Robert Blocker, Dean
ysm ensembles
Yale Choral Artists Jeffrey Douma, conductor Saturday, October 27, 2018 | 7:30 pm | Christ Church
Heinrich Schütz 1585–1672
Musikalische Exequien, Op. 7 Teil I: Concert in Form einer teutschen Begräbnis-Missa (Concerto in the form of a German burial Mass) Teil II: Motette “Herr, wenn ich nur dich habe“ (Motet “Lord, if I have but Thee“) Teil III: Canticum Simeonis (Canticle of the blessed Simeon) Elm City Consort Jacob Street, organ Michael Rigsby, viola da gamba Grant Herreid, theorbo
Pause
Herbert Howells 1892–1983
Requiem (1936) 1. Salvator mundi 2. Psalm 23 3. Requiem aeternam I 4. Psalm 121 5. Requiem aeternam II 6. I heard a voice from heaven
Soloists in individual movements are identified by their initials in the Texts and Translations As a courtesy to others, please silence all devices. Photography and recording of any kind is strictly prohibited. Please do not leave the hall during musical selections. Thank you.
Artist Profile Yale Choral Artists The Yale Choral Artists is a professional choir recently founded by the Yale School of Music and the Yale Glee Club to enhance and enrich Yale’s strong commitment to the choral arts. The choir is a project-based ensemble comprised of leading singers from around the country and is directed by School of Music faculty member Jeffrey Douma. Current members of the Choral Artists also perform in the ranks of such acclaimed ensembles as the Trinity Wall Street Choir, Chanticleer, the Handel and Haydn Society Chorus, Voices of Ascension, Seraphic Fire, Conspirare, and many others, and are also leading concert soloists, particularly in the area of early music. The Yale Choral Artists made their debut in an all-Handel program led by guest conductor William Christie at Yale and at Carnegie Hall in February of 2012. They have since performed as a featured ensemble at the International Festival of Arts & Ideas, the Yale International Choral Festival, and the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival, and have appeared in two productions with the renowned Mark Morris Dance Group. Recent projects include a collaboration with the New Haven Symphony Orchestra in a program of Britten and Pärt, an appearance at the New York Philharmonic Biennial, the East Coast premiere of David Lang’s the national anthems, the premiere of Martin Bresnick’s new concert-length oratorio Passions of Bloom: Whitman, Melville, Dickinson, a program pairing Poulenc’s virtuosic cantata Figure humaine with Josquin’s Missa L’homme armé super voces musicales, and the premiere of Paola
Prestini’s The Glass Box with the Young People’s Chorus of New York City. Their 2018 debut recording on the Naxos label of new works by Yale composers Hannah Lash, David Lang, and Ted Hearne with the Yale Philharmonia was reviewed glowingly by Gramophone Magazine and Opera News, where it was hailed as a “Critic’s Choice.” Soprano Arianne Abela Iris-Anna Deckert Molly Netter Molly Quinn Alto Eric S. Brenner Kate Maroney Megan Roth Debi Wong Tenor Colin Britt Noah Horn Jacob Perry Gene Stenger Bass Steven Hrycelak Tian-Hui Ng Tyler Simpson Jonathan Woody
Jeffrey Douma, conductor
Elm City Consort
Since 2003, Jeffrey Douma has served as Director of the Yale Glee Club and Professor of Conducting at the Yale School of Music, where he also serves as Founding Director of the Yale Choral Artists. He has appeared as guest conductor with choruses and orchestras on six continents, and makes frequent domestic and international appearances as a clinician and master teacher. He has prepared choruses for such conductors as William Christie, Valery Gergiev, Neville Marriner, Krzysztof Penderecki, Helmuth Rilling, and Marin Alsop, and has premiered new works by such composers as Jennifer Higdon, Paola Prestini, Ted Hearne, Hannah Lash, David Lang, Martin Bresnick, Dominick Argento, and James Macmillan. He serves as editor of the Yale Glee Club Choral Series and Yale Glee Club New Classics Choral Series, and his original compositions are published by G. Schirmer and Boosey & Hawkes. He holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in conducting from the University of Michigan and a Bachelor of Music degree from Concordia College, Moorhead, MN. He lives in Hamden, CT with his wife, pianist and conductor Erika Schroth, and their two children, Fi and Will.
The Elm City Consort is a communitybased early music ensemble dedicated to exploring some of the lesser known works of the Medieval, Renaissance, and early Baroque repertoire. The core of the ensemble is a viol consort with lute and early keyboard instruments, but the group is frequently joined by vocalists and other guest artists to create innovative, entertaining, and educational programs. As part of its mission to expose audiences to new musical experiences, the Elm City Consort rarely charges admission and relies on donations to support its work. Equally dedicated to helping musicians gain new skills in early music, the Elm City Consort frequently includes students or accomplished musicians from other fields in its performances. Last season, the Elm City Consort produced its first fully-staged operatic work, La lira muta. Âť elmcityconsort.org
Upcoming Events oct 30 The Sebastians Collection of Musical Instruments The Collection’s ensemblein-residence performs works by Baroque and Classical composers. 7:30 p.m. | Collection of Mus. Inst. Tickets $30, Yale staff and seniors and museum associates $25, students $15 oct 31 Lunchtime Chamber Music 12:30 p.m. | Center for British Art Free nov 1 Trombone Studio Recital YSM Ensembles 4:30 p.m. | Sudler Recital Hall Free nov 2-3 Fall Scenes Yale Opera A variety of scenes from beloved comic and tragic operas. 7:30 p.m. | Morse Recital Hall Tickets start at $12, Students $5
nov 4 Dark Horse Consort Collection of Musical Instruments The period-brass ensemble performs music from the early 17th century. 3 p.m. | Collection of Musical Inst. Tickets $30, Yale staff and seniors and museum associates $25, students $15 nov 5 Hannah Lash, composition, and Friends Faculty Artist Series Faculty composer Hannah Lash, with tenor James Taylor, performs her Songs of Imagined Love. 7:30 p.m. | Morse Recital Hall free nov 7 Wei-Yi Yang, piano Horowitz Piano Series Faculty pianist Wei-Yi Yang plays an all-Schumann program that includes Kinderszenen, Kreisleriana, and the Fantasie. 7:30 p.m. | Morse Recital Hall Tickets start at $15, students $7
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Yale Choral Artists “Music of Loss and Hope” Saturday, Oct. 27, 7:30pm Christ Church, New Haven program note Tonight, we sing two of the most moving and beloved funeral works in the choral repertoire, both of which manage to portray the searing pain of loss while also conveying a gentle, radiant sense of hope. Heinrich Schütz, the preeminent German composer of his generation, composed the Musikalische Exequien in 1636 for the burial service of Prince Heinrich Posthumus von Reuß, a nobleman and a patron of the arts whom Schütz seems to have regarded as a personal friend. Reuß was also an accomplished musician in his own right – Schütz saluted him as “You, who like David himself lifted Your voice and turned Your hand to the art of music.” For anyone living in central Europe in 1636, the harsh realities of the Thirty Years’ War and the plague ensured that death was for no one a mere abstraction, and Reuß put considerable time and effort into practical plans for his own burial. He carefully chose a series of scriptural passages and hymn texts to adorn his copper coffin, and it is these texts that Reuß’ widow invited Schütz to set to music. The result was the composer’s only extended funeral work, an ingenious interweaving of old and new. The Exequien is divided into three parts, the first comprising the majority of the piece. As Schütz wrote in the preface to the published edition, Part I is “composed after the manner of a Latin or German missa” (that is, the Kyrie and Gloria), and its proportions and texts closely parallel the first two movements of the Mass Ordinary. The scriptural passages, sung by soloists, alternate with the hymn passages, sung by the full ensemble (or “Capella”). Sublime moments abound: the eloquent alto solo Gehe hin (“Go in, my people, into the chamber, and shut the door behind you”), the lilting and joyful tenor solo Ich weiß, daß mein Erlöser lebt (“I know that my Redeemer lives”), the intricate and expressive counterpoint of the chorale text Ach, wie elend is unser Zeit (“Ah, how wretched is our time”). Part II of the Exequien is a lush double choir motet reminiscent of Gabrieli, with whom Schütz studied for a time in Venice. But it is Part III, originally sung during the burial itself, that many consider to be the most stirring and innovative moment of the piece. The Cappella sings the Canticle of Simeon (“Lord, now let Your servant depart in peace”) while a trio, standing at a distance, sing a passage from Book of Revelation, Selig sind die Toten (“Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord”). Schütz wrote that, in choosing two sopranos and one baritone for the trio, he intended “to introduce and intimate the joy of the disembodied blessed soul in heaven, in the company of heavenly spirits and holy angels.” The two performing groups weave in and out of one another in subtle ways that seem intended to subvert expectation. It was long thought that Herbert Howells, an English composer best known for his contributions to Anglican church repertoire, composed his a cappella Requiem in response to his nine-year old son Michael’s death from polio in 1935, a tragic association seemingly confirmed by the fact that the Requiem remained withheld until 1980, just three years before Howells’ own death. In fact, Howells composed the Requiem for the choir of King’s College, Cambridge in 1932, modeling the work after another requiem by his former teacher Walford Davies. For some reason, it was never sent to King’s College, and went unperformed for decades. We do know that, following the death of his son, Howells sought solace by returning to his Requiem and eventually incorporating much of the music into a large-scale for work for choir, soloists and orchestra, his Hymnus Paradisi, first performed in 1950. The first movement of the Requiem is an entreaty, the Salvator Mundi, and the final movement sets precisely the same text from Revelation that concludes Schütz’ Exequien. These two outer movements frame two psalm settings (23 and 121) and two different settings of the opening lines of the Introit from the Latin Requiem Mass, Requiem aeternam, dona eis, et lux perpetua luceat eis (“Rest eternal grant unto them, And may light perpetual shine upon them”).
The subtlety, individuality, and expressivity of Howells’ melodic and harmonic language are evident in every movement of the Requiem, but it is the two “Requiem aeternam” movements that most vividly capture the experience of grief; passages that evoke warm remembrance are followed by passages of stasis or even numbness, which are followed in turn by passages of almost unbearably poignant dissonance. Something like acceptance arrives in the final movement, as the choir sings - first with cathartic joy, then with warm and gentle acceptance – “they rest for their labours.” --Jeffrey Douma
texts and translations Schütz Musikalische Exequien Part I: Concerto in the form of a German burial Mass [JP, TN, SH] Nacket bin ich von Mutterleibe kommen, nacket werde ich wiederum dahinfahren. Der Herr hat’s gegeben, der Herr hat’s genommen, der Name des Herren sie gelobet. (Capella) Herr Gott, Vater im Himmel, erbarm dich über uns! [ID, MN, GS] Christus ist mein Leben, Sterben ist mein Gewinn. Siehe, das ist Gottes Lamm, das der Welt Sünde trägt. (Capella) Jesu Christe, Gottes Sohn erbarm dich über uns! [DW, JW] Leben wir, so leben wir dem Herren; sterben wir, so sterben wir dem Herren; darum, wir leben therefore, oder sterben so sind wir des Herren. (Capella) Herr Gott, Heiliger Geist erbarm dich über uns
Naked came I out of my mother‘s womb naked shall I return. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away, blessed be the name of the Lord. (Job 1:21) Lord God, Father in heaven, have mercy upon us! Christ is my life To die is gain. Look, this is the Lamb of God, which carries the sin of the world. (Philippians 1:21, John 1:29b) Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy upon us! When we live, we live for the Lord; when we die, we die for the Lord: whether we live or die, we are the Lord‘s. (Romans 14:8) Lord God, Holy Spirit, have mercy upon us!
[JP] Also hat Gott die Welt geliebt, daß er seinen eingebornen Sohn gab, [MQ, AA, EB, NH, CB, TS] auf daß alle, die an ihn gläuben, nicht verloren werden, sondern das ewige Leben haben. (Capella) Er sprach zu seinem lieben Sohn: die Zeit ist hie zu erbarmen; fahr hin, mein‘s Herzens werte Kron, und sei das Heil der Armen, und hilf ihn‘ aus der Sünden Not, erwürg für sie den bittern Tod und laß sie mit dir leben. [ID, JP] Das Blut Jesu Christi, des Sohnes Gottes, machet uns rein von allen Sünden. (Capella) Durch ihn ist uns vergeben die Sünd, geschenkt das Leben. Im Himmel soll‘n wir haben, O Gott, wie große Gaben! [MN, JW] Unser Wandel ist im Himmel, von dannen wir auch warten des Heilandes Jesu Christi, des Herren, welcher unsern nichtigen Leib verklären wird, daß er ähnlich werde seinem verklärten Leibe. (Capella) Es ist allhier ein Jammertal, Angst, Not und Trübsal überall, des Bleibens ist ein kleine Zeit, voller Mühseligkeit, und wer‘s bedenkt, ist immer im Streit. [GS, JP] Wenn eure Sünde gleich blutrot wäre, soll sie doch schneeweiß werden; wenn sie gleich ist wie rosinfarb, soll sie doch wie Wolle werden.
God loved the world so much, that he gave his begotten son, so that all who believed in him would not be lost, but have everlasting life. (John 3:16) He spoke to his beloved Son: now is the time for mercy, go, my heart‘s worthy crown, and be the salvation of the poor and help them from the distress of sin; take upon yourself the bitterness of death and let them live with you. (Martin Luther, 1523) The blood of Jesus Christ, God‘s Son, cleanses us from all sin. (1 John 1:7b) Through Him our sin is forgiven, our life restored. In heaven we shall have, O God, what wondrous benefactions! (Ludwig Helmbold, 1575) Our life is for heaven: from there also we look for the Savior, Lord Jesus Christ: he will transfigure our futile body to become similar to His glorious body. (Philippians 3:20- 21a) Here all around is a vale of tears, need and sorrow everywhere, our stay here is for but a brief time full of hardship, And he who ponders it, is always in disharmony. (Johann Leon, 1582/89) If your sin were as red as blood, it shall be as white as snow, were it red like crimson, it shall be as wool. (Isaiah 1:18b)
(Capella) Sein Wort, sein Tauf, sein Nachtmahl dient wider allen Unfall, der heilge Geist im Glauben lehrt uns darauf vertrauen. [MR] Gehe hin, mein Volk, in deine Kammer und schleuß die Tür nach dir zu! Verbirge dich einen kleinen Augenblick, bis der Zorn vorübergehe. [MQ, KM, SH] Der Gerechten Seelen sind in Gottes Hand, und keine Qual rühret sie an; für den Unverständigen werden sie angesehen, als stürben sie, und ihr Abschied wird für eine Pein gerechnet, und ihr Hinfahren fü r Verderben, aber sie sind in Frieden. [JP] Herr, wenn ich nur dich habe, so frage ich nichts nach Himmel und Erden. [MQ, AA, EB, NH, CB, TS] Wenn mir gleich Leib und Seele verschmacht’, so bist du, Gott, allzeit meines Herzens Trost und mein Teil. (Capella) Er ist das Heil und selig Licht für die Heiden, zu erleuchten, die dich kennen nicht, und zu weiden. Er ist seines Volks Israel der Preis, Ehr, Freud und Wonne. [TS, SH] Unser Leben währet siebenzig Jahr, und wenn’s hoch kömmt, so sind’s achtzig Jahr, und wenn es köstlich gewesen ist, so ist es Müh und Arbeit gewesen. (Capella) Ach, wie elend ist unser Zeit allhier auf dieser Erden, gar bald der Mensch darniederleit, wir müssen alle sterben,
His word, His baptism, His Eucharist serve against all misfortune; belief in the Holy Spirit teaches us to have faith. (Ludwig Helmbold, 1575) Go, my people into your chamber and shut the door behind you! Hide yourself for a little moment until the wrath has passed. (Isaiah 26:20) The souls of the righteous are in the hand of God and no torment shall touch them; in the sight of the unwise they seem to die, and their departure is taken for torment, and their going away from us to be destruction; but they are in peace. (Wisdom of Solomon 3:1-3) Lord. if I have but You, I ask neither for heaven nor earth. And when my body and soul are dying, You, God, are always the comfort of my heart and part of me. (Psalm 73:25-6) He is the salvation and blessed light for the heathen, to enlighten those who don‘t know You and to tend them. He is of His people Israel the prize, honour, joy and delight. (Martin Luther, 1524) We live for about seventy years. and at best for eighty years, and if it was delightful, it was trouble and labour. (Psalm 90:10a) Ah, how wretched is our time here on earth. soon man lies down, as we all must die:
allhier in diesem Jammertal ist Müh und Arbeit überall, auch wenn dir’s wohl gelinget. [GS] Ich weiß, daß mein Erlöser lebt, und er wird mich hernach aus der Erden auferwecken, und werde darnach mit dieser meiner Haut umgeben werden und werde in meinem Fleisch Gott sehen. (Capella) Weil du vom Tod erstanden bist, werd ich im Grab nicht bleiben, mein höchster Trost dein Auffahrt ist, Todsfurcht kannst du vertreiben, denn wo du bist, da komm ich hin, daß ich stets bei dir leb und bin, drum fahr ich hin mit Freuden. [ID, MN, KM, GS, TN, SH] Herr, ich lasse dich nicht, du segnest mich denn. (Capella) Er sprach zu mir: Halt dich an mich, es soll dir itzt gelingen, ich geb mich selber ganz für dich, da will ich für dich ringen. Den Tod verschlingt das Leben mein, mein Unschuld trägt die Sünden dein, da bist du selig worden.
Here, in this vale of tears, is everywhere trouble and labour, even if you prosper. (Johannes Gigas, 1566) I know that my Redeemer lives, and he shall make me then stand up from the earth: and this my skin then shall cover my body and in my flesh I shall see God. (Job 19:25-6) Since You arose from death, I shall not remain in the grave, Your Ascension is my greatest comfort, You can drive away the fear of death, for where You are, I will go too, so that I may live and be with You forever, therefore I die with Joy. (Nikolaus Herman, 1560) Lord, I won’t let You go, except if You bless me. (Genesis, 32:27b) He said to me: Hold on to me, you will succeed; I give myself all for You, and I struggle for you. My life swallows up Death, my innocence bears your sins, and you found salvation. (Martin Luther, 1523)
Part II: Motet (“Lord, if I have but Thee“) Herr, wenn ich nur dich habe, so frage ich nichts nach Himmel und Erden. Wenn mir gleich Leib und Seele verschmacht’, so bist du doch, Gott, allezeit meines Herzens Trost und mein Teil.
Lord, if I have but You I ask neither for heaven nor earth. And when my body and soul are dying, You, God, are always the comfort of my heart and part of me. (Psalm 73:25-6)
Part III: Motet (Canticle of the blessed Simeon) Herr, nun lässest du deinen Diener (Chorus I) in Frieden fahren, wie du gesagt hast. Denn meine Augen haben deinen Heiland gesehen welchen du bereitet hast für allen Völkern, ein Licht, zu erleuchten die Heiden, und zum Preis deines Volks Israel. [ID, MQ, JW] (Seraphim I, II und Beata anima) Selig sind die Toten, die in dem Herren sterben, sie ruhen von ihrer Arbeit, und ihre Werke folgen ihnen nach. Sie sind in der Hand des Herren, und keine Qual rühret sie.
Lord, now Your let Your servant depart in peace, as You said. For my eyes have seen Your salvation which You offered for all people, a light to enlighten all Gentiles, and for the glory of Your people Israel. (Luke 2:29-32) (Seraphim I, II, and soul of the blessed departed) Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord; they rest from their labours, and their works do follow them. They are in the hand of the Lord, and no torment touches them. (after Revelation 14:13 and Wisdom of Solomon 3:1)
Howells Requiem 1. Salvator mundi O saviour of the world, who by thy cross and thy precious blood has redeemed us, save us and help us, we humbly beseech thee, O Lord. [AA, DW, NH] 2. Psalm 23 The Lord is my shepherd: therefore can I lack nothing. He shall feed me in a green pasture: and lead me forth beside the waters of comfort. He shall convert my soul: and bring me forth in the paths of righteousness, for his name’s sake. Yea, though I walk in the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: thy rod and thy staff comfort me. Thou shalt prepare a table before me against them that trouble me: thou hast anointed my head with oil, and my cup shall be full. But thy loving-kindness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. 3. Requiem aeternam (I) Requiem aeternam dona eis. Et lux perpetua luceat eis. Requiem aeternam dona eis, Domine.
Rest eternal grant unto them And may light perpetual shine upon them Rest eternal grant unto them, O Lord.
[JW, GS] 4. Psalm 121 I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills: from whence cometh my help. My help cometh even from the Lord: who hath made heaven and earth. He will not suffer thy foot to be moved: and he that keepeth thee will not sleep. Behold, he that keepeth Israel: shall neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord himself is thy keeper: he is thy defence upon thy right hand. So that the sun shall not burn thee by day: neither the moon by night. The Lord shall preserve thee from all evil: yea, it is even he that shall keep thy soul. The Lord shall preserve thy going out, and thy coming in: from this time forth and for evermore. 5. Requiem aeternam (II) Requiem aeternam dona eis. Et lux perpetua luceat eis. Requiem aeternam dona eis, Domine.
Rest eternal grant unto them And may light perpetual shine upon them Rest eternal grant unto them, O Lord.
[GS, JW, MN] 6. I heard a voice from heaven I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, from henceforth blessed are the dead which die in the Lord: even so saith the Spirit; for they rest from their labours. (Rev. 14:13)
soloists Arianne Abela is Director of Choral Activities at Amherst College. Abela recently served on conducting faculty at Wayne State University in Detroit, MI, and is founder and director of the Detroit Women's Chorus and Detroit Justice Choir, ensembles dedicated to social-justice and community empowerment. She directed Detroit's historic Fort Street Chorale, conducted choirs at University of Michigan, and the UMS Choral Union. Focusing her efforts on community building through song, Abela co-founded The House of Clouds and has worked closely with Musicians Take a Stand to organize over a dozen benefit concerts for charities and various causes across the country. Abela has guest conducted opera productions with various Michigan-based opera companies including Detroit's OperaMODO, and serves as music director for Vancouver-based opera company, Re:Naissance. She has served on faculty at Wesleyan University, Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts, The Westover School and Notre Dame High School in West Haven. In 2012, Abela was featured conducting on NBC's Today Show and was a semi-finalist in Season 8 of America's Got Talent as director of Connecticutbased 3 Penny Chorus and Orchestra. The ensemble later recorded for the soundtrack of Hollywood film Walk of Shame starring Elizabeth Banks. Abela holds degrees from Smith College, Yale University and University of Michigan. She sings professionally in ensembles such as Yale Choral Artists, sounding light, Etherea Vocal Ensemble, Arkora, and Audivi. Eric S. Brenner, countertenor has been called "penetrating," "gorgeous," and "Mr. Roboto." Some recent engagements include: alto and soprano solos in Handel's Messiah at Avery Fisher (Geffen) and Alice Tully Halls; Bernstein's Chichester Psalms at St. Ignatius Loyola and St. John the Divine; Tolomeo in Handel's Giulio Cesare with Opera Roanoke; Riccardo in Scarlatti's Il Trionfo dell'Onore at Symphony Space; alto soloist in all-Purcell program with Apollo's Fire; Telemann's solo soprano cantata Pache Dich with Big Apple Baroque; Doodle in Stefan Weisman's and David Cote's Scarlet Ibis with Prototype. Eric has premiered works by Toby Twining, Hannah Lash, Jessica Meyer, Virko Baley, and Kamala Sankaram, among others. Eric is also co-composer with Matt Shloss of music for Rob Reese's Yahweh's Follies, writes fiction, and persists in being an incorrigible Mets fan. www.ericbrenner.com Colin S. Britt holds a bachelor’s degree in music composition from the Hartt School, a master’s degree in choral conducting from the Yale School of Music, and a doctorate in choral conducting from Rutgers University. He has conducted the Rutgers University Choir, the Hartford Chorale Chamber Singers, the Hartt Choir and Camerata, C4 (The Choral Composer-Conductor Collective), Amuse Singers, and North River Sing. In Fall 2016, he served on the conducting faculty at SUNY New Paltz. His compositions have been performed by ensembles at Rutgers, Westminster Choir College, Hartt, Yale and Seraphic Fire, the Yale Schola Cantorum, the Yale Alumni Chorus, C4, VOCE, the Riverside Choral Society and by ensembles across the country and on four continents. He has performed regularly with Yale Choral Artists, the Tanglewood Festival Chorus, C4, the Greater Middletown Chorale, Con Brio, and Concora. He currently serves as music director for Grace Church Van Vorst in Jersey City, conducts the West Village Chorale in New York City, and directs choirs at Rutgers Preparatory School. Iris-Anna Deckert was born in Straubing Germany. While still young, she received her first voice lessons under Julia Bauer and Ingrid Kessler at the Academy of Church Music in Regensburg. She continued her studies at the Leopold Mozart Conservatory in Augsburg under Dorothea Chryst and graduated there with a degree in Vocal Performance. Further studies followed with Prof. Edith Urbanzcyk at the Hochschule der Künste in Berlin. Private lessons with Jessica Cash in London as well as participation in various international masterclasses completed her musical training. In 1993, Iris-Anna Deckert received a scholarship from the Association of German Theatres. She began working professionally while still a student, singing in various choirs such as the Radio Chamber Choir of Berlin, the Bavarian Radio Choir, and the Stuttgart Chamber Choir. She has been a free-lance performer since 1996 and is in demand internationally as soloist for early music as well as new music. She regularly performs at important European festivals and has many CDs and radio recordings to her credit. Noah Horn serves as Music Director at St. Thomas’s Episcopal Church in New Haven, and also conducts Audivi, a professional vocal ensemble, His past engagements include serving as director of the choral program at Wayne State University in downtown Detroit and of the Oakland Choral Society, a community choir and orchestra, serving on faculty at Wesleyan University as the orchestral director, conducting the professional choirs at Christ Church New Haven, and singing with Conspirare and various other professional ensembles. He holds a DMA in choral conducting from Yale University.
A native of Rochester, NY, bass Steven Hrycelak lives mostly in the worlds of quite early and quite new music, as a soloist and ensemble performer. He is a member of the vocal ensemble Blue Heron, whose latest recording was awarded a Gramophone, making them the first ensemble outside of Europe to win in the early music category. Other recent early music appearances include concerts with Pegasus, NYS Baroque, Publick Musick, and the Green Mountain Project. He is also a member of the Grammy-nominated Choir of Trinity Wall Street, which specializes in both early and contemporary repertoires, and regularly performs with the Antioch Chamber Ensemble, which also focuses on these repertoires. He is an original member of the new music vocal ensemble ekmeles, and has also appeared in The Mile-Long Opera, the MATA Festival, the Baryshnikov Arts Center, Ostrava Days, and with Toby Twining Music, as well as in Matt Marks’ opera Mata Hari for the PROTOTYPE Festival. Additionally, he is a vocal coach/accompanist, for both classical and musical theater performers. Recognized for “vibrant and colorful” singing (The New York Times) mezzo-soprano Kate Maroney’s recent soloist appearances include with Gare St. Lazare throughout Ireland, the international tour of Einstein on the Beach from 2012-2015, the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra, Master Chorale of South Florida, Indianapolis Symphonic Choir, Santa Fe Symphony, Berkshire Choral Festival, TENET, Carmel Bach Festival, Opera Grand Rapids, NYBI at Trinity Wall Street, LA Opera, Lincoln Center Festival, Oregon Bach Festival, Musica Sacra, Bach Collegium San Diego, Princeton Pro Musica, Bach Vespers Holy Trinity, Mark Morris Dance Group, Yale Choral Artists, American Opera Projects, and Clarion. Kate has collaborated with Philip Glass, John Corigliano, David Lang, Martin Bresnick, Julia Wolfe, Missy Mazzoli, Hannah Lash, Nina Young, Dominick Argento, Christopher Cerrone, Daron Hagen, Paola Prestini, and Ted Hearne. She holds a D.M.A. from Eastman, degrees from SUNY Purchase and Yale, teaches at Mannes (The New School), and resides in Brooklyn with musician-husband Red Wierenga. www.katemaroney.com Canadian-American soprano Molly Netter enlivens complex and beautiful music, both old and new, with "clear, beautiful tone and vivacious personality" (The New York Times). This season includes solo engagements with the Grammy-Award-winning Boston Early Music Festival, the Grand Rapids Bach Festival, Apollo's Fire Baroque Orchestra, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, New York Baroque Incorporated, Trinity Wall Street's Times Arrow festival, and the US premiere of a new work for solo voice, cello, and chamber ensemble by David Lang at Carnegie Hall in November. Molly has performed as a soloist with the Choir of Trinity Wall Street (and is a current full-time member), the Clarion Music Society, the Smithsonian Chamber Orchestra, the Albany Symphony, Yale Opera, Heartbeat Opera, and with Juilliard415 at Lincoln Center. Molly has toured internationally with the Triplepoint contemporary/jazz ensemble and as a soloist in Japan, Singapore and Burma under Masaaki Suzuki. She holds a Bachelor of Music degree in composition and contemporary voice from the Oberlin Conservatory and a Master’s degree in early music voice and oratorio from the Yale Institute of Sacred Music where she studied with James Taylor. Between degrees, she taught English in Kyoto, Japan. Praised by critics for his standout performances with his warm and burnished tone (The Straits Times, Singapore), Ng Tian Hui has performed to critical acclaim as a soloist with the Singapore Symphony Orchestra and the Philharmonic Chamber Choir of Singapore. In 2008, he memorably covered for Canadian Baritone, Tyler Duncan when the singer suddenly lost his voice two hours before the scheduled performance of Bacalov's Misa Tango with the Singapore Symphony Orchestra. Currently the Director of Orchestral Activities at Mount Holyoke College, Mr. Ng conducts the Orchestra, and teaches courses in conducting, musicianship, opera and performance practice. He holds a Master of Music degree in Choral Conducting from the Yale School of Music, where he had the opportunity to sing for Marguerite Brooks, Simon Carrington, Jeffrey Douma, Nicholas McGegan, Andrew Megill, Helmuth Rilling and Masaaki Suzuki. An advocate of new music, he has assisted in and premiered new works by Pulitzer and Rome Prize winners such as Curt Cacioppo, Aaron Jay Kernis, Robert Kyr, David Sanford, and Joan Tower, and many young composers. He is particularly proud of his commissioning work, which has helped composers like Chen Zhangyi garner international prizes such as the London Symphony Orchestra Prize. His 2001 direction of Stravinsky’s The Rake’s Progress was praised by the Birmingham Post (UK) for its “high orchestral quality” while his 2014 premiere of Mary D. Watkins’s Civil Rights era opera, Dark River, was critically acclaimed in the United States. ngtianhui.com Jacob Perry Jr. is gaining attention as a young soloist of great musicality and warmth. Born and raised in Silver Spring, Maryland, Jacob has cultivated a passion for a wide variety of music ranging from medieval folk song to the tight harmonies of vocal jazz. He is a core tenor of the soloist-ensemble Les Canards Chantants and the chamber choir The Thirteen. Jacob can be heard singing with The Clarion Choir, Washington Bach Consort, Cathedral Choral Society, ARTEK, and as a featured soloist with Mountainside Baroque and Apollo's Fire. Jacob is a cantor and chorister at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. He earned his B.A. in Vocal Performance from University of Maryland, Baltimore County.
Hailed for her “radiant sweetness” by the New York Times, Molly Quinn has collaborated with notable arts organizations around the globe including The Knights NYC, TENET, Portland Baroque Orchestra, Apollo’s Fire, The Folger Consort, The Bang on a Can AllStars, Trinity Wall Street, Clarion Music Society, Saint Thomas Fifth Avenue, Pacific Baroque Orchestra, North Carolina Baroque Orchestra, Seraphic Fire, Bach Collegium San Diego, and Quicksilver Ensemble. She is a soloist at The Staunton Music Festival, and appears as a featured soloist at The Carmel Bach Festival. Molly has been a soloist in noted international venues including Shostakovich Hall in St Petersburg, Teatro National de Costa Rica, NYUAC Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates, Vancouver’s Chan Centre, San Cristobal Cathedral in Havana, Cuba and the Carmen Alto Convent in Quito, Ecuador. Known for her “rich character portrayals” and “versatile voice,” mezzo-soprano Megan Roth enjoys a varied career performing opera, oratorio, art song, and chamber music, with repertoire spanning from early to contemporary music. Most recently, Megan performed the role of Rosina in Il barbiere di Siviglia with Summer Garden Opera in Virgina and as Meg in Little Women with MassOpera, where she was praised for her “warm and sonically sumptuous Meg. ” Other recent engagements include soloist in Copland’s In the Beginning with Vox Humana in Dallas, Texas, Handel’s Messiah with the Rhode Island Civic Chorale and Orchestra, and Dixit Dominus with the Metropolitan Chorale. As an active chamber musician, Megan performs with several renowned national ensembles including the GRAMMY® winning ensemble Conspirare out of Austin, Texas, GRAMMY® nominated True Concord and Seraphic Fire, Skylark Vocal Ensemble, Lorelei Ensemble, Yale Choral Artists, Cincinnati Vocal Arts Ensemble, and The Thirteen. She is also the founder and artistic director of Calliope’s Call, a professional art song performance group based in New England, which presents unique and dynamic programs of art song by contemporary and new composers as well as traditional composers of the genre. www.meganroth.com Bass-baritone Tyler Simpson has performed on top opera and concert stages around the world. The 2018-19 season brings debuts with Vancouver Opera for their production of Rossini’s La Cenerentola (Alidoro) and Vancouver Bach Choir for Handel’s Messiah and Durufle’s Requiem, and a return to the Metropolitan Opera for Tchaikovsky’s Iolanta (Bertrand) and Debussy’s Pélleas et Mélisande (Doctor). Highlights of the 2017-18 season included Mozart’s Le nozze di Figaro (title role) with Pittsburgh Opera, Rossini’s Il barbiere di Siviglia (Basilio) with Greensboro Opera, performances of Handel’s Messiah with Early Music Vancouver and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, and a role debut as Scarpia in Tosca with the Festival Lyrique-en-mer in Brittany, France. Tenor Gene Stenger has a performed as a soloist under the baton of many internationally acclaimed conductors, including David Hill, Simon Carrington, Masaaki Suzuki, and Helmuth Rilling. Equally at home in chamber music, Gene has performed with numerous professional ensembles, including the GRAMMY-nominated True Concord Voices and Orchestra, the GRAMMY-nominated choir of Trinity Wall Street, Handel and Haydn Society, Yale Choral Artists, Oregon Bach Festival Chorus, Clarion Society, The Thirteen, and internationally with the Weimarer Bachkantaten-Akademie, and the Internationale Bachakademie Stuttgart. Originally from Pittsburgh, PA, Stenger holds degrees from Yale University’s Institute of Sacred Music, and School of Music, Colorado State University, and Baldwin Wallace University Conservatory of Music. He currently resides in New Haven, CT, where he serves as instructor of voice at Yale University. Debi Wong is a Canadian mezzo-soprano, opera producer and stage-director. She has been praised for possessing a “rich-toned” voice (The Vancouver Sun) and delivering performances that are “mind-blowing” (Schmopera blog) and “unique and magical” (Rondo Classic). She performs regularly across Europe with her award-winning lute and voice duo, White Sparrow and she is the founder and artistic director of Vancouver's indie-opera company, re:Naissance. Jonathan Woody is a sought-after performer of early and new music in New York and across North America. He has performed with historically-informed orchestras such as Apollo’s Fire, Boston Early Music Festival, Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra, Bach Collegium San Diego, Portland Baroque Orchestra and New York Baroque Incorporated. Jonathan is also committed to ensemble singing at the highest level and is regularly featured as a member of the Choir of Trinity Wall Street, earning praise as "charismatic" and "riveting" from The New York Times for his solo work. An avid performer of new music, Jonathan has premiered works including Ted Hearne's The Source, Missi Mazzoli’s Breaking the Waves, and Du Yun’s Pulitzer-Prize winning Angel’s Bone. He has appeared with Staunton Music Festival, Aldeburgh Festival, Portland Bach Festival, Carmel Bach Festival, Oregon Bach Festival, American Bach Soloists Academy, and Amherst Early Music, Opera Lafayette, Gotham Chamber Opera, New Amsterdam Presents and Beth Morrison Projects. Jonathan has recorded with the Choir of Trinity Wall Street (Musica Omnia), Boston Early Music Festival (RadioBremen), and New York Polyphony (BIS Records).