Program Notes

Because Tapestry Singers has been committed to programming the works of living composers, it’s only logical to devote a concert to John Rutter who is considered “the most successful and well-known composer of choral music in recent British history.” (BBC Music Magazine) His works are part of the best-known choral repertory, performed around the world. His association with Clare College, Cambridge, first as a student, then as Director of Music, and later as the organizer of the much-recorded Cambridge Singers, has led to international recognition. Reviewer John Quinn attributed the lasting success of Rutter’s music to the fact that he “writes music that people want to perform and to hear.”

The Requiem is deeply personal for Rutter. It bears the dedication “in memoriam L. F. R.” (referring to John Rutter's father, who had died the previous year). Rutter has “an unfailing knack to get to the root of the text [with] exquisitely balanced vocal writing, melting harmonies, intensely sweet turns of phrase.” (The Gramophone Newsletter)

Gloria is one of Rutter’s most ambitious concert works, and its premiere was the occasion for his first visit to the US in May 1974. The Voices of Mel Olson commissioned the work, and the composer conducted the performance by that chorale in its Omaha, NE, home. Rutter himself sees this work as analogous to a symphony, with three movements—allegro vivace, andante, vivace e ritmico—i.e., fast, slow, fast, in common with symphonic practice, and, says Rutter, “exalted, devotional and jubilant by turns.” Gloria represents the second section of the Ordinary, the fixed-form portion of the Latin mass, i.e., the section following the Kyrie, and the Introit, when the latter is used. (Notes used with permission of Naperville Chorus, Naperville, IL.)

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Advertising in the Tapestry Singers program is a great way to support our community and benefit your business at the same time. When you advertise with us by the fall deadline, your ad will be featured in our December and June programs—two concerts each means four different audiences. We draw an audience from the entire mid-coast area and beyond. TapestrySingersMaine.org/support-us/advertise/

Tapestry Singers is a wonderful mix of professional and highly skilled amateur singers. We commit to practicing outside the weekly rehearsals to learn our music using the practice tracks that are provided. We work hard at rehearsals, but also have fun in the process. Check out our website to set up an audition.

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The primary impulse to sing is to express something welling up inside you in a way you yourself enjoy. There’s a deep physiological and psychological impulse to express emotions through language and song. It’s this need that has closet, car and shower singers taking center stage at local karaoke bars. It’s the reason we come together to rehearse on Monday nights.