guest conductors, one of which will be chosen to continue the vision set by Maestro Parks and Maestro LaGuardia. Most of the orchestra’s musicians are volunteers, playing for the love of music, though there is a core professional staff to provide performance leadership and ensure the excellence of the product. Repertoire includes the greatest names of classical music, ranging through centuries of master composers, yet not neglecting those of more recent times. In fact, when resources allow, the Philharmonic commissions current composers to write new music for the orchestra. Our geographic base (currently performing at Mission Hills Church just West of Broadway and North of C470 in Littleton) allows music lovers to experience high quality performances without the drudgery and expense of a drive downtown.
In addition to the adult orchestra’s performances, the Philharmonic is very much invested in our future generations, presenting annual children’s concerts and sponsoring the Arapahoe Philharmonic outreach to elementary and middle schools including clinics, concerts coaching and side-by-side workshops. Whether or not they choose a career in music, that they grow and work together toward the collective goal of a concert is important to intellectual and emotional development. With many school districts cutting back on music programs, the outreach programs offer an experience that some would have no other means of exploring. In addition to the youth outreach program, there is also the annual T. Gordon Parks Memorial Collegiate Competition for college age musicians, the winner of which will receive a cash award and be the featured soloist with the Arapahoe Philharmonic on a regular subscription concert.
Friday, December 14th, 2012
Holiday Pops Concert
Mission Hills Church, 620 Southpark Drive, Littleton, Colorado
Time of the concert will be announced
Robin McNeil writes Opus Colorado.
