NEW CLASSIC SINGERS Lee R. Kesselman, Music Director William Buhr, Accompanist 30th Concert Season
2011-2012
9/11: Ten Years & Beyond Sunday, Sep. 11, 3 pm at Harris Theater for Music & Dance, Chicago Psalms & Spirituals Saturday, Nov. 5, 8 pm at St. Petronille Church, Glen Ellyn Sunday, Nov. 13, 3 pm at St Francis Xavier Catholic Church, La Grange World Carol Sunday, Dec. 11, 4 pm, McAninch Arts Center, Glen Ellyn KADOSH: A(nother) Celebration of Jewish Music Saturday, March 3, 8 pm at Christ the King Catholic Church, Lombard The New Classics Radio Hour Saturday, May 5, 8 pm McAninch Arts Center, Glen Ellyn New Classic Singers 425 Bonnie Brae Rd. Hinsdale, IL 60521 www.newclassicsingers.org 630.654.9717 Ticket office for McAninch Arts Center concerts: (630) 942-4000 www.AtTheMac.org
New Classic Singers celebrates its 30th season in residence at College of DuPage. Members include conductors, educators, and soloists from throughout the Chicago metropolitan area. The Singers have been praised for their imaginative programs and performing excellence. New Classic Singers has performed three times for conventions of the American Choral Directors Association and frequently commissions and performs new works. NCS has performed with the Kronos Quartet, Fulcrum Point New Music Ensemble & Nexus Percussion Ensemble and has recorded new issues for Boosey & Hawkes Music Publishers. New Classic Singers 1
M U S I C D I R E C TO R B I O G R A P H Y Founder and Music Director, Lee Kesselman, has been Director of Choral
Activities at College of DuPage since 1981. Conductor, pianist, teacher and award-winning composer, in New Classic Singers he has created an ensemble from his love for the vocal art and interest in a wide variety of literature. A member of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers and recipient of 18 consecutive ASCAP awards. Mr. Kesselman’s compositions have been published by Boosey & Hawkes, Roger Dean Music Co., Colla Voce and Kesselman Press. He co-founded the Choral Music Experience Institute for Choral Teacher Education with Doreen Rao and has served on its faculty since 1986. He is in frequent demand as a guest conductor, lecturer and clinician and as a composer-inresidence throughout the United States and abroad. Kesselman is well-known as a composer of vocal works, including opera, music for chorus, and solo songs. Large works include the operas THE BREMEN TOWN MUSICIANS and THE EMPEROR’S NEW CLOTHES, LOVE PHASES for baritone voice and piano, NIGHTS IN ARMOR for mixed chorus, SHONA MASS for voices and African percussion, and INFINITY IN THE PALM OF YOUR HAND, a symphony for treble chorus and orchestra. His works for children’s choirs have brought him national attention and he has been commissioned to write for children’s choirs, middle school, junior school, high school, college, community, church, and professional ensembles.
AC C O M PA N I S T B I O G R A P H Y Enjoying a national reputation as an accompanist, chamber musician, adjudicator and clinician, work as a collaborative pianist has taken William Buhr to performing engagements in over thirty countries on six continents. Buhr has served on the accompanying staff of the Chicago Symphony Chorus at the invitation of founder/director Margaret Hillis, and has accompanied James Levine, Michael Tilson Thomas, Yo-Yo Ma, June Anderson, Berndt Weikl and others at the Ravinia Festival. He has also worked with Stephen Sondheim, Patti LuPone, Audra McDonald and Michael Cerveris in the Ravinia Festival productions of Sunday In The Park With George and Anyone Can Whistle. Holding degrees from the University of Illinois and DePaul University, Mr. Buhr has appeared in many international festivals as well as numerous national and regional conventions of major musical and educational organizations. Mr. Buhr has served on the faculty of the Choral Music Experience Institute for Choral Teacher Education with Doreen Rao since its inception in 1986, and has played for the national touring companies of numerous Broadway musicals including Showboat, Disney’s Beauty and the Beast, and The Phantom of the Opera. He has served as the Associate Director and accompanist of the New Classic Singers since 1986, and has enjoyed an association with Anima - Young Singers of Greater Chicago (formerly the Glen Ellyn Children’s Chorus) since 1984.
First United Methodist Church Chancel Choir Presents R. Vaughan Williams’
Hodie
December 4, 2011 ~ 9:30 and 11:00 a.m. Worship Services 1032 Maple Avenue ~ Downers Grove, IL 630-968-7120 ~ www.dgfumc.org 2 New Classic Singers
F R O M T H E M U S I C D I R E C TO R Welcome to our 30th season! Psalms & Spirituals! From the beginning, the Book of Psalms has provided great singing texts for sacred music. The texts tap the full range of religious emotions and are the cornerstone of music in both churches and synagogues. And throughout the world, American choral music is nearly synonymous with African-American Spirituals. Today’s program is devoted to these two great categories of choral music, the composed Psalm-settings of the first half and the arranged spirituals of the second. Almost every great composer of the Western tradition has tried his hand at setting Psalm texts to music. The classic settings by Brahms, Berger, and Stanford are among the most-loved of these settings. The two settings of Psalm 137 demonstrate a classic French Renaissance approach to syllabic text-setting and a Minimalist-influenced contemporary setting. Hugo Distler’s Psalm 98 looks both backward to Medieval intricacies and ahead to the crisp harmonies and rhythms of the 20th Century. But what all of these settings share is the timeless devotion of David the Psalmist coupled with the music of their own time and tradition. The authentic African-American spiritual is the collective song of an enslaved people. Spirituals look to the example of the enslaved ancient Jews and their escape from Egypt in the book of Exodus. They were sung in rural Southern dialect and arose from the slaves’ fervent hope for freedom. Many have hidden ‘codes’ as the slaves dreamed of crossing over the river, riding that Freedom train, and stealing away. Tonight’s collection of spirituals range from the classic arrangements of Burleigh, Moore, Dawson and De Paur, to the more contemporary voices of Stacey Gibbs, Moses Hogan, Joseph Jennings and Craig Hella Johnson. Psalms from the European traditions and spirituals from the fields of the South —just the first of four main concerts on this year’s New Classic Singers’ season. Join us for future concerts as we explore carols from the world in December, the richness of Jewish choral music in March, and our own New Classics Radio Hour in May. We promise you a variety of great music, beautifully sung and uniquely matched. In short, we look forward to sharing another great season of music with you! Thanks for being a part of our audience. As always, we sing for you. Sincerely, Lee R. Kesselman Founder and Music Director New Classic Singers
New Classic Singers 3
PROGR A M NEW CLASSIC SINGERS Lee R. Kesselman, Music Director William Buhr, Accompanist Psalms and Spirituals Saturday, November 5, 8 pm St. Petronille Church, Glen Ellyn Sunday, November 13, 3 pm St Francis Xavier Catholic Church, La Grange (The audience is requested to kindly hold applause until each section break.) Salmo 150 (in Latin)
Ernani Aguiar (b. 1950)
Praise ye the Lord. Praise God in his sanctuary: praise him in the firmament of his power. Praise him for his mighty acts: praise him according to his excellent greatness. Praise him with the sound of the trumpet: praise him with the psaltery and harp. Praise him with the timbrel and dance: praise him with stringed instruments and organs. Praise him upon the loud cymbals: praise him upon the high sounding cymbals. Let every thing that hath breath praise the Lord. Praise ye the Lord. (Psalm 150, v. 1-6 ) II Schaffe in mir Gott ein rein Herz, Op.29, No. 2 (in German) Johannes Brahms (1833-1897) Andante moderato Schaffe in mir Gott ein rein Herz und gib mir einen neuen gewissen Geist. Create a clean heart in me, O God: and renew in me a right spirit. Andante espressivo Verwirf mich nicht von deinem Angesicht und nimm deinen heiligen Geist nicht von mir. Cast me not away from Thy face; and take not Thy holy spirit from me.
Andante TrĂśste mich wieder mit deiner Hilfe, Restore unto me the joy of Thy salvation,
Allegro Und der freudige Geist erhalte mich. and strengthen me with a joyful spirit.
(Psalm 51, v. 12-14)
III Estans assis aux rives aquatiques (in French)
Claude Le Jeune (c. 1528 – 1600)
In terra aliena (in Latin & English)
Lee R. Kesselman
[2005]
In terra aliena? (in a strange land) By the streams of Babylon, There we sat and there we wept, When we remembered you, O Zion. Upon the willows on its banks We hung our harps; For they who took us captive Asked us the words of our songs, And our tormentors asked of us mirth: 4 New Classic Singers
P R O G R A M ( c o n t .) Sing a hymn for us from the songs of Zion. How shall we sing the Lord’s song in a foreign land? In terra aliena? (in a strange land?) (Psalm 137, v. 1-4) The Eyes of All Wait Upon Thee Jean Berger (1909-2002)
The eyes of all wait upon thee; and thou givest them their meat in due season. Thou openest thine hand, and satisfiest the desire of every living thing. (Psalm 145, v. 15-16)
Beati Quorum Via, Op. 38, No. 3 (in Latin) Charles Villiers Stanford (1852-1924) Blessed are the undefiled in the way, who walk in the law of the Lord. (Psalm 119, v. 1) Sound Canticle on Bay Psalm 23 Gregg Smith (b. 1931) The Lord to me a shepherd is, want therefore shall not I, He in the folds of tender grass doth cause me down to lie. To waters calm me gently leads, Restore my soul doth He, He doth in paths of righteousness for His name’s sake lead me.
Yea, though in valley of death’s shade, I walk, none ill I’ll feare, Because Thou art with me thy rod and staff my comfort are. For me a table Thou hast spread, In presence of my foes, Thou dost anoint my head with oyle, my cup it overflows.
Goodness and mercy surely shall all my days follow me, And in the Lord’s house I shall dwell so long as day shall be. (Psalm 23, rephrased) IV Psalm 98 INTERMISSION
Hugo Distler
V My Lord, What A Mornin’ Harry T. Burleigh (1866-1949) Daniel, Daniel, Servant of the Lord Undine Smith Moore (1904-1988) There Is A Balm in Gilead William L. Dawson (1899-1990) A City Called Heaven Leonard de Paur (1914-1998) Way Over in Beulah Lan’ VI Soon Ah Will Be Done / I Wanna Die Easy Hold On Ev’ry Time I Feel the Spirit Steal Away
Stacey V. Gibbs Craig Hella Johnson Stacey V. Gibbs William L. Dawson Joseph Jennings
Ride On, King Jesus Moses Hogan (1957-2003) New Classic Singers 5
N C S 2 010 - 2 011 NCS 2011-2012 Lee R. Kesselman, Director Bill Buhr, Accompanist Soprano Jennifer Berman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Westchester Elise B. Calhoon. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Naperville Mona Jethmalani . . . . . . . . . Glendale Heights Beth Majerszky. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .New Lenox Madeline Morris . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Deerfield Karen Owen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Warrenville Christie Phillips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Wheaton Susan Van Ordstrand. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Elgin Sadie Wynne . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Bolingbrook Alto Marcia Ecker. . . . . . . . . . . . . . South Barrington Pam Eiten. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Wheaton Jean Follett. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Hinsdale Mele Howland. . . . . . . . . . . . . . Downers Grove Maureen Lyons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Darien Arlayne Pekofske. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Darien Gabriela Sevilla . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Naperville Dottie Williames . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sugar Grove
Tenor Sean Doty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Burr Ridge Andrew Johnson. . . . . . . . . . . . Downers Grove Dennis Schafer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Joliet Larry Stephens. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Plainfield John Whittington. . . . . . . . . . . Downers Grove Jim Yarbrough. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Elmhurst Bass Ben Adair. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Woodridge William Buhr. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Villa Park Jack Dare. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Downers Grove Paul Drennan . . . . . . . . . . . . . Glendale Heights Daniel Saathoff . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Warrenville Dave Saunders. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Woodridge David Scott. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Naperville Doug Thompson. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Hinsdale
It’s always the perfect time of year to buy
NCS’ FAMILY CHRISTMAS ALBUM CD. Our CD is available at the Arts Center Ticket Office, at all of our concerts, and on our website.
Concerts, Educational Programs, Corporate Events, Festivals, Receptions and more Laura Kuhlman, director 630.240.3489 laura@thekuhlmans.com
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O U R T H A N K S TO T H E F O L L OW I N G S U P P O R T E R S McAninch Arts Center, College of DuPage WFMT-FM 98.7 Michael Aikins Mr. & Mrs. Dean Brandt John D. Breen Mary Burkhardt Allan & Gina Carter Niall Casserly Robert F. Dailey Jack & Laura Dare Robert & Jaclyn Doty Paul Drennen Marcia Ecker Barbara & John Ekholm Pamela & Keith Eiten Follet Corporation Dennis Schafer/Franciscan Friars Barbara Geis Joanna & Jack Goral Georgia K. Hamilton Harris Bank of Hinsdale
Mele Howland & Timothy Krauskopf Cynthia & Andrew Johnson Leah & Andrew Kamm Susan Kempfer Lee Kesselman James & Lynn Kessen Durema & Robert Kohl Maureen Lyons Beth Majerszky Mark Materna Marilyn McCormick Linda Motz Drs. Donald & Mary Ellen Newsom Phillip O’Donnell Karen Webb Owen Pat & Allen Pedersen Arlayne & Robert Pekofske Jean Pratt Sigma Alpha Iota, LaGrange Alumni Chapter
David & Janice Saunders Susan Schroeder David H. Shaftman Florence Slavick James & Linda Smedinghoff Paul Srivatka Larry Stephens Lorraine H. Taylor Doug Thompson & Jean Follett Richard Traut James Tucker & Neil Lucchese Susan Van Ordstrand & James Kempfer Donald G. & Helen Westlake John & Laura Whittington Dottie Williames Ann Field Williams James & Jean Yarbrough
FROM THE PRESIDENT Dear Friends of New Classic Singers You are about to share a most exciting year with us—our 30th season as the premiere choral ensemble of the western suburbs. We are planning on celebrating all year long and we hope that you will come and celebrate with us at each of our four programs. We have been fortunate indeed to arrive at this important milestone. The arrival of Lee Kesselman at the College of DuPage just when a visionary college president (President McAninch) had the idea of creating professional-quality arts ensembles-in-residence was a stroke of amazing good fortune. Shortly thereafter the Arts Center was built, giving us a permanent home. For twenty-seven years the College nurtured New Classic Singers, along with the Buffalo Theatre Ensemble, the Jazz Ensemble, the DuPage Opera Theatre and the New Philharmonic. In 2008 several of these ensembles were given the opportunity to establish themselves as independent organizations. We talked, we worried and we talked some more. In the end, we believed that it might be possible for us to make it work. We knew, without a doubt, that our Director, Lee Kesselman, still had a vision for bringing high-quality choral music to audiences throughout the area. So in the spring of 2009 we “restarted” New Classic Singers. Thanks to our audiences and the support of many of you here today, we have arrived at our 30th season! This season promises to be another joyous celebration of the wide and deep world of choral music. From spirituals to Brahms, from psalms to the Kadosh and from the beauty of sacred music to the lightness of our May radio hour —thank you for joining us! We sing for you, Jean Follett President New Classic Singers 7
Downers Grove Choral Society 53rd Season, 2011-2012 introducing Dr. Amy G. Weller, Artistic Director
Joyeux NoĂŤl
Sunday, November 20, 2011 at 3:00 pm Faith Church, 59th & Fairview, Downers Grove Saint-SaĂŤns Christmas Oratorio, Finzi In Terra Pax, and other seasonal works.
Rossini, Petite Messe Solennelle Saturday, February 25, 2012 at 7:30 pm Saint Cletus Church, LaGrange Sunday, February 26, 2012 at 3:00 pm Wentz Concert Hall, Naperville
Festival of Psalms
Sunday, April 29, 2012 at 3:00 pm Tivoli Theatre, Downers Grove Featuring Hailstork I Will Lift Up Mine Eyes (Chicago premiere) & Mendelssohn Psalm 42.
For tickets and information, please visit www.dgcs.org or call 630.515.0030.