Hold Fast to Dreams Program

RIDER UNIVERSITY

Westminster Choir College

Hold Fast to Dreams WESTMINSTER CHOIR James Jordan, conductor Gregory Stout, piano Jason Vodicka, organ Thursday, May 12 Gill Chapel Lawrenceville, New Jersey

Astronauts speak of the “overview effect” — what happens when you see planet earth from space.

This wisdom didn’t come as a surprise. In 1948, English astronomer Fred Hoyle wrote, “Once a photograph of the Earth, taken from the outside, is available, a new idea as powerful as any in history will be let loose.” A new idea: something that trains our energy and attention on wonder not wounding; on awe, not war.

— Fred Hoyle British Astronomer 1948

For innumerable Angels fly out at every touch and his tune is a work of creation.

For at that time malignity ceases and the devils themselves are at peace.

For this time is perceptible to man by a remarkable stillness and serenity of soul.

Section 245 Jubilate Agno Christopher Smart

Photo: NASA (Public Domain)

The musics of this concert are deeply connected to the image on the program cover. The centerpiece, the epic work by American composer Kile Smith – The Consolation of Apollo – focuses on the first time that man saw Earth through his own eyes and not through a satellite image: Christmas Eve 1968. The work uses three text sources, interspersing the reality of the moment with third-century observations of life and existence: »

Metres of Boethius, XXXI adapted By King Alfred the Great (849-899)

»

From The Consolation of Philosophy by Boethius (480-524)

»

The transcripts of the radio transmissions to Mission Control from Astronauts Frank Borman, James Lovell and William Anders.

About this Program I have always believed that there should be a deep thread of human meaning that connects one piece to the other so that the listener leaves a concert with more life understandings than they arrived with. I have also felt that attaching a catchy title onto a collection of pieces where a forced connection is manufactured to create a program legitimacy is deeply dishonest both to the music and most importantly to the audience and the singers. Psychologists and the science of neurology now tells us that neurologically there is a difference between emotions and feelings.

Emotions are akin to a “flash in the pan” quick, cheap effect that stir the neurons in us but disappear almost as quickly as they appear. Neurologists also tell us that the nerve pathway to the feeling part of our brains is much longer for feeling than a quick and somewhat fake emotive response. Translated. Feelings are our “deep dig;” feelings last as sounds remain with us far after they have been heard. Good programming, I have always believed, grows out of a series of thatched together feelings and not “kitchy” titles. I hope that everyone today will leave with gifts of feelings that each of you can then relate to your life and the ones you love, and perhaps, illuminate your life in new and, perhaps, ways you have forgotten.

A warning to the listener! The musical language of Kile Smith is at once distinctly Kile, but Movement 6, is pure Charles Ives. The work is bitonal and at times tritonal that stands in the starkest of contrast so the rest of the work. That section, deeply discordant is used to set the text of Genesis, which the astronauts read at the stroke of midnight as they saw the Earth for the first time. For me, the bi-and tri-tonality seems to paint a deeply moving statement that, perhaps, we as humans inhabiting this beautiful planet have not been faithful to its creation through wars, acts of inhumanity, polluting of the environment and our very eco-system and yes, bringing us to the present day of the acts of inhumanity in Ukraine. Chord clusters are used to paint a respectful and deeply moving setting of the word “Jesus” that was the only word uttered when the capsule turned and the astronauts as humans saw our Earth home for the first time from space! For me, the work ends with an astounding Boethius text: “So thou hast looked upon false happiness first; now draw thy neck from under her yoke: so shall true happiness come into thy soul.”

So, the message is not only of Kile Smith – it is the “almost still” holiness of that image of the Earth from space and the human feelings it causes that threads its way through this program. This image and my thought process connect the program’s music as follows.

Collegium Regale: Magnificat Herbert Howells The brilliance and clarity of that Earth photograph is mirrored in the honest and stunningly beautiful harmonic beauty of Howells. The harmonized chant opening connects the work to all things Medieval, and ends with one of the most moving “doxologies” in all of music. A personal note. When I arrived on campus in 1991 (!) this was the first sound I ever heard – live by the Westminster Choir conducted

by Joe Flummerfelt. I do not think I have ever been so deeply moved in a “feeling” as that Sunday afternoon in Bristol Chapel. So, I dedicate our performance to the memory of Joseph Flummerfelt and all that he has given to this place and all of us.

O Sacrum Convivium Oliver Messiaen How does one capture the still and quiet beauty of the image of the earth perceived in the stillness of space? For me, there is only one piece in all the literature that can connect us into the beauty of a holy stillness. This virtuosic work

by Messiaen captures the essences of a sacred holiness that is common to all faiths.

O Schöne Nacht Johannes Brahms As children, how many times did we all gaze at the moon in the clear quiet beauty of the night and wonder about the moon and stars? Now, because of this Apollo 8 photo we can gaze on our iPhone at this still calm beautiful image of the earth. It seems ironic the melancholy Brahms was able to capture the human place from which we can perceive beauty not only in the night, but something more important. This piece is really, I believe, a chance for us to visit our own beauty and honesty through the musical lines of Brahms that will take us on this night “journey.”

Sure on This Shining Night Morten Lauridsen It is followed by the setting of the James Agee poem by my friend Morten Lauridsen. The connection backward to the Earth photo clearly places us in the seats of Apollo 8. The messages contained in the “shining nights” of our lives are brought to new levels of inwardness with this setting.

Abide Dan Forrest Music and events that affect one deeply is sometimes the stuff that causes one to rethink old ideas and maybe cause one to arrive at another way to view a challenging issue, or even the essences of life itself. I am sure we would all admit that conducting on any level involves the deepest of human challenges.

Part of conducting, I have always felt, is deeply rooted in an interior life that is contemplated and beautifully constructed. And, occasionally, one work appears that can provide deep meaning into the deeply human moving parts that make a conductor. And, every once in a while one encounters a work that deeply alters one’s view of the world and one’s place in it. Abide by Dan Forrest was just such a work. In the Fall of 2015, I was asked by Dan Forrest, to read and record a new work by him, entitled, simply, Abide. The poem he set was by Jake Adam York, who was taken from the world by a stroke in 2012. The poem captures a previously incomprehensible interpretation of the single word of “abide.” So often that word is chained with the words “abide with me.” But when viewed alone, the word abide alone encapsulates many lessons that, if contemplated and observed, can clarify the prismatic nature of what should be reflected by a conductor. Aside from Jake York’s crusade for social justice that runs throughout his poetry, there are such profound implications in his words, that can only be illuminated by a composer of the depth and honesty of a Dan Forrest. His music illuminated for both myself and my choir some compelling human issues. Each time we rehearsed, this work took us on an affirming human journey. And it is the stunning accompaniment that, in a very real way, provides the true meaning of what it means to “abide” in one’s life. And truth be told, Westminster Choir College has truly lived “abide” in its 96year history. We sing this work as a kind of prayer for all of us, alumni and current students to both “abide” and believe in this place.

Hold Fast To Dreams Roger Ames Finally we close with what amounts to a way forward for our beloved school in the poems by Jake Adam York and Langston Hughes. Westminster has “abided” for 96 years, and yes, we have always “Held Fast to Dreams.” We realize that Westminster is only a mere dot on the planet Earth, but this place plays an important part in the beauty of THAT iconic picture of the Earth that is the visual inspiration for this program.

— James Jordan

Program (Please hold applause until the end of each set.)

I Herbert Howells

Magnificat: Collegium Regale

(1892-1983)

Jason Vodicka, organ Dedicated to the Memory of Joseph Flummerfelt

Oliver Messiaen

O Sacrum Convivium!

(1908-1992)

Johannes Brahms

Quartette für vier Solostimmen Nr 7. O schöne Nacht, Op 92, Nr.1

(1883-1897)

Text: G. F. Daumer

PAUSE II The Consolation of Apollo

A Choral Opera Gregory Stout, crotales Adrienne Ostrander, bass drum Phyllis Bitow, bass drum 1.

Thou may’st know, if thou will notice Text: Metres of Boethius, XXXI adapted by King Alfred the Great (849-899) From The Consolation of Philosophy by Boethius (480-524)

Kile Smith (b.1956)

2.

Yes, it’s beautiful Text: The crew of Apollo 8, December 24, 1968 The Astronauts: Frank Borman Kyle St. Sauveur

Joseph Richwein

James Lovell

Jordan Klotz

Gregory Nappa

Benjamin Kirk

William Anders

Victoria Borelli

Marion Jacob

3.

Alexandra Thomas

Wings are mine The Consolation of Philosophy, Book 4, Song 1, Boethius

4.

The Sea of Tranquility

5.

While the bright sun Text: Metres of Boethius, VI

6.

In the beginning

7.

The stars shine Text: Consolation, Book 3, Song 1

INTERMISSION III Morten Lauridsen

Sure On This Shining Night

Text: James Agee Dedicated to Anne Sears

(b. 1943)

IV Music for the Westminster Family Spectemur agendo Abide1

Dan Forrest

(b. 1978)

Text: Jake Adam York

Roger Ames

(1944-1922)

Hold Fast To Dreams2

For Dean Kelly Bidle and Associate Dean Jason Vodicka Text: Langston Hughes Dedicated to the Memory of Roger Ames

1. Recorded by The Same Stream, James Jordan, conductor, on CD The Songs of The Questioner.

2. Recorded by The Same Stream, James Jordan, conductor, on the CD: A Time for Healing: The Music of Roger Ames

Texts and Translations Magnificat My soul doth magnify the Lord: And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour.

For he hath regarded the lowliness of his hand-maiden.

For behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.

For he that is mighty hath magnified me: and holy is his Name.

And his mercy is on them that fear him throughout all generations.

He hath shewn strength with his arm: he hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.

He hath put down the mighty from their seat: and hath exalted the humble and meak.

He hath filled the hungry with good things: and the rich he hath sent empty away.

He rememb’ring his mercy hath holpen his servant Israel: as he promised to our forefathers, Abraham and his seed, forever.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son: and to the Holy Ghost; As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be: world without end.

Amen.

O Sacrum convivium O sacrum convivium,

O sacred banquet,

in quo Christus sumitur;

in which Christ is received,

recolitur memoria

the memory of his Passion

passionis ejus;

is renewed,

mens impletur gratia;

the mind is filled with grace,

et futurae gloriae nobis

and a pledge of future glory

pignus datur.

is given to us.

Alleluia!

Alleluia!

O Schöne Nacht Text: G. F. Daumer O schöne Nacht!

O lovely night!

Am Himmel märchenhaft

In the heavens, the moon

erglänzt der Mond in seiner

gleams magically

ganzen Pracht;

in all its splendour;

um ihn der kleinen Sterne

about it, the sweet comradeship

liebliche Genossenschaft.

of tiny stars.

Es schimmert hell der Tau

The dew glimmers brightly

am grünen Halm;

on the green blades of grass;

mit Macht

with great power,

im Fliederbusche schlägt

the nightingale sings out in the

die Nachtigall;

elder-bush;

Der Knabe schleicht zu seiner

the young man steals quietly

Liebsten sacht –

to his sweetheart –

O schöne Nacht!

O lovely night!

THE CONSOLATION OF APOLLO 1: Thou may’st know, if thou wilt notice from Metres of Boethius, XXXI. Adapted by King Alfred the Great (849-899) from The Consolation of Philosophy by Boethius (480-524), and translated by Walter John Sedgefiled, 1900.

Thou may’st know,

if thou wilt ntice,

That many creatures

of various kinds

Fare over earth

with unlike motions,

With gait and colour

quite diverse,

And aspects also

of endless kinds,

Queer and common.

Some creep and crawl,

With all their body

bound to the ground;

No wings them help;

on feet they walk not,

Nor pace the earth,

as was them appointed.

Some on two feet

fare o’er the ground,

Some are four-footed;

some in flight

Wing ‘neath the clouds.

Yet each creature

Is drooping earthward,

stooping downward,

On the ground looking,

longing for earth.

Man only goeth

of all God’s creatures

With gait upright,

gazing upwards.

This is a token

that he shall turn

His trust and his mind

more up than down,

To the heavens above,

lest he bend his thoughts

Like beasts earthward.

It is not meet

That the mind of a mortal

should remain below

While his face he holdeth

up to heaven.

2. Yes, it’s beautiful The crew of Apollo 8, December 24th, 1968 Borman: How’s that steam pressure, Bill?

Anders: Good.

Lovell: Frank.

Anders: It isn’t even boiling yet. Yes, we just started.

Borman: Here is comes!

Anders: Okay.

Borman: Oh boy!

Lovell: Get a good shot of her?

Borman: Yes, see it?

Lovell: Well, keep the camera there. Keep the camera.

Anders: Here it comes. Here it comes. But you’re not on yet. You got it…you got to do something. Pitch up or yaw.

Borman: Yaw right?

Anders: Yaw right.

Lovell: Oh, Jesus.

Lovell: Houston, Apollo 8.

Anders: Roll her a little bit. Roll her a little bit to the…to the right.

Lovell: Here, you want me to fly it just to come a…

Anders: That one’s got it, the roll. Yes, yes. It’s the roll that’s got it. Roll right, if you can.

Lovell: We’re rolling.

Anders: Come on, gang.

Lovell: We’re going to radial out. Are we…you got her coming up? You see her, Frank?

Borman: Yes, it’s beautiful.

3. Wings are mine The Consolation of Philosophy, Book 4, Song 1. Boethius, trans.

H. R. James, 1897 Wings are mine; above the pole Far aloft I soar.

Clothed with these, my nimble soul Scorns earth’s hated shore, Cleaves the skies upon the wind, Sees the clouds left far behind.

Soon the glowing point she nears, Where the heavens rotate, Follows through the starry spheres Phœbus’ course, or straight Takes for comrade ’mid the stars Saturn cold or glittering Mars; Thus each circling orb explores Through Night’s stole that peers; Then, when all are numbered, soars

Far beyond the spheres, Mounting heaven’s supremest height To the very Fount of light.

There the Sovereign of the world His calm sway maintains; As the globe is onward whirled Guides the chariot reins, And in splendour glittering Reigns the universal King.

Hither if thy wandering feet Find at last a way, Here thy long-lost home thou’lt greet: ‘Dear lost land,’ thou’lt say, ‘Though from thee I’ve wandered wide, Hence I came, here will abide.’

Yet if ever thou art fain Visitant to be Of earth’s gloomy night again, Surely thou wilt see Tyrants whom the nations fear Dwell in hapless exile here.

4. The Sea of Tranquility Anders: Houston.

Lovell: Houston. Go ahead, go ahead.

Mattingly: Loud and clear and an initial look at your systems are good.

Anders: Houston, Apollo 8. Over.

Mattingly: We’ve got a picture, Apollo 8.

Anders: Roger. We’ve got the T…Roger. We’ve got the TV… Lovell: Roll…roll left.

Anders: Huh? Borman: Roll left a little, can you?

Lovell: Yes. Borman: Did he say it was a good picture?

Anders: How’s the picture look, Houston?

Mattingly: Loud and clear.

Anders: The TV look okay?

Mattingly: That’s very good.

Lovell: Welcome from the Moon, Houston.

Borman: And the world.

Mattingly: Thank you.

Anders: Is this our landing site we’re going over now?

Lovell: Yes, this is our landing site right down here.

Anders: We’re now going over our…

Lovell: Approaching our landing site.

Anders: …approaching one of our future landing sites…

Lovell: Right now.

Anders: …selected in this smooth region to…

Lovell: Called the Sea of Tranquility.

5. While the bright sun Metres of Boethius, VI While the bright sun

most clear is beaming,

Gleaming in heaven,

gloom enwrappeth

Over the world

all other bodies;

For their light is nought,

nothing at all,

When set against

the sun’s great brightness.

When softly bloweth

from south and west

The wind ’neath heav’n,

then soon wax

The flowers of the field,

fain to be able.

But the stiff storm-wind,

when it strongly bloweth

From out of the north-east,

how soon it nippeth

The rose’s beauty!

By the northern blast

The spacious ocean

is helpless spurned

Till strongly heaving

it striketh the beach.

Alas, that in the world

nothing weareth

Firm and lasting

long on this earth!

6. In the beginning Borman: Hey, why don’t we start reading that thing, and that would be a good place to end it.

Lovell: No, we’ve got to go into it very nicely. Why don’t we…as we go into sunset…

Anders: Right.

Lovell: …or is it sunrise? This is sunrise, yes. We’re approaching lunar sunrise.

Anders: We are now approaching lunar sunrise, and for all the people

back on Earth, the crew of Apollo 8 has a message that we would like to send to you.

In the beginning, God created the Heaven and the Earth. And the Earth was without form and void, and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters, and God said, Let there be light. And there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good, and God divided the light from the darkness. And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day.

And God said, “Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters. And let it divide the waters from the waters.” And God made the firmament and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament. And it was so. And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day.

And God said, “Let the waters under the Heavens be gathered together into one place.

And let the dry land appear.” And it was so. And God called the dry land Earth. And the gathering together of the waters called he seas. And God saw that it was good.

And from the crew of Apollo 8, we close with good night, good luck, a Merry Christmas and God bless all of you…all of you on the good Earth.

7. The stars shine Consolation, Book 3, Song 1, trans. W. V. Cooper, 1902 The stars shine with more pleasing grace when a storm has ceased to roar and pour down rain. After the morning star has dispersed the shades of night, the day in all its beauty drives its rosy chariot forth. So thou hast looked upon false happiness first; now draw thy neck from under her yoke: so shall true happiness come into thy soul.

Amen.

Sure On This Shining Night Text: James Agee Sure on this shining night Of star made shadows round, Kindness must watch for me This side the ground.

The late year lies down the north.

All is healed, all is health.

High summer holds the earth.

Hearts all whole.

Sure on this shining night I weep for wonder wand’ring far alone Of shadows on the stars.

Abide Text: Jake Adam York Forgive me if I forget with the birdsong and the day’s last glow folding into the hands of the trees, forgive me the few syllables of the autumn crickets, the year’s last firefly winking like a penny in the shoulder’s weeds, if I forget the hour, if I forget the day as the evening star pours out its whiskey over the gravel and asphalt I’ve walked for years alone, if I startle when you put your hand in mine, if I wonder how long your light has taken to reach me here.

Hold Fast to Dreams Text: Langston Hughes Hold fast to dreams For if dreams die Life is a broken-winged bird That cannot fly.

Hold fast to dreams For when dreams go Life is a barren field Frozen with snow

About the Artists “The Gold Standard…”

— American Record Guide In its 102nd year, the Westminster Choir has been at the forefront of American choral music since its founding. The choir is composed of students at Westminster Choir College of Rider University. James Jordan continues the legacy of its founder John Finley Williamson, and conductors, among whom are Elaine Brown, Warren Martin, George Lynn, Joseph Flummerfelt and Joe Miller.

Recent seasons have included concert tours in Beijing, China and Spain, as well as participation in the World Symposium on Choral Music in Barcelona and groundbreaking performances of Julia Wolfe’s Pulitzer Prize winning Anthracite Fields at the historic Roebling WireWorks as part of Westminster’s Transforming Space project. For 42 years it served as the chorus-in-residence for the Spoleto Festival U.S.A. Beginning this summer, the Westminster Choir will move its new “summering home” as the resident choir of the Choral Institute at Oxford. Its base at St. Stephen’s House continues the relationship established by the Westminster Williamson Voices, and it will provide a European home for teaching and concertizing. This relationship completes the vision of Westminster Choir College founder John Finley Williamson to have a presence for Westminster Choir College in Europe.

The Westminster Choir has been recording choral masterworks for nine decades.

American Record Guide wrote about its newest recording, Frank Martin: Mass for Double Choir, “This is gorgeous singing…with perfect blend, intonation, diction, ensemble and musicality.” Noël, a collection of French Christmas music and sacred works, also features Westminster alumna Jennifer Larmore, mezzo-soprano, and organist Ken Cowan. It was the centerpiece of the PRI Radio broadcast Noël – A Christmas from Paris, hosted by Bill McGlaughlin.

Praised by The New York Times for its “full-bodied, incisive singing,” the Westminster Choir also forms the core of the Westminster Symphonic Choir, which has performed and recorded with the leading conductors and orchestras of our time.

Under the direction of its current conductor, James Jordan, the choir continues its rich heritage of performing, touring, recording and most importantly musical leadership in choral music.

WESTMINSTER CHOIR James Jordan, conductor Greg Stout, accompanist Marion Jacob, graduate assistant Hyungbin (Robin) Lim, graduate assistant Adrianna Barnett, West Grove, PA

Michelle Kwok, Hong Kong, China

Zoe Beaton, Palm City, FL

Robert Lapore Jr., Elizabeth, NJ

Samantha Belinski, Yardley, PA

Hyungbin (Robin) Lim, Seoul, South Korea

Azhaneet Blackwell, Trenton, NJ

Anna Matone, Bridgewater, NJ

Katie Blanton, Mansfield, TX

Jordan Mongell, North Andover, MA

Victoria Borrelli, Berlin, NJ

James Moyer, Yardley, PA

Joy Brunson, Newark, DE

Gregory Nappa, Newton, NJ

Haley Califano, Dix Hills, NY

Christopher Palmer, West Chester, PA

Maryrose Canevari, Pawling, NY

Craig Peters, Palmerton, PA

Yusef Collins-Bryant, Frankford, PA

Kyra Pitagno, Stonybrook, NY

Grace Comeau, Bristow, VA

Ashley Reinhardt, Stroudsburg, PA

Skylar Derthick, Camas, WA

Joseph Richwine, Dillsburg, PA

Abigail Flanagan, Scotch Plains, NJ

Kyle St. Sauveur, Simsbury, CT

Claire Fritz, Elizabethtown, PA

Thomas Stella, Plainsboro, NJ

Lucas Heredia, East Brunswick, NJe

Samuel Stephenson, Kaohsiung, Taiwan

Chelsea Holbrook, Quakertown, PA

Sarah Swahlon, Carlisle, PA

Emily Huguenin, Howell, NJ

Alexandra Thomas, State College, PA

Marion Jacob, Bear, DE

Orry Walter, Middleburg, PA

Jordan Klotz, Rochester, NY

Chelsea Warner, Livermore, CA

Tyler-Minseok Kim, Siheung, South Korea

Ruihang Zeng, Shenzhen, China

Benjamin Kirk, Lumberton, NJ

Morgen Zwicharowski, Hagerstown, MD

Summer Rae Kuhns, Anchorage, AK

JAMES JORDAN GRAMMY-nominated conductor James Jordan is recognized and praised throughout the international musical world as one of America’s pre-eminent conductors, recording artists, writers, music psychologists and innovators in choral music. He was described as a “visionary” by The Choral Journal, which cited his book Evoking Sound as a “must read.” His more than 60 books explore both the philosophical and spiritual basis of musicianship, as well as aspects of choral rehearsal teaching and learning, and they are considered to be essential books in the conducting profession.

At Westminster Choir College, where he is professor and senior conductor, he is conductor of the Westminster Choir and the Westminster Symphonic Choir. He was also conductor of the critically acclaimed Westminster Williamson Voices. He is also director of the Westminster Conducting Institute and co-director of the Choral Institute at Oxford (rider.edu/Oxford). He is artistic director and conductor of the professional choral ensemble, The Same Stream (thesamestreamchoir.com). James Jordan has studied with many of the iconic teachers of the 20th and 21st centuries: Elaine Brown, Wilhelm Ehmann, Gail Poch, Janet Yamron, Frauke Haasemann, Joseph Flummerfelt and renowned music psychologist, Edwin Gordon and dance educator Sarah Chapman.

Dr. Jordan also was appointed to the Alexander Buono Academy based in New York City (alexanderbuono.com). As part of their mission, Dr. Jordan has recorded a series of 12 online lectures that review his books dealing with the human aspects of music-making and musicianship. He is featured on the nation’s leading podcast, including Luminous (open.spotify.com/show/3pvHf1hETfUWgaNWgn5WaH).

His extensive discography of 15 recordings with the Westminster Williamson Voices and The Same Stream have garnered wide critical acclaim on both sides of the Atlantic. He is lauded for his interpretative approaches to scores and to the rich sonorities and choral colors he is able to create with the singers he conducts.

Choir and Organ wrote about the GRAMMY-nominated recording Annelies, “Jordan’s instinctive understanding of the score makes this a profound and emotionally charged experience.” 2019-2020 marked the release of three new recordings with him as conductor: Silence into Light with the Westminster Williamson Voices; Songs of the Questioner with The Same Stream featuring the music of Thomas LaVoy, Dan Forrest, Peter Relph and Paul Mealor; and Serenity – The Music of Paul Mealor, also with The Same Stream (thesamestreamchoir.com). The 10 recordings under his direction are available through iTunes and Amazon. His work with The Same Stream can be seen in a video documentary and profile released by J.W. Pepper and can be seen at youtube.com/watch?v=4mBmGbIbIu0. Last year, two recordings were released with The Same Stream: To Hold the Light and A Time for Healing: The Music of Roger Ames on the Spiritum label. Recent recordings with the Westminster Williamson

Voices are Aurora and A Scattered Light in Winter. Both feature groundbreaking performances using choral improvisation. These recordings can be found on major streaming outlets (Spotify, iTunes), in addition to Amazon. They can also be found on giamusic.com/store/gia-choral-works.

As artistic director of The Same Stream, he leads a professional choir that is unlike any other in the world. It was founded upon the principles of a shared choral experience at Westminster Choir College by the members of the GRAMMYnominated Westminster Williamson Voices who wanted to continue to sing together.

To that end, The Same Stream was established to continue the performance ideals of Westminster Choir College using only singers who sang in either Williamson Voices or Westminster Choir. The Same Stream enjoys a staff of resident conductors, composers, accompanists and vocal coaches unique in the choral world, in addition to a comprehensive roster of singers. For a video background on this remarkable ensemble: youtube.com/watch?v=4mBmGbIbIu0&feature=youtu.be.

Dr. Jordan is also the host of a nationally syndicated radio program, Sounds Choral produced at WWFM The Classical Network, which maintains an archive of his past programs on its website, wwfm.org.

James Jordan has long been a passionate advocate of living composers. Many of the works he has shepherded through commission, performance and recordings are by composers James Whitbourn, Jackson Hill, Paul Mealor, Patrick Hawes, William Duckworth, Eric Whitacre, Gerald Custer, Blake Henson, Anthony Maglione, Thomas LaVoy, Cortlandt Matthews, Sam Scheibe, Peter Relph and Roger Ames, and they have found their way into the essential choral canon. He is editor of one of the largest choral music series in the world, the Evoking Sound Choral Series (GIA) that contains over 300 new publications, editions of standard repertoire and innovative editions using Harmonic Immersion Solfege. Complete listings of that series can be found at giamusic.com/store/evoking-sound. He also is the editor of the Westminster Choir College Choral Series, also published by GIA Publications.

Dr. Jordan’s career and publications have been devoted to innovative educational changes in the choral art, which have been embraced around the world. 2020 saw the publication of The Musician’s Empathy: Becoming Another with Jason Max Ferdinand. Dr. Jordan has also recently completed a two landmark texts, which will innovate choral pedagogy: Intonational Solfege, with Kathy Price, and The Essential Anatomy of the Choral Warm-Up: Science, Method and Pedagogy, with Sean McCarther. Dr. Jordan’s books on the choral warm-up and conducting have been published in bi-lingual editions in Mandarin for mainland China conductors and teachers. See giamusic.com/store/ resource/choral-artistry-and-pedagogy-reimagined-vol-1-book-g10155.

His residencies, master classes and guest conducting have taken him throughout the United States, Canada, Europe and Australia, including The University of Arizona, The

University at Buffalo, The University of Aberdeen (Scotland) and The Curtis Institute.

He made his Carnegie Hall debut in 2015, conducting the New York premiere of Paul Mealor’s Stabat Mater. In November 2015, Dr. Jordan conducted the world premiere of Paul Mealor’s First Symphony: Passiontide, in Scotland. Considered to be one of the leading authorities on the music of Arvo Pärt, in 2016, he conducted the Westminster Williamson Voices in the MetLiveArts series at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, performing the virtuosic Kanon Pokajanen by Arvo Pärt.

James Jordan holds a B.M. degree from Susquehanna University, an M.M. in choral conducting from Temple University and a Ph.D. in the psychology of music from Temple University, where he was a Russell Conwell Fellow. James Jordan has been honored as a distinguished alumnus of Temple University, where he has been inducted into the University’s Hall of Fame. In 2016, he received the distinguished alumni medal from Susquehanna University. He was awarded the distinguished Doctor of Music degree by the University of Aberdeen in Scotland in 2014 to honor his artistry and contributions to choral music throughout the world. The University, established in 1485, has awarded degrees throughout its history to only two Americans: Dr. Jordan and Morten Lauridsen. He shares this distinct honor with Gustav Holst, Benjamin Britten and Dame Joan Sutherland.

A complete listing of all of James Jordan’s works and recordings can be found here:

GREGORY STOUT Gregory Stout has been a collaborative pianist with conductor James Jordan since 2017. He is active as a solo vocal and choral accompanist. He serves as accompanist to The Same Stream, Westminster Schola Cantorum, Westminster Williamson Voices and Westminster Symphonic Choir. He also serves as accompanist to the choral ensembles of Ramapo College of New Jersey. Mr. Stout can be heard on the Westminster Williamson Voices recording A Scattered Light in Winter as well as on The Same Stream’s A Time for Healing: The Music of Roger Ames.

He completed the Bachelor of Music in Music Education (choral emphasis) at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, studying piano with Dr. George Kiorpes.

He completed further studies at Westminster Choir College in piano accompanying and vocal coaching as a student of Dr. James Goldsworthy and Dr. J.J. Penna. As an active church musician, he serves as director of music at Flemington United Methodist Church in Flemington, N.J. JASON VODICKA Jason Vodicka is chair and associate Professor of Music Education at Westminster Choir College of Rider University where he teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in music education, mentors student teachers, and teaches summer courses in conducting and choral pedagogy. He is the director of the Westminster High School Vocal Institute, a two-week pre-college music program. Dr. Vodicka is also a member of the faculty of the Choral Institute at Oxford, a joint venture between Westminster Choir College and St. Stephen’s House, a Permanent Private Hall of Oxford University.

Dr. Vodicka is artistic director of the New Jersey MasterChorale and Orchestra, a community music ensemble based in Haddonfield, NJ. Prior to his appointment at Westminster, Dr. Vodicka was Coordinator of Music Education, conductor of the University Chorale, and director of the Summer Choral Institute at Susquehanna University. During that time he also served as music director of the Harrisburg Choral Society and Orchestra, a community-based ensemble founded in 1895.

For nine years, Dr. Vodicka was a vocal music instructor at Pennsbury High School in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. During his tenure, the Pennsbury choirs performed at Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center in New York, toured internationally on four occasions, and received invitations to sing at the Pennsylvania Music Educators Association Annual Conference and the American Choral Directors Association Eastern Division Conference.

Also at Pennsbury, Dr. Vodicka produced and directed ten fully-staged musicals.

His production of Little Shop of Horrors was presented as the closing show at the International Thespian Conference in 2007. For several years, Dr. Vodicka was associate director of the Westminster Musical Theater Workshop and director of the Westminster Middle School Theater Workshop. As a high school student, he appeared in Equity productions at The North Carolina Theatre and toured as Peter Van Daan in The National Theater for Young Audiences’ production of The Diary of Anne Frank.

Dr. Vodicka holds both undergraduate and graduate degrees in music education from Westminster Choir College where he accompanied several of the college’s choirs, and a doctorate in conducting from the University of Georgia where he conducted the Women’s Glee Club and Opera Ensemble. In 2017, he was inducted into the Westminster Choir College Music Education Hall of Fame for his support of the

college and his contributions to the field of music education.

Dr. Vodicka is in frequent demand as a clinician and guest conductor and has conducted honor choirs in Virginia, Pennsylvania, New York, and New Jersey. He has presented at state, regional, and national conferences of the American Choral Directors Association and the National Association for Music Education. He has also presented at the Cultural Diversity in Music Education XV Conference, the Gordon Institute of Music Learning’s International Conference on Music Learning Theory, and the International Conference on the Concepts and Practices of Choral Singing in Lund, Sweden. He will present sessions on choral pedagogy and culturally responsive teaching at the International Society for Music Education World Conference 2022.

Dr. Vodicka’s writing can be found in publications such as Update: Applications of Research in Music Education, The Oxford Handbook of Choral Pedagogy, and the Inside the Choral Rehearsal series, available from GIA Publications. His work with the Palmer Research Group has led to the creation of a grounded Framework for Culturally Relevant and Responsive Music Teaching that will be implemented and studied nation-wide over the course of the next two years through a research grant from the National Association for Music Education.

AKIKO HOSAKI A collaborative pianist and vocal coach, Dr. Akiko Hosaki frequently appears with singers, instrumentalists, and conductors in the New York metropolitan area. She is currently an adjunct assistant professor at Westminster Choir College of Rider University and serves as the head of vocal staff accompanists and coordinator.

During summer, she teaches Westminster’s High School Solo Vocal Artist program as music director. Well-known for her “sensitive playing,” she was the assistant to Dalton Baldwin, legendary collaborative pianist, at Académie internationale d’été de Nice, France, from 2013 until his passing in 2019, and was at Mozarteum Sommerakademie in 2017 and 2018. She was invited to give a master class in Hong Kong in 2016 and 2017.

Dr. Hosaki has collaborated with the Princeton Festival Opera, New Jersey State Opera, Opera North, Castleton Festival, American Boychoir, Princeton Girlchoir, Princeton Symphony Orchestra, Riverside Symphonia and Garden State Philharmonic, among others. In the instrumental world, she has performed at the World Saxophone Congress XIII, Tubonium2 and 3, and she enjoys collaborating in chamber music concerts. She also frequently performs with solo handbell ringer Hyosang Park, as Duo Grazioso.

A native of Osaka, Japan, Dr. Hosaki holds degrees from Musashino Academia Musicae in Japan, Westminster Choir College, and the University of Minnesota.

KILE SMITH The music of GRAMMY®-nominated composer Kile Smith is hailed nationally and internationally for its strong voice, sheer beauty, and “profoundly direct emotional appeal.” He has received commissions from The Crossing, Conspirare, Piffaro, Cincinnati’s Vocal Arts Ensemble, Santa Fe Desert Chorale, Chor Leoni, Helena Symphony, Choral Arts Society of Washington, Lyric Fest, Westminster Choir College, Mendelssohn Club of Philadelphia, Newburyport Chamber Music Festival, the Pennsylvania and iSing Girlchoirs, Choral Arts Washington, Choral Arts Philadelphia, and Gaudete Brass. His music has also been performed by Seraphic Fire, The 24, the Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia, the Sofia Philharmonic, the Grand Rapids and Delaware symphonies, Orchestra 2001, and Network for New Music. His first opera, The Book of Job, co-commissioned by The Crossing and Conspirare, premieres in Austin and Philadelphia in the 2023/24 season.

Gramophone described his Vespers as “spectacular” and Audiophile Audition hailed it as “easily one of the best releases of the year of any type… a crime to pass up.” Ten recordings of his music have been released since 2018.

Orchestras performing his music include the Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia, the Delaware, Grand Rapids, and Jackson (Tenn.) symphonies, the Southeastern Pennsylvania Symphony Orchestra, the Lehigh Valley Chamber Orchestra, the Sofia, Sofia Youth, and Shumen State Philharmonics of Bulgaria, and the Ocean City Pops. He has received grants and fellowships from the Argosy Foundation, the Independence Foundation, Meet the Composer, the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, and the Philadelphia Music Project. Temple University (2011) and Cairn University (2012) have honored him as Alumnus of the Year.

A complete biography, including all works and detailed notes on The Consolation of Apollo can be found here:

ROGER AMES Roger Ames and conductor James Jordan enjoyed an almost 40-year relationship as musical collaborators since their days at the Hartt School of Music. A student of Samuel Barber and Luigi Dallapiccola, Ames collaborated with The Same Stream and Dr. Jordan for the legacy recording of his works, titled A Time for Healing, to be released in the summer of 2022 on the Spiritum label.

Roger Ames was born in Cooperstown, N.Y., the son of a self-taught church organist and first-grade teacher (his free pass to play the organ as a teenager). This and undoubtedly his mother’s 42 years as a teacher helped define his passionate love for creating music, as well as teaching and conducting it.

He wrote numerous large works, both sacred and secular. His Requiem for Our Time, using the poetry of Anne Sexton, has been performed in the United States and abroad, and received its New England premiere by the Boston Chorus Pro Musica in November of 2007. It was recently nominated for the Pulitzer Prize in Music. His opera, How Green is My Valley will be presented in Colorado this Spring.

Ames’ fascination with American folk music and his love for choral music inspired him to write many folk song arrangements, some of which are in the GIA catalog.

His choral fantasy on Amazing Grace was commissioned and premiered by Dr. James Jordan and the Westminster Chapel Choir of Westminster Choir College, and it has been performed by many choirs since it was published in 2004. His collaborations with Dr. Jordan have helped create several books of choral warm-ups and exercises, all published by GIA. He also composed several extended works for chorus, including Let There Be Joy (for cello, harp, and chorus, in 3 movements) and Ancient Songs of the Universe (a rhapsody for piano and chorus).

Roger Ames’ complete bio and output can be accessed here:

Thank You from The Westminster Choir TO STEVE PILKINGTON AND TOM SHELTON To my dear colleagues whose belief in this school has moved us to higher ground TO CHARLES BRUFFY For sharing his gifts with our school TO COREY EVERLY For his diction coaching TO MARION JACOB, SAMUEL STEPHENSON, ROBIN LIM AND ROBERT LAPORE For help with all aspects of this program TO KILE SMITH For his graciousness and for his visit with The Westminster Choir and Westminster Choir College TO LEANDRA ACOSTA AND KRISTEN RODGERS Thank You …Literally for Everything TO JASON VODICKA Thank you for joining us at the organ TO OUR CHERISHED ALUMNI FAMILY Spectemur Agendo TO PAUL VAZQUEZ Thank you for your incredible gifts as recording engineer and sound editor

And the Deepest of Thanks TO JAMES WHITBOURN, KIM ALGEO AND ALL THOSE IN THE RIDER UPPER ADMINISTRATION who willed The Choral Institute at Oxford to continue and for Westminster Choir to have a new summering home

Thanks for all you have done for all of us these past two years

Westminster College of the Arts

2083 Lawrenceville Road Lawrenceville, NJ 08648

R I D E R.E D U/A RT S