Of the Heavens - Spiritus Chamber Choir

SPIRITUS CHAMBER CHOIR ANDREA CIONA • ARTISTIC DIRECTOR

OF THE

Saturday 09 December 2023 Sunday 10 December 2023 Christ Church Elbow Park

“Quality attracts — and for lovers of fine choral music, Spiritus Chamber Choir has come to mean refinement, poise and rich expression in choral singing.”

— Calgary Herald

Spiritus Chamber Choir is an internationally award-winning amateur choir founded in 1995, based in Calgary, Canada. Spiritus has been recognized both nationally and internationally for its high-quality performances, musicianship, and unique collaborations. The choir is committed to excellence in choral music, performing for music lovers in Calgary and surrounding areas.

Spiritus has produced five recordings to date. Seven Last Words from the Cross, All the Stars Looked Down, and Vedel: Choir Concertos Nos. 1-12 & Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom are available online.

CHORISTERS SOPRANO

ALTO

TENOR

BASS

Dawn Coulter Kathryn Fraser Anne Heinemeyer Joanna Henry Amanda Hillestad Catherine Lippitt Caitlin O’Connor Sheryl Reinhardt Kim Reinhart

Taylor Berry Kathy Hanna Bri Harvie Anna-Marie Koszarycz Sarah McLean Julia Millen Donna Ruparell Olena Simsek Patti Vaillant

Volodymyr Amiot Michael De Los Santos Boyd Hansen Allan Morgan Paul Newman Ethan Taylor David Thomas Chris Visser

Kyle Canton Joshua Field Bryan Hryciw Brady King Colin Redekop David Schey Bob Serrano Nathan Severson-Baker

ANDREA CIONA ARTISTIC DIRECTOR

Andrea Ciona is a highly regarded conductor, performer, and educator. Having conducted and worked with ensembles around the world, Andrea’s highlights include conducting on the Great Wall of China, adjudicating in Jakarta, Indonesia, and leading a massed ensemble of 1,000+ performers at the Royal Nova Scotia Military Tattoo. Andrea is the founding director of the Rocky Mountain Symphony Chorus and regularly performs with the Symphony. Currently on faculty at Mount Royal University Conservatory of Music, Andrea leads the Advanced Performance Program in Choral Conducting. As the Director of Choirs at Bishop Carroll High School in Calgary, Alberta since 2010, her ensembles have received national and international recognition. Previously, Andrea has served on the faculty at Red Deer College School of Music and worked with Alberta Education on the Provincial Arts Education Curriculum Redesign. In her free time, Andrea loves travelling and exploring the world with her husband and two children.

Andrea holds degrees from the University of British Columbia (B. Mus, Performance & M. Mus, Choral Conducting) and the University of Calgary (B. Ed, Secondary Music).

COLIN REDEKOP ACCOMPANIST

Colin Redekop completed his undergraduate studies in his hometown of Winnipeg, Manitoba. He holds degrees from Southern Seminary (Master of Church Music) and the University of Calgary (Master of Music).

Thunder Bay, and Winnipeg.

A long-time member of the RCCO (Royal Canadian College of Organists), he has served as both Secretary and President of the Calgary Centre, Regional Director, and a member of the 2018 Calgary Organ Festival Steering Committee. As a Travelling Clinician, he presented workshops and recitals in Windsor,

An accomplished church musician, Colin has served congregations in Kentucky, Florida, Manitoba, and Calgary. He is presently an Assistant Organist at Christ Church Elbow Park.

Colin has accompanied numerous Calgary ensembles, including the Calgary Girl’s Choir, the University of Calgary Chorus, the avant-garde choral theater group Artio, and the award-winning choirs of Webber Academy. He is currently the accompanist of both the Spiritus Chamber Choir and the Calgary Renaissance Singers & Players.

GUEST ARTISTS

The Spiritus Chamber Choir is excited to welcome the Spirit Youth Choir in its inaugural performance. This fall saw the debut of this new ensemble for young professionals and pre-professionals in the Calgary area. Operating under the Spiritus umbrella, Spirit is a chamber choir comprised of 13 voices ages 18 and up. This ensemble focuses on advanced choral repertoire spanning from the Medieval era to new commissions through the lens of collaboration, professionalism, and healthy vocal technique. The Spirit Youth Choir is co-directed by Andrea Ciona and Amanda Hillestad.

CHORISTERS Kathleen Ahenda Isabella Duque-Moreno Katie Filson-Lau Macina Ighmouracene Katrina Jabs Aleksia Jensen Rachel Li

Marisa Moore Sarah Neumann Celia Niksic Selen Nsabiyeze Chloe Parker Molly Roberts

AMANDA HILLESTAD CO-ARTISTIC DIRECTOR

A graduate of McGill University’s Classical Voice Performance program, Amanda Hillestad has performed as The Queen in The Queen, The Bear, and The Bumblebee at the Banff Center and the Taylor Center for Performing Arts. She has also performed in the Mountain View Chamber Music Festival and the Recital Series at the Lougheed House. She has been seen in excerpts and roles with McGill Opera, and McGill Opera Scenes program, as the Sandman and Dew Fairy in Opera McGill’s production of Hänsel und Gretel, as well as Fiordiligi with McGill Opera Excerpts and has recently performed at various venues around Calgary as a classical collaborator as well as a member of the folk/indie trio, Prairie Peaks. She participated in Opera Nuova and returned to work for a tour as Mrs. Henceforth and Telerina in Isaiah Bell’s Mr. Moreover’s Magic. Locally, Amanda has performed with the Calgary Arts Orchestra, VoiceScapes, Classical Revolution Calgary, the Bach Society, Cowtown Opera, Early Music Voices, Mountain View International Song and Chamber Music Festival, Luminous Voices as well as Spiritus Chamber Choir. She is currently also the Choral and Vocal Director at Central Memorial High School’s Performing and Visual Arts Program and is the President of the Southern Alberta National Association for Teachers of Singing.

ANDREA CIONA

CO-ARTISTIC DIRECTOR Andrea Ciona is a highly regarded conductor, performer, and educator. Having conducted and worked with ensembles around the world, Andrea’s highlights include conducting on the Great Wall of China, adjudicating in Jakarta, Indonesia, and leading a massed ensemble of 1,000+ performers at the Royal Nova Scotia Military Tattoo. Andrea is the founding director of the Rocky Mountain Symphony Chorus and regularly performs with the Symphony. Currently on faculty at Mount Royal University Conservatory of Music, Andrea leads the Advanced Performance Program in Choral Conducting. As the Director of Choirs at Bishop Carroll High School in Calgary, Alberta since 2010, her ensembles have received national and international recognition. Previously, Andrea has served on the faculty at Red Deer College School of Music and worked with Alberta Education on the Provincial Arts Education Curriculum Redesign. In her free time, Andrea loves travelling and exploring the world with her husband and two children.

Andrea holds degrees from the University of British Columbia (B. Mus, Performance & M. Mus, Choral Conducting) and the University of Calgary (B. Ed, Secondary Music).

LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT Spiritus Chamber Choir would like to acknowledge that this concert is occurring on the territory of the Niitsitapi, or Blackfoot people, and the peoples of the Treaty 7 region in Southern Alberta. We would like to recognize the Treaty 7 Nations who make their home on this land, including the Siksika, the Piikani, the Kainai, the Tsuut’ina, and the Ĩyãħé Nakoda First Nations, including the Chiniki, Bearspaw, and Wesley First Nations. Spiritus rehearses and performs on land adjacent to where the Bow River meets the Elbow River. The traditional Blackfoot name of this place is Mohkínstsis, which we now call the City of Calgary. This land is also home to the Métis Nation of Alberta, Region III. Spiritus is grateful to the people of Treaty 7 for taking such good care of this land, so that we may enjoy such abundance. We are all treaty people, and we accept the responsibilities that entails.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Spiritus Chamber Choir relies heavily on outside funding and donations in order to produce our concert season and recordings.

Our funding comes from a combination of government grants, foundation grants, and corporate and private sponsors. We thank you all for your patronage. Please consider making a tax-deductible donation to support our ongoing vision of providing Calgary with the finest in choral music.

To donate, find us on CanadaHelps.org or visit spirituschamberchoir.ca.

GRANTING SPONSORS

SPIRITUS STAFF AND BOARD BOARD OF DIRECTORS 2023-2024 Volodymyr Amiot - President Bri Harvie - Vice-President Kevin Di Filippo - Secretary Evan Cortens - Treasurer Katt Hryciw - Director Sarah McLean - Director Allan Morgan - Director WE EXTEND A SPECIAL THANKS TO: Events and Marketing - Nia Devetzis Program Design - Volodymyr Amiot Librarian - Dawn Coulter Assistant Librarian - Joanna Henry Graphic Design and Web Management - Bob Serrano Administrative Support - Bri Harvie ... and an extra-special thank you to our concert volunteers!

CONTACT SPIRITUS CHAMBER CHOIR Email: info@spirituschamberchoir.ca Web: spirituschamberchoir.ca Facebook: Spiritus Chamber Choir Instagram: spirituschamberchoiryyc Twitter: @SpiritusChoir

Saturday, December 9, 2023 at 7:00 pm Sunday, December 10, 2023 at 3:00 pm Christ Church Elbow Park

Agnus Dei: Phoenix Ola Gjeilo (1978-)

Infant Holy, Infant Lowly Polish Carol arr. Daniel Kallman (1956-)

Magnificat Dawn Coulter, soprano Kim Reinhart, soprano

Arvo Pärt (1935-)

A Christmas Carol Zachary Wadsworth (1983-)

Away in a Manger Bri Harvie, alto Catherine Lippitt, soprano

William Kirkpatrick (1838-1921) arr. Ola Gjeilo (1978-)

Aer Enim Xylophone: Andrea Ciona Tambourine: Bryan Hryciw Cymbals: Isabella Duque-Moreno

Linda Kachelmeier (1965-)

Even When He is Silent Kim André Arnesen (1980-)

Kaleidoscope Heart Kathleen Ahenda Aleksia Jensen

Sara Bareilles (1979-) arr. Allison Girvan (1967-)

Flying Flute: Luke Janzen Violin: Isabella Duque-Moreno Cello: Curtis Fok

Rachel DeVore Fogarty (1980-)

INTERMISSION

Seek Him That Maketh the Seven Stars Catherine Lippitt, soprano

Jonathan Dove (1959-)

A Little Brighter Joanna Henry, soprano Brady King, baritone

Kathryn Parrotta (1981-)

O Magnum Mysterium Morten Lauridsen (1943-)

Hark! The Herald Angels Sing Stephen Paulus (1949-2014)

The Holly and the Ivy arr. Ola Gjeilo (1978-)

Coventry Carol Dawn Coulter, soprano

arr. Ola Gjeilo (1978-)

The First Nowell Caitlin O’Connor, soprano

arr. Ola Gjeilo (1978-)

PROGRAM NOTES O Magnum Mysterium Morten Lauridsen “O Magnum Mysterium,” commissioned by Marshall Rutter in honor of his wife, Terry Knowles, has had several thousand performances throughout the world and dozens of recordings since its 1994 premiere by the Los Angeles Master Chorale. I have also arranged the work for solo voice and piano or organ (recorded on Northwest Journey by Jane Thorngren accompanied by the composer), men’s chorus and brass ensemble; H. Robert Reynolds’s stunning adaptation for symphonic winds was recently premiered in Minneapolis by the Thornton Wind Symphony.

For centuries, composers have been inspired by the beautiful “O Magnum Mysterium” text depicting the birth of the new-born King amongst the lowly animals and shepherds. This affirmation of God’s grace to the meek and the adoration of the Blessed Virgin are celebrated in my setting through a quiet song of profound inner joy.

- program note by composer

Seek Him That Maketh the Seven Stars Jonathan Dove “Seek Him that maketh the seven stars and Orion, and turneth the shadow of death into the morning.” (Amos 5:8) “Alleluia, yea, the darkness shineth as the day, the night is light about me.” (Psalm 139) In the words of the composer “The theme of light, and star-light in particular, is an endless source of inspiration for composers. I came across these words about light and stars while looking for a text to set as an anthem for the Royal Academy of Arts’ annual Service for Artists: I thought these images would have a special meaning for visual artists. The anthem begins with a musical image of the night sky, a repeated organ motif of twinkling stars that sets the choir wondering who made them. The refrain ‘Seek Him’ starts in devotional longing but is eventually released into a joyful dance, finally coming to rest in serenity.”

“Seek Him” was commissioned by the Royal Academy of Arts and first performed at St. James’ Piccadilly in May 1995.

A Little Brighter Kathryn Parrotta In the words of the composer: “In December of 2013, our world gained a bright star when we lost Taylor Bell, an incredible student of mine who lost her short battle with cancer. Taylor was truly a shining light — she was a gifted singer-songwriter, a wonderful friend and a beautiful soul taken far too soon from this earth. The only way to comprehend such a great loss was to believe that her light shines on for all of us to see. I was compelled to write ‘A Little Brighter’ in early 2014 and that Christmas it was performed by the Youth Singers of Calgary for Taylor’s family. It is a prayer in remembrance of all of our loved ones, believing that perhaps they were all chosen to be the brightest stars in the sky.”

Agnus Dei: Phoenix Ola Gjeilo Mercy and peace are expressed in Gjeilo’s beautiful “symphonic” setting of “Agnus Dei: Phoenix,” dedicated to the Phoenix Chorale, and Charles Bruffy, conductor.

Gjeilo chose the text not for its literal meaning, but “for its singability and comfortable vowels, which lends itself to long notes and melismas.” The composer envisions this piece as film music “set to pictures and memories from the city and the desert than the musical interpretation of a text.” Melodic chant figures are heard primarily in the soprano voices joined by the first tenors in the closing section. Once again, the text “pacem, peace,” permeates the very quiet E major final chord.

Magnificat Arvo Pärt

Magnificat, the Canticle of Mary, is in the tintinnabuli style invented by the composer himself in the 1970s. Influenced by Pärt’s mystical experiences with chant, this compositional technique takes its name from a word describing the sound of a struck bell. It combines voices homophonically in such a way that one voice outlines simple, scalar melodies, while the other leaps above and below the melodic line, always to notes within the tonic triad. The result is a kind of sonorous tonal reverberation that is always harmonically stable, but full of shimmering dissonances from the melodic voices.

The texture of the Magnificat alternates between two voices and tutti. The pairedvoice passages are strikingly crystalline; in every case, they consist of a single melodic part set against a meditatively repeated note. The tutti sections provide lush contrasts to the delicate voice-pair sections.

The Magnificat contains clear demonstrations of some of the various techniques that Pärt uses to achieve the illusion of the connection of time and timelessness, as well as references to medieval discant and drones. In line with the minimalist philosophy of protracted duration, Pärt’s compositions are designed to appear suspended in time. Towards this objective, Pärt explains: “Time and timelessness are connected.

This instant and eternity are struggling within us. And this is the cause of all of our contradictions, our obstinacy, our narrow-mindedness, our faith and our grief.”

Hark! The Herald Angels Sing Stephen Paulus “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing” is an English Christmas carol that first appeared in 1739 in the collection Hymns and Sacred Poems. The carol, based on Luke 2:14, tells of an angelic chorus singing praises to God. As it is known in the modern era, it features lyrical contributions from Charles Wesley and George Whitefield, two of the founding ministers of Methodism, with music adapted from “Vaterland, in deinen Gauen” from Felix Mendelssohn’s cantata Festgesang. Paulus’ arrangement takes the traditional melody and adds, polyphonic texture and some unconventional harmonies to make this classical carol a joyous experience.

Infant Holy, Infant Lowly Polish Carol, arr. Daniel Kallman “Infant Holy, Infant Lowly” (known in Polish as W Żłobie Leży, or “In the Manger He Lies”) is a traditional Polish Christmas carol. In 1920, the song was translated into English

by Edith Margaret Gellibrand Reed (1885-1933), a British musician and playwright.

Reed found the carol in the hymnal “Spiewniczek Piesni Koscieline” (published 1908), though the song itself may date back as far as the thirteenth century. The Polish text may be attributed to Piotr Skarga (1536-1612).

The song’s rhythm resembles that of the mazurka, a Polish folk dance popularized

by Frédéric Chopin. The short, rhymed phrases lead to a crescendo in each stanza’s final lines: “Christ the babe is lord of all, Christ the babe was born for you!”

This short setting of one of the arranger’s favourite carols was arranged in 1980 for the Eau Claire (WI) Musical Arts Chorale and is sung in English.

A Christmas Carol Zachary Wadsworth Text: from The Wild Knight (1900) by G. K. Chesterton (1874-1936) From the composer: “G. K. Chesterton’s short poem ‘A Christmas Carol’ (1900) sings out with beautiful, complex contradictions. In it, he paints the quietness of a mother spending time with her new child, and he contrasts that scene with references to a worrying world led by violent kings. When I read the poem, it felt more than relevant to the world in which we find ourselves today. And its message, in its final stanza, suggested hope for a world that values quietness, love, and nature. In my five-part choral setting of the poem, I wanted the piece to have a clear and singable melody (it is, after all, a carol), but I also wanted for the harmony to, at times, point to the danger of the world lurking outside the calm of this nativity scene.”

Away in a Manger William Kirkpatrick, arr. Ola Gjeilo “Away in a Manger” is set to a tune more commonly used in England for this hymn.

Incidentally, it has often been erroneously attributed to Martin Luther, but he wrote neither the words nor any of the 41 melodies to which it has been sung. The English version was composed by William J. Kirkpatrick. Gjeilo takes Kirckpatrick’s original melody and accompanies it with lush, acapella harmonies by the choir, and features a soprano soloist.

The Holly and the Ivy arr. Ola Gjeilo “The Holly and the Ivy” is a traditional English carol that first appeared in its modern version in an 1871 collection. The carol dates from at least the 15th century, and the association of holly and ivy—plants that stay miraculously green and fresh even during the coldest weather—with the celebration of the winter solstice is much earlier than that, dating to pre-Christian England.

Coventry Carol arr. Ola Gjeilo The “Coventry Carol” comes from the 15th-century mystery play, the “Pageant of the Shearmen and Tailors.” The oldest known text was written down by Robert Croo in 1534, marked as being “newly corrected.” The oldest known setting of the melody dates from 1591. Gjeilo’s arrangement, in which he treats the haunting melody with a waltz-like accompaniment, deepens the original intention of the carol in the play as it is meant to be a mournful lullaby sung by the mothers in Bethlehem during the Massacre of the Innocents.

The First Nowell arr. Ola Gjeilo The modern text and tune of “The First Nowell” first appear together in William Sandy’s 1833 collection, “Christmas Carols, Ancient and Modern.” The editors of “The New Oxford Book of Carols,” Hugh Keyte and Andrew Parrott, speculate that some odd aspects of the tune, such as “the three virtually identical statements of the same phrase…and the fact that all three strains cadence on the third degree of the scale (rather than on the tonic)” suggest that perhaps someone’s faulty memory of the melody may have become confused with some harmony parts and eventually transmogrified into the version we know today. Gjeilo takes on this arrangement with his trademark sweeping harmonies and glorious descants.

Kaleidoscope Heart Sara Bareilles arr. Allison Girvan As the title suggests, “Kaleidoscope Heart” is a metaphor for the ever-changing beauty and diversity of the heart and soul. This is the introductory song on Sara Bareilles’ 3rd album, of the same name. Bareilles stated on her website the reason behind the album’s title: “I picked out the name of the record months before I even finished writing the songs. I love the imagery of those words, and they’re really representative of how I envision my heart. It’s a colourful but fragmented, everchanging sum of all the bits and pieces that make it up. A kaleidoscope is the tool that helps make sense of the mess. Or at least makes it nice to look at.”

Flying Rachel DeVore Fogarty The text, a beautiful and very personal statement about the joys of flight, comes to us from one of the most important figures of the 20th century, the first woman to fly across the Atlantic Ocean, Amelia Mary Earhart. As it opens, it paints a picture for the reader, and in turn the musicians and their audience: “After midnight the moon set and I was alone with the stars.” There is plenty of space in this work, which mirrors the world pilots inhabit – a seemingly endless sky. Regular rising and falling of the line mimic a plane exploring that sky created with rests and caesuras.

Aer Enim Linda Kachelmeier “Aer Enim” was originally conceived as the final movement to a set of three pieces based on Hildegard von Bingen chants. The other movements are “O Vis Aeternitatis” and “O Rubor Sanguinis”. Hildegard von Bingen has been called by her admirers “one of the most important figures in the history of the Middle Ages.” Today we think of Hildegard as one of the first identifiable composers in the history of Western music. She became a nun at the age of fifteen and later founded a convent at Bingen.

Accounts written in her lifetime describe an extraordinary accomplished woman: a visionary, a prophet, and a pioneer who wrote books on biology, botany, medicine, theology and the arts. There is no evidence that her music was ever heard outside her own convent. Ironically, of all her achievements, it is her musical compositions that have stood the test of time. Linda Kachelmeier chose to arrange this particular chant because of its text about air, which is the foundation of all singing.

Even When He is Silent Kim André Arnesen Commissioned by the St. Olaf Festival (Olavsfestdagene) in Trondheim, Norway, this is a work about hope in the darkest time of life. The text was written by a Jew hiding in Cologne, Germany, during World War 2 where the text was found scratched onto a wall. This was an area where, at one point, nine Jewish fugitives hid here for four months without ever being caught. Beautifully melodic, with rich harmonic texture, this is a stunning work.

TEXTS & TRANSLATIONS O Magnum Mysterium Text: Latin O Magnum Mysterium et admirabile sacramentum, ut animalia viderent Dominum natum, jacentem in praesepio!

Beata Virgo, cujus viscera meruerunt portare Dominum Christum.

Alleluia!

O great mystery and wondrous sacrament, that animals should see the new-born Lord, lying in their manger!

Blessed is the Virgin whose womb was worthy to bear the Lord Jesus Christ.

Alleluia!

Agnus Dei: Phoenix Text: Latin Agnus Dei qui tollis peccata mundi, miserere nobis.

Agnus Dei qui tollis peccata mundi peccata mundi, donna nobis pacem.

Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world, have mercy on us.

Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world, grant us peace.

Magnificat Text: Latin Magnificat anima mea Dominum Et exsultavit spiritus meus in Deo salvatore meo Quia respexit humilitatem ancillae suae Ecce enim ex hoc beatam me dicent omnes generationes Quia fecit mihi magna, qui potens est Et sanctum nomen eius Et misericordia eius in progenies et progenies Timentibus eum Fecit potentiam in brachio suo Dispersit superbos mente cordis sui; Deposuit potentes de sede Et exaltavit humiles; Esurientes implevit bonis Et divites dimisit inanes Suscepit Israel puerum suum Recordatus misericordiae suae Sicut locutus est ad patres nostros Abraham et semini eius in saecula

My soul magnifies the Lord And my spirit rejoiced in God, my saviour Because he looked at the humility of his servant For behold, from this all generations will call me blessed Because he did great (things) for me, (he) who is powerful And his holy name And his mercy in progeny and progeny They feared him He made power in his arm He scattered the proud of mind with his heart; He deposed the powerful from their seats And exalted the humble; He filled the hungry with good And he let the rich go empty Israel received his child His mercy was remembered Just as he spoke to our fathers Abraham and his descendants forever

Aer Enim Text: Latin Aer enim volat Et cum omnibus creaturis Officia sia exercet et firmamentum eum sustinet Aer in viribus istitus pascitur

As air flies Attending to all creatures The structure of heaven sustains it And the air is nourished through this unfolding

A LUMINOUS NEW YEAR’S EVE

A Luminous New Year’s Eve returns with the choir singing a stunning array of unaccompanied works that will echo through the hall in reflection and celebration.

Join us at Bella Concert Hall, Calgary 7:30pm, Sunday, December 31, 2023 Tickets from tickets.mru.ca or at the door

This concert, which has become a choral tradition in Calgary, is perfect to share with family and friends.

THE PRINTING HOUSE

SA Opera Development Foundation, a related party to the Calgary Opera Association

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LUMINOUS VOICES

Season

THE CANADIAN CHAMBER CHOIR 3:00pm, Sunday, February 25, 2024 Knox United Church Tickets from tickets.mru.ca or at the door

SA Opera Development Foundation, a related party to the Calgary Opera Association

THE PRINTING HOUSE