2023-24 SEASON
SATURDAY FEBRUARY 24, 2024 7:30 PM
LANGUAGE OF LOVE Meng Concert Hall Clayes Performing Arts Center California State University, Fullerton Members of Pacific Chorale Robert Istad, ARTISTIC DIRECTOR & CONDUCTOR David Clemensen, PIANO Sean Emch, DOUBLE BASS Matthew Smith, DRUM SET
Platinum Season Sponsor
Phillip N. and Mary A. Lyons
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Nature Boy (1947) Eden Ahbez (1908–1995) arr. Paris Rutherford Denean Dyson, SOLOIST
With a Lily in Your Hand (2001) Eric Whitacre (b. 1970) Text by Federico García Lorca (1898–1936) Translation by Jerome Rothenberg
With a lily in your hand I leave you, o my night love! Little widow of my single star I find you. Tamer of dark butterflies! I keep along my way. After a thousand years have gone you’ll see me, o my night love! By the blue footpath, tamer of dark stars, I’ll make my way. Until the universe can fit inside my heart.
Cole Porter in Paris (2022) Cole Porter (1891–1964) arr. Peter L. Mansfield Eleen Hsu-Wentlandt, Sammy Salvador & Michael Fagerstedt, SOLOISTS
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La Vie en Rose (1945) Luis Guglielmi (Louiguy) (1916–1991) Text by Édith Piaf (1915–1963) Stephanie Shepson, SOLOIST
Des yeux qui font baisser les miens, Un rire qui se perd sur sa bouche, Voilà le portrait sans retouche, De l’homme auquel, j’appartiens.
Eyes which make mine look down, A laugh that gets lost on his mouth, Here is the unretouched portrait, Of the man to whom I belong.
REFRAIN: Quand il me prend dans ses bras, Il me parle tout bas Je vois la vie en rose.
REFRAIN: When he takes me in his arms, He speaks to me softly, I see life through rose-colored glasses,
Il me dit des mots d’amour, Des mots de tous les jours Et ça me fait quelque chose.
He tells me words of love, Everyday words And that does something to me!
Il est entré dans mon coeur, Une part de bonheur Dont je connais la cause.
Into my heart has entered A little bit of happiness, Of which I know the cause.
C’est lui pour moi, Moi pour lui dans la vie. Il me l’a dit, l’a juré pour la vie.
It’s him for me, me for him, throughout life. He said it to me, he has sworn it for life!
Et, dès que je l’aperçois, Alors je sens en moi, Mon coeur qui bat.
And as soon as I see him, Then I feel within myself My heart beating.
Des nuits d’amour à ne plus en finir, Un grand bonheur qui prend sa place, Des ennuis des chagrins, des phases, Heureux, heureux à en mourir.
Nights of love that will never end Happiness replaces troubles and sorrows Happy, Happiness to die for!
(REFRAIN)
(REFRAIN)
C’est toi pour moi, Moi pour toi dans la vie. Il me l’a dit, m’a juré pour la vie.
It’s you for me, me for you,throughout life. You said it to me, you’ve sworn it for life!
Et, dès que je l’aperçois, Alors je sens en moi, Mon coeur qui bat.
And as soon as I see you Then I feel within myself My heart beating.
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Les Chansons des Roses (1993) Morten Lauridsen (b. 1943) Text by Rainer Maria Rilke (1865–1926) Translation by Barbara and Erica Muhl David Clemensen, PIANO
EN UNE SEULE FLEUR: C’est pourtant nous qui t’avons proposé de remplir ton calice. Enchantée de cet artifice, ton abondance l’avait osé.
It is we, perhaps, who proposed that you replenish your bloom. Enchanted by this charade, your abundance dared.
Tu étais assez riche, pour devenir cent fois toi même en une seule fleur; c’est l’état de celui qui aime … Mais tu n’a pas pensé ailleurs.
You were rich enough to fulfill yourself a hundred times over in a single flower; such is the state of one who loves… But you never did think otherwise.
CONTRE QUI, ROSE: Contre qui, rose, avez-vous adopté ces épines? Votre joie trop fine vous a-t-elle forcée de devenir cette chose armée?
Against whom, rose, have you assumed these thorns? Is it your too fragile joy that forced you to become this armed thing?
Mais de qui vous protège cette arme exagérée? Combien d’ennemis vous ai-je enlevés qui ne la craignaient point. Au contraire, d’été en automne, vous blessez les soins qu’on vous donne.
But from whom does it protect you, this exaggerated defense? How many enemies have I lifted from you who did not fear it at all? On the contrary, from summer to autumn you wound the affection that is given you.
DE TON RÊVE TROP PLEIN:
De ton rêve trop plein, fleur en dedans nombreuse, mouillée comme une pleureuse, tu te penches sur le matin.
Overflowing with your dream, flower filled with flowers, wet as one who weeps, you bow to the morning.
Tes douces forces qui dorment, dans un désir incertain, développent ces tendres formes entre joues et seins.
Your sweet powers which still are sleeping in misty desire, unfold these tender forms joining cheeks and breasts.
LA ROSE COMPLÈTE:
J’ai une telle conscience de ton être, rose complète, que mon consentement te confond avec mon coeur en fête.
I have such awareness of your being, perfect rose, that my will unites you with my heart in celebration.
Je te respire comme si tu étais, rose, toute la vie, et je me sens l’ami parfait d’une telle amie.
I breathe you in, rose, as if you were all of life, and I feel the perfect friend of a perfect friend.
DIRAIT-ON:
Abandon entouré d’abandon, tendresse touchant aux tendresses… C’est ton intérieur qui sans cesse se caresse, dirait-on;
Abandon surrounding abandon, tenderness touching tenderness… Your oneness endlessly caresses itself, so they say;
se caresse en soi-même, par son propre reflet éclairé. Ainsi tu inventes le thème du Narcisse exaucé.
self-caressing through its own clear reflection. Thus you invent the theme of Narcissus fulfilled.
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Your Song (1970) Elton John (b. 1947) & Bernie Taupin (b. 1950) arr. Mac Huff Sammy Salvador, SOLOIST
INTERMISSION
THANK YOU TO FRAM & JULIE VIRJEE, Pacific Chorale Board Member, for sponsoring tonight’s Donor and Subscriber exclusive intermission reception.
IN CELEBRATION OF LOVE!
Honoring Robert Istad and David Istad Navarro— very special newlyweds January 2024 with love from, Julie and Fram Virjee (Who after 45 years still believe they are newlyweds!)
L-O-V-E (1965) Bert Kaempfert (1923–1980) & Milt Gabler (1911–2001) arr. Kirby Shaw
Fields of Gold (1993) Sting (b. 1951) arr. Greg Jasperse
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The Coolin from Reincarnations, Op. 16 (1940) Samuel Barber (1910–1981) Text by James Stephens (1880–1950)
Come with me, under my coat, And we will drink our fill Of the milk of the white goat, Or wine if it be thy will; And we will talk until Talk is a trouble, too, Out on the side of the hill. And nothing is left to do, But an eye to look into an eye And a hand in a hand to slip, And a sigh to answer a sigh, And a lip to find out a lip. What if the night be black And the air on the mountain chill, Where the goat lies down in her track And all but the fern is still! Stay with me, under my coat, And we will drink our fill Of the milk of the white goat, Out on the side of the hill.
Something in the Way She Moves (1968) James Taylor (b. 1948) Nate Brown, SOLOIST
The Luckiest (2001) Ben Folds (b. 1966) arr. Jim Clements Alan Garcia, SOLOIST
When We Were Young (2015) Adele (b. 1988) & Tobias Jesso Jr. (b. 1985) arr. Ed Lojeski Rebecca Hasquet, SOLOIST
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And So It Goes (1983) Billy Joel (b. 1949) arr. Bob Chilcott Chelsea Chaves & Matthew Kellaway, SOLOISTS
I Will Always Love You (1973) Dolly Parton (b. 1946) Emily Border, SOLOIST
Give Me Your Stars to Hold (2021) Bob Chilcott (b. 1955) Text by Sara Teasdale (1884–1933)
Peace flows into me As the tide to the pool by the shore; It is mine forevermore, It ebbs not back like the sea. I am the pool of blue That worships the vivid sky; My hopes were heaven-high, They are all fulfilled in you. I am the pool of gold When sunset burns and dies, — You are my deepening skies, Give me your stars to hold.
Come What May (1996) David Baerwald (b. 1960) & Kevin Gilbert (1966–1996) arr. Mac Huff Eleen Hsu-Wentlandt & Michael Fagerstedt, SOLOISTS
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ROBERT ISTAD PHILLIP N. AND MARY A. LYONS ARTISTIC DIRECTOR CHAIR
ROBERT ISTAD, a Grammy Award-winning conductor who “fashions fluent and sumptuous readings” (Voice of OC) with his “phenomenal” artistry (Los Angeles Times), was appointed Pacific Chorale’s Artistic Director in 2017. Under his leadership, the chorus continues to expand its reputation for excellence for delivering fresh, thought-provoking interpretations of beloved masterworks, rarely performed gems and newly commissioned pieces. In July 2023, he led Pacific Chorale’s first international tour in seven years, conducting performances at leading venues in Austria, Germany and the United Kingdom. His
artistic impact can be heard on two recent recordings featuring Pacific Chorale, including the 2022 Grammy Award-winning “Mahler’s Eighth Symphony” with the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Gustavo Dudamel on Deutsche Grammophon (2021), for which he prepared the chorus. It won Best Choral Performance and also garnered a Grammy nomination for Best Engineered Album, Classical. Additionally, Istad conducted the Pacific Chorale’s recording “All Things Common: The Music of Tarik O’Regan” released on Yarlung Records (2020). He regularly conducts and collaborates with Pacific Symphony, Berkshire Choral International, and Yarlung Records. His extensive credits also include recording for Sony Classical and guest conducting Long Beach Symphony Orchestra, Bach Collegium San Diego, Musica Angelica Baroque Orchestra, Bath Philharmonia, Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, Tesserae Baroque, and Freies Landesorchester Bayern. Istad has prepared choruses for such renowned conductors as Esa-Pekka Salonen, John Williams, John Mauceri, Keith Lockhart, Nicholas McGegan, Vasilly Sinaisky, Sir Andrew Davis, Bramwell Tovey, Carl St.Clair, Eugene Kohn, Giancarlo Guerrero, Marin Alsop, George Fenton, and Robert Moody. An esteemed educator, Istad is Professor of Music and Director of Choral Studies at California State University, Fullerton, where he was recognized as CSUF’s 2016 Outstanding Professor of the Year. He conducts the University Singers and manages a large graduate conducting program, in addition to teaching courses on conducting and performance practice. Istad, who is on the Executive Board of Directors of Chorus America and serves as Dean of Chorus America’s Conducting Academy, is in demand as guest conductor, lecturer, and clinician.
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PACIFIC CHORALE
The Grammy Award-winning PACIFIC CHORALE, an Orange County “treasure” with a “fresh viewpoint” that “can sing anything you put in front of it with polish, poise and tonal splendor” (Orange County Register), has “risen to national prominence” (Los Angeles Times) since its inception in 1968. Hailed for delivering “thrilling entertainment” (Voice of OC), the resident choir at Segerstrom Center for the Arts is noted for its artistic innovation and commitment to expanding the choral repertoire. It has given world, U.S., and West Coast premieres of more than 40 works, including numerous commissions, by such lauded composers as John Adams, Jake Heggie, James Hopkins, David Lang, Morten Lauridsen, Tarik O'Regan, Karen Thomas, Frank Ticheli, András Gábor Virágh, and Eric Whitacre. In addition to presenting its own concert series each season, Pacific Chorale, led by Artistic Director Robert Istad, enjoys a long-standing partnership with Pacific Symphony, with which the choir made its highly anticipated Carnegie Hall debut in 2018. The chorus also regularly appears
with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, with which it won the 2022 Grammy Award for Best Choral Performance for its contribution to the live recording of “Mahler: Symphony No. 8, ‘Symphony of A Thousand,’” conducted by Gustavo Dudamel, featuring Los Angeles Philharmonic, Los Angeles Children’s Chorus, Los Angeles Master Chorale, National Children’s Chorus and Pacific Chorale. The choir has performed with such leading orchestras as the Boston Symphony, National Symphony, Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra, San Diego Symphony, and Musica Angelica, among others. In addition to receiving national accolades, Pacific Chorale has garnered tremendous international acclaim. In July 2023, the chorus completed its first international tour in seven years with appearances in Austria, Germany and the United Kingdom in collaboration with Bath Philharmonia, Free State Orchestra of Bavaria, and Bournemouth Symphony Chorus and Orchestra. Previous tours have taken the choir to 19 countries in Europe, South America, and Asia, including engagements with the London Symphony, Munich Symphony, L’Orchestre Lamoureux and L’Orchestre de St-Louis-en-l’Île of Paris, National Orchestra of Belgium, China National Symphony, Hong Kong Sinfonietta, Estonian National Symphony, and Orquesta Sinfonica Nacional of Argentina, among others. Deeply committed to making choral music accessible to everyone, the organization has a discography of 14 self-produced recordings and an extensive collection of free digital offerings. Among other artistic highlights, Pacific Chorale’s “The Wayfaring Project,” an original concert film conceived and conducted by Istad and produced during the pandemic, will be streamed through December 1, 2024 on pbssocal.org, kcet.org and the PBS app, reaching audiences around the globe. Pacific Chorale also places significant emphasis on choral music education, providing after-school vocal programs for elementary school students, a choral summer camp for high school students, and an annual community-wide singing event at Segerstrom Center for the Arts. pacificchorale.org PACIFIC CHORALE 9
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PACIFIC CHORALE Robert Istad, Phillip N. and Mary A. Lyons Artistic Director Chair John Alexander, Artistic Director Emeritus Kibsaim Escárcega, Assistant Conductor SOPRANO Rebecca Hasquet, SECTION LEADER
Alexandria Burdick Chelsea Chaves Katy Compton Joslyn Sarshad Sarah Thompson ALTO
Jane Hyun-Jung Shim, SECTION LEADER
Emily Border Denean R. Dyson Eleen Hsu-Wentlandt Stacey Y. Kikkawa Stephanie Shepson TENOR Nicholas Preston, SECTION LEADER ROGER W. JOHNSON MEMORIAL CHAIR
Daniel Alvarez Daniel Coy Babcock Nate Brown Alan Garcia Sammy Salvador
RON GRAY LEGACY CHAIR
BASS Ryan Thomas Antal,
DAVID CLEMENSEN studied at Chapman University and Cal State Fullerton, and holds the Doctor of Musical Arts from USC. He performs throughout Southern California as a solo pianist and accompanist, and teaches in the Classical Voice Conservatory at Orange County School of the Arts. Dr. Clemensen is Music Director at Westminster Presbyterian Church in Ontario, and since 2003 has been the pianist for Pacific Chorale. He may be heard on several of Pacific Chorale’s recordings, including American Voices and The Radio Hour: Choral Music of Jake Heggie. Dr. Clemensen’s compositions have been performed by many choirs throughout the U.S, and he won the American Orff-Schulwerk competition for his William Blake setting The Tyger and the Lamb.
SEAN EMCH is a professional, freelance, multi-instrumentalist from Long Beach California. During the day, he plays and hikes with his children Luca and Remy all around the wilderness areas in Southern California. By night, Sean performs at numerous venues with some of the most talented musicians in the state. As a young man, Sean attended the Orange County High School of the Arts where he studied in the top jazz and classical ensembles. He was also a member of the Pacific Symphony Youth Orchestra. After high school, he quickly found a job with Yamaha Music Education teaching and accompanying young composers. At the same time, he began performing at venues in the Los Angeles and Orange County areas. If he’s not traveling to perform at a luxury wedding, you can find him playing R&B at his main Long Beach venue, Tantalum Restaurant, where he has performed for the last 17 years. Sean currently performs with vocalists Denean Dyson, Adryon De Leon, Rain Bisou, K Emiline, QB Smith, Micaella Landers and the Lucky Devils Band.
SECTION LEADER RON GRAY LEGACY CHAIR
Michael Fagerstedt Matthew Lyon Hazzard Matthew Kellaway Jackson McDonald Fernando Muñoz
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MATTHEW SMITH is a freelance multi-instrumentalist and educator living in Southern California. After he first received his bachelor’s degree in 2012 from CSU Fullerton, Matthew opted to showcase his original music through distinct outlets. One of the resulting projects, themattsmithneujazztrio, has recorded three full-length records;
his other project, JUICEBOX, has recorded two. Since then, Matthew has gained a Master of Music in jazz drum set from California Institute of the Arts in 2019, where he was honored to record his original compositions at Capitol Records for the 29th and 30th Annual CalArts Jazz CDs. In 2022 Matthew expanded his career as an educator by accepting a part-time faculty position as jazz and commercial drum set instructor at Saddleback College. Matthew has additional experience as a teaching artist with Americorps, where he taught middle school and high school age students music fundamentals, music business and music appreciation. Matthew has also hosted clinics at major
universities including CSUF, Sonoma State University, and Sacramento State University. These clinics taught college-level music students the skills needed to be a successful artist in the musical landscape of the 21st century including promotion, composition, and maintaining a working band (tours, client management, leading rehearsals, and developing a group image). Matthew is fortunate to have his own handful of private students and to pass on the musical gifts he learned from many notable instructors including Joe La Barbera, Swapan Chaudhuri, Randy Gloss, Bill Cunliffe, Joey Sellars and Duncan Moore. All of which have shaped Matthew’s musical phrasing, compositions and sound.
LEARN MORE ABOUT THIS EVENING’S SOLOISTS!
CHELSEA CHAVES
REBECCA HASQUET
EMILY BORDER
DENEAN DYSON
ELEEN HSUWENTLANDT
STEPHANIE SHEPSON
SOPRANO
SOPRANO
SOPRANO
MEZZO-SOPRANO
MEZZO-SOPRANO
MEZZO-SOPRANO
NATE BROWN
ALAN GARCIA
SAMMY SALVADOR
MICHAEL FAGERSTEDT
MATTHEW KELLAWAY
TENOR
TENOR
TENOR
BASS
BASS
VISIT PACIFICCHORALE.ORG/MEET-THE-SOLOISTS-LANGUAGE-OF-LOVE
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ABOUT THE PROGRAM By JOHN KOEGEL Professor of Musicology, California State University, Fullerton
Tonight’s Pacific Chorale concert celebrates love in all its complications and complexities. Although the works sung in this performance represent widely ranging musical styles and poetic sources, they all reflect on the different aspects of love: from the discovery of first love, to the joys of committed love, to the heartbreak and loss of love and reconciliation, and finally to enduring, eternal love. The songs are presented in this order to illustrate the progression of the stages of love. Tonight’s concert also functions like a classical song cycle, and although the music of the individual pieces is written in very different musical idioms by different composers, as in a song cycle they are thematically unified in their exploration of the entire range of emotions connected to love. The poetry that underpins the four classically oriented works composed by Morten Lauridsen, Eric Whitacre, Samuel Barber, and Bob Chilcott is by such luminaries as Rainer Maria Rilke, Federico García Lorca, James Stephens, and Sara Teasdale. The lyrics to the popular songs—written by famous artists such as Cole Porter, Dolly Parton, Edith Piaf, and James Taylor—also demonstrate
the changing facets of love. A number of the popular songs sung in choral arrangement tonight are by songwriters of decades past or of the recent past—Porter, Eden Ahbez, Billy Joel, Elton John, and Sting—some of whom are still composing today. Their themes are eternal and their work emblematic of their times; their songs speak to us as vividly today as they did when first written. Adele and Ben Folds— the contemporary singersongwriters on the program—also address the different aspects of love. Tonight’s concert also features the songs of beloved singers of the past whose memory, voices, and songs are still with us today, especially Nat King Cole and Edith Piaf.
spirit and proto-hippy, dedicated his song to the Nature Boys group of California vegetarian followers of the back-to-nature movement of the 1930s and 1940s. The lyrics and melody transcend that original association and assume a universal theme and appeal.
Because of the large number of songs performed tonight, these notes focus on a selection of the most iconic popular songs and the classical pieces, especially as they fit into our song cycle program about the varying phases of love.
Eric Whitacre’s lovely a cappella song “With a Lily in Your Hand” from his Three Flower Songs sets the poem “Curva” (Curve) from the Suite de agua (Water Suite) by Federico García Lorca, one of Spain’s greatest poets. Lorca evokes the search for a transcendent, ideal love in the heavenly stars, and the lily is a symbol of desired love: “I leave you with a lily in your hand/ Love of my night!/Little widow of my star I have found you.” Whitacre alternates lyrical melodic sections given to the highest voice, with vital, sharp rhythmic interjections by the full choir on the syllable “la” and crunchy dissonances on accented beats.
The rhyming couplet “The greatest thing you’ll ever learn/Is just to love and be loved in return” in Eden Ahbez’s (George Aberle) famous song “Nature Boy” sets the stage for the lesson of discovering the importance of love. Ahbez’s song was a huge hit in its original 1947 recording by Nat King Cole and in Cole’s frequent live performances thereafter—it was also recorded by many other artists. Ahbez, a free
Cole Porter’s famous “I Love Paris” from his musical Can-Can (1953) represents the realization of the love of place—in this case the French capital. Porter’s song has had a long life separate from its original source and has been interpreted in diverse musical styles by many artists, including Bing Crosby, Etta James, Ella Fitzgerald, and Frank Sinatra. Most singers include the original verse, “Every time I look
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down on this timeless town/Whether blue or gray be her skies…,” in their performances, although the memorable refrain receives the main emphasis: “I love Paris in the spring time/I love Paris in the fall/I love Paris in the summer when it sizzles/I love Paris in the winter when it drizzles/I love Paris every moment/ Every moment of the year.” The first statement of the refrain in the minor key might suggest Paris in winter and the second statement in the parallel major key the city in the spring when it is reborn.
many French poems in addition to much German poetry. The composer creates a grand-scale arch form connecting the five movements, with a recurrence of musical ideas presented in one movement heard in another. The impetus for the composition of the entire set was the composition of “Dirait-on,” which although it was written first is placed last in the group. With its melodic style and repeated refrain, “Dirait, dirait-on,” the song suggests the French chanson populaire repertory performed by Edith Piaf and other French singers.
French singer Edith Piaf was known as the “Little Sparrow” because of her diminutive height and aura of fragility. Her famous “La vie en rose” (1946) is one of her signature songs, for which she wrote the lyrics and Louiguy (Louis Guglielmi) composed the music. Piaf sings of the discovery of and reflection upon ordinary-yet-extraordinary love in the words uttered by her lover, and how happiness has entered her heart. The song made a world-wide impact and artists as different as Louis Armstrong, Bing Crosby, Grace Jones, Michael Bublé, Iggy Pop, and Madonna have performed their own memorable versions of the song, although none have superseded Piaf’s rendition.
Describing Rilke’s poetry, musicologist Byron Adams quotes William H. Gass, who describes how “roses climb his [Rilke’s] life as if he were their trellis.” Adams also explains how “in his Les chansons des roses, Lauridsen translates the poet’s love for roses into rapturous music that entwines its way throughout the trellis of the listener’s memory.”
The longest work on the program and its highpoint is Morten Lauridsen’s frequently performed set of five interrelated songs, the Neo-Romantic Les Chansons des Roses (The Songs of the Roses, 1993), which presents the image of the rose as the figure of a beloved woman. Les Chansons des Roses reflects the great love Lauridsen has for the poetry of German poet Rainer Marie Rilke, who wrote
The second half of the program opens with Burt Kaempfert and Milt Gabler’s popular light-hearted, swinging song “L-O-V-E” from 1965: “L is for the way you look at me./O is for the only one I see./V is very, very extraordinary./E is even more than anyone that you adore can. […],” made famous by Nat King Cole. It is followed by Sting’s “Fields of Gold” (1993), an introspective song about the beauties of deeply committed, long-term love: “You’ll remember me when the west wind moves/Upon the fields of barley/You’ll forget the sun in his jealous sky/As we walk in fields of gold.” “The Coolin” from the 1918 collection Reincarnations by Irish
poet James Stephens was set by American composer Samuel Barber in 1940 as the last number in his collection of three songs, also called Reincarnations. In his poetry collection Stephens reworked the poems of several early Irish poets writing in Gaelic. According to Stephens: “The word coolin or cooleen refers to a little, very special curl that used to grow exactly in the middle of the back of the neck of a girl. That term, ‘little curl’ or ‘cooleen’ came to mean one’s sweetheart.” The theme of Stephens’s and Barber’s “The Coolin” is not one of young love, but rather of mature love, a love almost extinguished. Stephens “sought to represent that state which is almost entirely a condition of dream wherein the passion of love has almost overreached itself and is sinking into a motionless languor.” Barber was an expert at providing sensitive musical settings to poetry, and he commented on his method: “[When] I am writing music for words, then I immerse myself in those words, and I let the music flow out of them.” We hear this sensitivity to poetic imagery in his beautiful musical setting of Stephens’s “The Coolin.” So many current and recent popular songs examine the complexities of love and its various stages. The love songs of singer-songwriters Billy Joel, Ben Folds, Adele, and Dolly Parton reach large audiences and four of their songs stand out in particular. The lyrics to Joel’s 1983 hymn-like “And So It Goes” are comprised of eightsyllable lines in iambic tetrameter (short-long, short-long, short-long, short-long): “In every heart there is a room/A sanctuary safe and strong/
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To heal the wounds from lovers past/ Until a new one comes along.” In composing “And So It Goes,” Joel was said to have been influenced by the old British traditional ballad “Barbara Allen,” collected by folklorist Francis James Child. His song is also strongly reminiscent in poetic meter and melodic shape of English composer Hubert Parry’s famous hymn setting “Jerusalem,” with words by poet William Blake, which is also in eight-syllable iambic tetrameter: “And did those feet in ancient time/Walk upon England’s mountains green/And was the holy Lamb of God/On England’s pleasant pastures seen. Folds’s “The Luckiest” from 2000, Adele’s “When We Were Young” from 2015, and Dolly Parton’s “I
Will Always Love You” from 1973 all address different stages of love. Folds emphasizes how lucky one is to have a deep love, even if words cannot adequately express the depth of that love. Adele’s song of remembrance tinged with loneliness also expresses a fear of aging and remarks at the quick passage of time suggested in the song’s title. Dolly Parton’s early ballad “I Will Always Love You” bids farewell to a loved one and emphasizes that the joys and pains of love will remain even after their departure. The penultimate work on the program, Give Me Your Stars to Hold, is Bob Chilcott’s gorgeous, sensitive setting of Sara Teasdale’s poem “Peace.” Chilcott’s music and Teasdale’s poetry both emphasize a
mature, fulfilled love, burnished by the passage of time: “My hopes were heaven-high,/They are all fulfilled in you./I am the pool of gold/When sunset burns and dies,—/You are my deepening skies,/Give me your stars to hold.” Chilcott’s reflective, sensitive musical setting leads directly into the rousing program finale, the well-known song “Come What May” from director Baz Luhrmann’s 2001 film Moulin Rouge!, starring Nicole Kidman and Ewan McGregor: “Come what may […] I love you until the end of time.” The program thus ends on an emphatic note stressing the strength of an eternal love, bringing our concert and song cycle full circle from the exploratory discovery of the possibilities of love through to the state of enduring, mature love.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR ONGOING LOVE AND SUPPORT OF PACIFIC CHORALE! WHY YOUR SUPPORT MATTERS: You sustain our commitment to delivering exceptional Grammy Award-winning choral performances. Your support funds education programs and outreach initiatives that inspire children and music enthusiasts of all ages. Donate to support the arts and make a heartfelt impact. Every gift matters! hip Sponsors s nitie opportu ! le availab
Contact Thelma Valenzuela, Director of Development at thelma@pacificchorale.org to discuss a partnership today.
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PACIFIC CHORALE’S UPCOMING PERFORMANCES ABOUT THE ARTISTS
ABOUT THE ARTISTS
ALL CONCERTS CONDUCTED BY ROBERT ISTAD
UP NEXT!
THIS SUMMER
Chichester Psalms
Choral Festival
Through emotional prayers, mesmerizing harmonies, and hopeful libretto, experience Sarah Kirkland Snider’s glorious and riveting Mass for the Endangered, followed by Holst’s crystalline Psalm 148 and finally Bernstein’s spirited and dynamic Chichester Psalms.
Community members from throughout Southern California join members of Pacific Chorale onstage for this free annual concert, featuring Joseph Haydn’s Mass in Time of War. Singer registration will open in May; tickets available starting early July!
SATURDAY, JUNE 1, 2024
SUNDAY, AUGUST 11, 2024
GUEST APPEARANCES WITH PACIFIC SYMPHONY LA BOHÈME APRIL 4, 6 and 9, 2024
BEETHOVEN’S NINTH JUNE 6-9, 2024
TICKETS AVAILABLE NOW! (714) 662-2345 pacificchorale.org
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PACIFIC CHORALE DONORS Pacific Chorale gratefully acknowledges the following donors for their generous contributions since November 2022. These contributions enable Pacific Chorale to continue serving the community with performances of the highest artistic quality, and providing exceptional educational programs designed to continue the tradition of choral artistry in Orange County.
GIFTS OF DISTINCTION We gratefully acknowledge the following donors, whose total gifts are in excess of $1 million, for their exceptional generosity and commitment to the success of the nationally recognized Pacific Chorale. William J. Gillespie*
$100,000 AND ABOVE Phillip N. and Mary A. Lyons Lenora Meister and Salt-Away Products, Inc. Vina Williams* and Tom Slattery Charles and Ling Zhang $25,000 TO $99,999 Hans and Valerie Imhof John and Lori Loftus Trish O’Donnell $10,000 TO $24,999 Mary Ester Blakley Karl and Marilyn Forsstrom Janice Johnson James and Karen McBride Dennis and Marcía O’Hern Thomas and Bonnie Pridonoff Loraine Reed
$5,000 TO $9,999 Mike Andrews Nels and Andrea Klyver Peter and Bonnie Kremer Chris and Susan Lindley Kenneth and Carla Neeld
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Phillip N. and Mary A. Lyons
Deborah Pasarow $2,500 TO $4,999 Brian D. Bates, CPA Margaret Gates Kathryn Gibson Tom and Anne Henley Kirsten and Craig Springer Diane Stovall Dr. Robert M. Stroup Dr. Deborah Then and Prof. George Foster C. Arthur Wardner Peter and Martha Wetzel Jun Yao and Barbara Wang $1,000 TO $2,499 John Alexander Brien Amspoker and Ellen Breitman Chris and Susan Anderson Terry and Phyllis Clark Stan Dendinger Judi Elterman Dr. Robert and Christine Emmons John Forsyte and Michele Moe-Forsyte Diana Hensley Mark and Donna Hoover Lynne and Mike Istad
Lenora Meister
Donna Janes Eileen Jeanette Jan Landstrom Nancy Lyons Deb Matsumoto John and Elaine McClintic Robert and Christie Narver Pat and Craig Newton Dr. Andrei Novac and Dr. Bonita Jaros Coy Purkey and Lacye Martini Robert E. Romney Richard Stein Michael Sumuel Fram and Julie Virjee Li Hong Wang and Christopher Zhao Karen Zfaty Charles Zhao $100 TO $999 Karen and Christopher Ahola Mark E. Aldrich Dennis Aigner and Camille Bertolet Ryan and Adrianna Antal Thomas and Joyce Antal Steve and Jennifer Baker Marleena Barber Cynthia Barnett Wanlyn Bejach Margaret and Kenneth Blair
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Carl and Regina Blankenorn Patrick Brien Andrew and Michelle Brouwer Andrew Brown and Karen Hogle Brown Jeff Brown John and Kay Brown Alice Browne Marshall Bull Margie Carrigan John and Marcia Cashion Joseph and Julie Chien Denise B. Chilcote Ronald Clark Irene Cohn Kathy J. Cook John and Denise Corcoran Logan Crow Douglas and Rosalie Cruz Marjorie Davis Charles and Darlette Dexter Jerry and Kathy Dunlap Denean R. Dyson Robert and Elaine Elliott Howard and Janet Emery Phil and Jan Enns Norm Evangelista David and Jacline Evered Richard H. and Sharon Fair David Falconer Rosemary P. Fennell Brooks Firestone Larry Gates Carol Gentry Rhona Gewelber David and Rebecca Gibbons James and Sharon Givens Edward Gutierrez Peter Hahn William D. and Bonnie Brittain Hall Maria Hall-Brown Michael and Janet Hards William Helm Gil Ibarra Dr. Robert Istad and David Navarro Drew and Katherine Jacobs Mary Beth Johnson Audrey D. Kapelinski Barbara Kingsbury
Curtis and Varla Knauss Tommie Kozlov Jonathan Krauss Dr. John and Patricia Lamb Wayne Langford Mary and Bill Langsdorf Randi W. Larsen Kim Le Patricia Liu Laura A. Long Tiffany Ana Lopez Barbara Macurda Amira Mansour Dale Marquis Goran Matijasevic James and Becky McGaugh Dr. William C. and Lynn McMaster Joyce Medford Jeanette Moon Jerry and Betsy* Moulton Jim Murphy Harish Murthy Alexander Nelson Tricia Nichols Mark J. Nielsen Jean Oelrich Ann Peralta Dorothy A. Peralta Tina and Chris Peterson Joan S. Petty Sandy Possehl Dr. Kathleen and Nicholas Preston Donald Rabe Nina Rahe Ryan Ratcliff George H. I. Reiss Casey and Naomi Reitz Thomas Ringland Kathryn Ryan P. A. Sefton Stan Sholik and Linda Wells Sholik Carol Smith Wendy Sobeski Tracy Steele Diana Stonecipher Peter and Mary Tennyson Gary and Marjie Toops Nancy C. Untener
Thelma Valenzuela Edmund Velasco Ruthanne Walker Rice Todd and Kris Ward Terri Wedell Dorothy Whitham Amanda and Andrew Whiting Debora Wondercheck Janice V. Workman Mr. and Mrs. Richard Zevnik GOVERNMENT, CORPORATE & FOUNDATION SUPPORT $25,000 AND ABOVE Anonymous The Capital Group Salt-Away Products, Inc The Segerstrom Foundation $10,000 TO $24,999 California Arts Council National Endowment for the Arts $5,000 TO $9,999 Lon V. Smith Foundation $1,000 TO $4,999 American Feel Young Chorus City of Costa Mesa Colburn Foundation Newport Beach Cultural Arts Commission Robert & Doreen Marshall Fund of the Orange County Community Foundation Technology Innovation & Civilization Foundation $100 TO $999 The Kroger Co. Renaissance Charitable Foundation, Inc.
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ENDOWMENT FUND
ENCORE SOCIETY
IN-KIND GIFTS
Contributions to Pacific Chorale’s Endowment Fund are invested in perpetuity. The interest generated from the Endowment helps to provide the Chorale with long-term financial stability. The Chorale is delighted to acknowledge its generous Endowment Fund donors. We are deeply grateful to them for their belief and investment in the organization’s future.
The Encore Society recognizes and honors those who have included Pacific Chorale as part of their estate planning. Pacific Chorale gratefully acknowledges the following benefactors for their visionary support, ensuring the preservation of quality choral music and education.
Pacific Chorale wishes to thank the following business and individuals for their generous in-kind donations of goods and services over the last year.
Anonymous
Avenue of the Arts Hotel
COMMITMENTS OF $1,000,000+
Mark E. Aldrich
William J. Gillespie* Phillip N. and Mary A. Lyons, Artistic Director Chair
John Alexander Percy Brotherton* Dr. and Mrs. Thomas C. Campbell Phyllis and Terry Clark
COMMITMENTS OF $100,000 & UP
Warren Coy
Ron Gray*
Jacline R. Evered
James and Karen McBride
Roger and Geri Gibb*
Vina and Barry Williams*
Ron Gray*
COMMITMENTS OF $50,000 & UP
George Hatchard*
Mike Andrews Janice Johnson
George W. Haas* Tom and Anne Henley Mark and Donna Hoover
in memory of Roger W. Johnson
Dennis L. Houser
John* and Jan Landstrom
Michael and Susan Jacobs
John* and Elizabeth Stahr
Barbara Kingsbury John* and Jan Landstrom
COMMITMENTS OF $25,000 & UP
Randi W. Larsen
Marilyn and Tom Nielsen
Phillip N. and Mary A. Lyons
George H. I. Reiss
Karen M. and James S. McBride
COMMITMENTS OF $10,000 & UP
Jeanette Moon
Wells Fargo Bank Greg and MarJane* Christofferson Dr. Edward and Mrs. Helen Shanbrom* in memory of David Lee Shanbrom
Richard Messenger Thomas C. Moore Trust* Ann and Steve Morris Betsy* and Jerry Moulton Patricia Newton Elizabeth Pearson
COMMITMENTS OF $5,000 & UP
Sandy and Val Policky
Anne B. Nutt
Thomas A. and Bonnie J. Pridonoff
COMMITMENTS OF $1,000 & UP Michael Carroll Dr. James* and Yuko Kawai Dunning Margaret Gates Michael and Eleanor Gordon John and Lori Loftus Dennis V. Menke Richard Messenger Richard McNeil Jeanette Moon Donna Morse
Loraine Reed George H. I. Reiss Ron Rudderow Jane Shepherd Susan Van Wig Martha and Peter Wetzel Vina Williams* * deceased
Aquarium of the Pacific ARTime BARRO Capital Genealogy City Club LA DAOU Winery Home Chef Barbara Kingsbury Long Beach Symphony Lumiere Skyn Carla and Kenneth Neeld Newport Beach Film Festival Nico’s Restaurant Ra Yoga Studios Rancho Capistrano Winery Segerstrom Center for the Arts Silver Trumpet Restaurant & Bar South Coast Plaza STARK Fitness The Tea House on Los Rios Trim Fitness Studio
GIFTS IN MEMORY OF BETSY MOULTON Mary Bacon Deborah Butera Cosette Ctvrtlik Barbara Hintz Steven Klein Randi Larsen Phillip N. and Mary A. Lyons Chris Newman Peter and Martha Wetzel
Very special care has been given to the preparation of donor listings. This list is current as of January 30, 2024. We deeply regret any errors and omissions, and appreciate your phone call to Pacific Chorale at (714) 662-2345 or email to Thelma@PacificChorale.org with needed corrections. Thank you for your support of Pacific Chorale.
If you have already remembered Pacific Chorale in your estate plan, or are interested in doing so, please contact us at (714) 662-2345. All inquiries will be strictly confidential.
Carl and Susan St.Clair in celebration of Cole Carsan St.Clair
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PACIFIC CHORALE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
PACIFIC CHORALE PERSONNEL
Volunteer Administration Barbara Kingsbury
Craig Springer, BOARD CHAIR
Robert Istad
Ryan Ratcliff ARTISTS’ COUNCIL PRESIDENT
Executive Committee Amanda Whiting
John Alexander
VICE CHAIR
Susan Lindley SECRETARY
Brian D. Bates, CPA TREASURER
Mary A. Lyons Thomas A. Pridonoff IMMEDIATE PAST CHAIR
Directors Brian D. Bates, CPA David Bunker Christopher Lindley Rick McNeil Marcia O’Hern Stephane Quinn Ryan Ratcliff ARTISTS’ COUNCIL REPRESENTATIVE Michael Vantrease Julie Virjee Li Hong Wang Distinguished Emeritus Directors Mary A. Lyons, CHAIR EMERITUS Michael J. Carroll Stanley Cochran Bonnie Brittain Hall Janice M. Johnson Karen Johnson Jan Landstrom Marcus Lussier Thomas H. Nielsen Anne B. Nutt George Reiss Elizabeth D. Stahr
ARTISTIC DIRECTOR & CONDUCTOR ARTISTIC DIRECTOR EMERITUS
Administration Alex Nelson VICE PRESIDENT, ARTISTIC PRODUCTION & OPERATIONS
Abby Manaye CONTROLLER
HISTORIAN
Consultants & Support Ad Lib Communications, Libby Huebner Arts Laureate Aram Barsamian LANGUAGE COACH Molly Buzick Pontin, DMA Studio Fuse
Ryan McSweeney DIRECTOR OF PATRON SERVICES
Natalie Hunter DIRECTOR OF MARKETING
Thelma Valenzuela DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT
Michaela Teissere ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT
Artistic Staff Kibsaim Escárcega ASSISTANT CONDUCTOR
David Clemensen, DMA COLLABORATIVE PIANIST
Rebecca Hasquet SOPRANO SECTION LEADER
Jane Hyun-Jung Shim ALTO SECTION LEADER
Nicholas Preston TENOR SECTION LEADER
Ryan Thomas Antal BASS SECTION LEADER
Rose Taylor PROGRAM MANAGER
Robert Brader TEACHING ARTIST
Tomas Kaco TEACHING ARTIST
Grace Park TEACHING ARTIST
www.PacificChorale.org MISSION STATEMENT We inspire our community through artistry and innovation in choral music performances and education programs. PACIFIC CHORALE 3303 Harbor Blvd., Suite E5 Costa Mesa, CA 92626 (714) 662-2345 ContactUs@PacificChorale.org Pacific Chorale is a member of Arts Orange County and Chorus America.
PACIFIC CHORALE 19
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Sylvia A. Alva PRESIDENT,
CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY, FULLERTON
Amir H. Dabirian PROVOST AND VICE PRESIDENT FOR ACADEMIC AFFAIRS (INTERIM)
Dean’s Office Arnold Holland, EdD DEAN
Dave Mickey ASSOCIATE DEAN
Christopher Johnson BUDGET COORDINATOR
Jade Jewett VISUAL ARTS SPECIAL PROJECTS
Michael Sanchez IT LEARNING EXPERIENCE DESIGNER
Heather Guzman ASSISTANT TO THE DEANS
Alexander Porter
VICE PRESIDENT, ADMINISTRATION AND FINANCE/CFO
David Forgues VICE PRESIDENT, HUMAN RESOURCES, DIVERSITY & INCLUSION
Rommel Hidalgo VICE PRESIDENT, INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY Tonantzin Oseguera VICE PRESIDENT, STUDENT AFFAIRS Gregory J. Saks VICE PRESIDENT, UNIVERSITY ADVANCEMENT
Chairs and Directors Dr. Randall Goldberg DIRECTOR, SCHOOL OF MUSIC Michelle Murillo CHAIR, DEPARTMENT OF VISUAL ARTS Kathryn Wilson CHAIR, DEPARTMENT OF THEATRE & DANCE Jennifer Frias DIRECTOR, NICHOLAS &
Marketing & Patron Services Julie Bussell
LEE BEGOVICH GALLERY
Jason Pano
John Spiak DIRECTOR,
GRAND CENTRAL ART CENTER - SANTA ANA
University Advancement, College of the Arts Dominic Mumolo SENIOR DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT
Ann Steichen
DIRECTOR
Stephanie Tancredi BOX OFFICE MANAGER
Heather Richards-Siddons
MARKETING & COMMUNICATIONS SPECIALIST
Alvin Chiu GRAPHIC DESIGNER SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGIST
College of the Arts Production Office Michael August PRODUCTION MANAGER
Charlotte Bouck AUDITION COORDINATOR AND PRODUCTION ASSISTANT
DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT
Haley Sanford DEVELOPMENT COORDINATOR
Pacific Chorale Choral Camp AT CAL STATE FULLERTON
JUNE 10-14, 2024
IN U ! YO E E N SE JU
For High School Students Grades 8-12
20 PACIFIC CHORALE
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