2022-23 Season Brochure

Some of our singers have spent half of their lives making music with Kantorei! Yes, that spills the beans on the age of some of our founding members, and what a remarkable accomplishment it is that Kantorei has been elevating the human experience through choral excellence for 25 years now.

Our singers are the reason for all of the successes of Kantorei. They give of their time and talent and resources to bring you world class experiences right here in your own backyard! For our 25th anniversary season, we celebrate our incredibly gifted and dedicated singers, who make everything possible.

JOEL M. RINSEMA Managing Artistic Director

Kantorei has a rich history of quality performances exploring a wide variety of repertoire and collaborating with some of the most prominent composers and performers of today. This year is no different! We began our season with closing performances of the Aspen Music Festival 2022 with Berlioz’ thunderous Requiem. In October we team up with choral rock-star Eric Whitacre in a version of his “Sacred Veil” we’ve commissioned for string orchestra with the Lamont Symphony Strings at the University of Denver.

In December we bring you sounds from around the globe and perform holiday favorites with the famed Canadian Brass at the Vilar Performing Arts Center in Beaver Creek, CO, and in March we present the Grammy-nominated "The Lost Birds" from 2-time Grammy Award winning composer Christopher Tin It is an ode to nature and the songs that have filled our skies while also serving as a warning for our own tenuous existence on planet Earth. To finish our 25th anniversary season, we’ll collaborate again with our artist-inresidence, M. Roger Holland II as we shine a spotlight on lesser-known works of the classical choral canon written by Black American composers, in “Walk Together, Children ”

I hope you are able to join us for all of our concerts this year. It’s a season to celebrate our singers!

Joel M. Rinsema Managing Artistic Director

Dear Friends,

Last year I wrote to you about Kanotorei’s triumphant return to live performances. We offered an exciting and innovative season that was meant to inspire the community in which we live, play, and work.

This year the key word is CELEBRATION! Please join us for an exceptional season of music and our 25th Anniversary Gala in April, to celebrate Kantorei’s past, present and future. Kantorei remains steadfast in our mission, “to elevate the human experience through choral excellence”.

We are celebrating 25 years of excellence as a performing group that has become a leader in the choral community. From a group of 8 friends gathering to sing, we have grown to a group of nearly 60 that has uplifted audiences literally around the world. We are celebrating our history of commissioning and championing new repertoire from composers like Sarah Quartel, René Clausen, Kim André Arnesen, Jocelyn Hagen and Jake Runestad. We are celebrating financial stability because of the generosity of our patrons and wise fiscal management from our staff and board. We look to the future to celebrate continued collaborations that strengthen our community and organization.

JENNIFER MOORE President

Thank you for your partnership for the last 25 years. We greatly appreciate your generosity, your patronage and your friendship.

AUDIENCE TESTIMONIALS:

“Music has a power to bring us together in some magical, unexplainable way. Kantorei feels a bit like home to me. The coming together of the music, singers, the conductor and the audience reminds me that we are stronger together.” “...you should experience the beauty of choral music at the highest level. the repertoire and music transcend words. It is a rare experience to attend a live choral concert of this caliber today.”

Kantorei is a Denver-based, choral ensemble comprised of volunteer singers under the direction of Artistic Director Joel M. Rinsema.

Formed in 1997 under the leadership of six friends and artistic director, Richard Larson Kantorei has established itself as one of the nation’s premier choral ensembles. Our choral artists have studied at schools with strong music programs across the United States such as Baylor University, Brigham Young University, Eastman School of Music, Indiana University, St. Olaf College, Wartburg College, and Westminster Choir College. Kantorei’s singers reside throughout the greater Denver area. Some serve as choral music educators, church choir conductors, and vocal instructors. Others are doctors, social workers, optometrists, counselors, clinical psychologists, accountants, realtors –all brought together in weekly rehearsals for shared artistic excellence and community.

Kantorei has performed at the Aspen Music Festival under the direction of maestro Robert Spano and for major choral conventions across the U.S., toured the world, and has commissioned and premiered new choral works from such renowned composers as Kim André Arnesen, Eric William Barnum, Abbie Betinis, René Clausen, Ola Gjeilo, Jocelyn Hagen, Sarah Quartel, Jake Runestad, Joshua Shank, and Eric Whitacre.

Kantorei has released two recordings on the Naxos label. “Sing, Wearing the Sky” (2020) choral music of Jake Runestad reached the #3 best-selling classical album on iTunes, #4 on the Traditional Classical Billboard Charts, and the top ten in both the best-selling classical album and new classical release categories on Amazon. “Infinity: Choral Works of Kim André Arnesen” (2018) climbed to the #2 best-selling classical album on iTunes, #6 on the Traditional Classical Billboard Charts and #19 on the overall Classical Billboard charts. Santa Barbara Music Publishing Inc. publishes the Kantorei Choral series.

Kantorei’s mission is “to elevate the human experience through choral excellence.”

AUGUST 21: BERLIOZ REQUIEM

Sunday: Aspen Music Festival

OCTOBER 8-9: THE SACRED VEIL

Saturday & Sunday: Gates Concert Hall, Newman Center

NOVEMBER 5: SALON - FLY ME TO THE MOON

Saturday: The home of Alex & Melissa Menter

DECEMBER 2: A WINTER'S NIGHT

Friday: Bethany Lutheran Church

DECEMBER 8-11: MIRACLES: A KANTOREI CELEBRATION FROM AROUND THE WORLD

Thursday: Lone Tree Arts Center

Friday: Montview Presbyterian Church

Saturday: First Plymouth UCC

Sunday: D. L. Parsons Theatre

DECEMBER 23: CANADIAN BRASS WITH KANTOREI: A HOLIDAY SPECTACULAR

Friday: Vilar Performing Arts Center

MARCH 4-5: THE LOST BIRDS

Saturday: Wellshire Presbyterian Church

Sunday: First Plymouth UCC

APRIL 15: 25TH ANNIVERSARY GALA

Saturday: Knoebel Events Center

MAY 20-21: WALK TOGETHER, CHILDREN

Saturday: Saint John’s Episcopal Cathedral

Sunday: First Plymouth UCC

Grammy Award-winning Eric Whitacre conducts Kantorei along with the Lamont Symphony Orchestra Strings in a premiere performance of “The Sacred Veil,” newly commissioned by Kantorei for string orchestra. This 12-movement work, the most recent collaboration between Eric Whitacre and poet/lyricist Charles Anthony Silvestri, tells a story of life, love, and loss; a very human journey t hat so many of us can relate to.

12.08.2022 THURSDAY @ 7:30 PM Lone Tree Arts Center 1 2.09.2022 FRIDAY @ 7:30 PM Montview Presbyterian Church 1 2.10.2022 SATURDAY @ 7:30 PM First Plymouth UCC 12 .11.2022 SUNDAY @ 2:00 PM D.L. Parsons Theatre

A celebration of the season of miracles with Kantorei and special guests performing repertoire from around the world in this multicultural collage, including:

• Ed Henderson’s “Milagros de Navidad” for guitar, marimba, and percussion

• Set tings of familiar carols by Norwegian composer Ola Gjeilo

• A musical celebration of Hanukkah, the Jewish festival of lights

MIRACLES:

A KANTOREI CELEBRATION FROM AROUND THE WORLD

03.04.2023 SATURDAY @ 7:30 PM Wellshire Presbyterian Church 03.05.2023 SUNDAY @ 3:00 PM First Plymouth UCC

Two-time Grammy-winning composer Christopher Tin wrote the Grammynominated work The Lost Birds as a musical memorial to bird species driven to extinction by humankind. With sweeping melodies and romantic language, it is an ode to nature and the songs that have filled our skies while also serving as a warning for our own tenuous existence on planet Earth. For text, Tin drew inspiration solely from prominent female poets including Emily Dickenson, Christina Rossetti, and Sara Teasdale, adapting their timeless words for his music. The Lost Birds is a return to simplicity and a celebration of loveliness, a timely reminder for us to preserve that which is beautiful while it still exists.

WALK TOGETHER, CHILDREN

M.Roger Holland, II Artist-in-Residence

05.20.2023 SATURDAY @ 7:30 PM St. John’s Episcopal Cathedral 05.21.2023 SUNDAY @ 3:00 PM First Plymouth UCC

Kantorei is joined by renowned composer, conductor, pianist, and singer M.Roger Holland II , celebrating repertoire that highlights the various ways African American and other composers within the African diaspora have engaged with the classical choral idiom. Holland II is Kantorei’s Artist-in-Residence and leads The Spirituals Project at the University of Denver.

This concert sponsored in part by

BERLIOZ

REQUIEM 08.21.20 22

Sunday @ 4:00 pm | Benedict Music Tent, Aspen

Kantorei returned to the Aspen Music Festival for their season finale. Berlioz sought to create a profound communal experience, “mankind gathered together on the last day,” and one by which the listener would be “shaken to the depths of his soul.” With Robert Spano, conductor; Zach Borichevsky, tenor; Seraphic Fire Professional Choral Institute, and the Aspen Music Festival Orchestra.

SALON: FLY ME TO THE MOON

11.05.2022

Saturday @ 7:00 PM | Home of Alex & Melissa Menter, Greenwood Village

Kantorei will serenade you around the world and into the night with our salon showcasing individual talents of our singers. Heavy hors d’oeuvres, drinks, and lots of fun are guaranteed! Hosted at the home of Kantorei founders, Alex and Melissa Menter.

A WINTER'S NIGHT

12.02.20 22

Friday @ 7:30 pm | Bethany Lutheran Church, Cherry Hills Village

This time-honored annual tradition brings together Kantorei and the Meistersingers of Cherry Creek High School. We are always pleased to be joined by this excellent group of young singers, as we encourage them to pursue the gift of singing beyond their high school experience. We invite you to bring the whole family for a program of familiar songs of Christmas—you’ll want to make it a part of your own holiday traditions.

CANADIAN BRASS WITH KANTOREI:

A HOLIDAY SPECTACULAR 12.23.20 22

Friday @ 7:00 PM | Vilar Performing Arts Center, Beaver Creek

Kantorei joins Canadian Brass for this very special performance of holiday favorites.

CHEERS TO 25 YEARS: OUR 25TH ANNIVERSARY GALA 0 4.15.2023

Saturday @ 6:00 pm | Knoebel Events Center

Party with your favorite singers as we celebrate our 25th Anniversary in fashion! This birthday celebration features heavy hors d'oeuvres, jazz combo, and other special guests!

ONE NIGHT ONLY

VENUES

GATES CONCERT HALL - NEWMAN CENTER

October 8 & 9

ADDRESS 2344 E Iliff Avenue, Denver, 80210 Box Office 303-871-7720 www.newmancenterpresents.com/event

BETHANY LUTHERAN CHURCH

December 2

ADDRESS

4500 E Hampden Avenue, Cherry Hills Village, 80113 More Information www.bethany-denver.org

LONE TREE ARTS CENTER

December 8

ADDRESS 10075 Commons St, Lone Tree, 80124 Box Office 720-509-1000 www.lonetreeartscenter.org/shows

MONTVIEW BOULEVARD PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

December 9

ADDRESS

1980 Dahlia Street, Denver, 80220 More Information www.montview.org

FIRST PLYMOUTH UCC

December 10, March 5, May 21

ADDRESS 3501 S Colorado Boulevard, Cherry Hills Village, 80113 More Information www.firstplymouthchurch.org

HOW YOU CAN HELP!

We rely on patrons like you to help us achieve our mission and goals and there are many ways that you can have an impact on Kantorei in addition to attending our concerts. Here are just a few ways you can help:

» Make a tax deductible contribution at kantorei.org/giving/individual » Donate stocks, securities and annuities » Underwrite/sponsor a concert » Contribute a Legacy Gift » Commission a new choral work » Place an ad in one of our concert programs » Donate your used vehicle » Donate airline miles » Volunteer at a concert

Please contact us at kantorei@kantorei.org for more information.

STAY IN TOUCH

Sign up for our e-mail list at: www.kantorei.org/contact

Kantorei would like to thank our sponsors for their generous and ongoing support!

Photo courtesy of John Ludwig

TICKET ORDER FORM

Tickets will be delivered via email or available at Will-Call. Tickets will NOT be shipped by US mail (Also available online at www.kantorei.org.)

Name (please print) _ Address Email Phone __________________________

MAKE YOUR SELECTION

(Please note that “Sacred Veil” tickets may only be purchased through the Newman Center Box Office.)

I. MIRACLES: A KANTOREI CELEBRATION FROM AROUND THE WORLD

Fri, Dec. 9, 2022 7:30 pm $30 x ____ adults $25 x ____ seniors $0 x ____ students

Sat, Dec. 10, 2022 7:30 pm $30 x ____ adults $25 x ____ seniors $0 x ____ students

For Dec. 8, 11, & 23 performances, please contact the Lone Tree Arts Center, D.L. Parsons Theatre, or Vilar Performing Arts Center box offices (info on “Venues” page). For Mar.5, go to AXS.com and search "Here I Am."

II THE LOST BIRDS

Sat, Mar. 4, 2023 7:30 pm

Sun, Mar. 5, 2023 3:00 pm

III. WALK TOGETHER,

$25 x ____ adults $20 x ____ seniors $0 x ____ students $25 x ____ adults $20 x ____ seniors $0 x ____ students

CHILDREN

Sat, May 20, 2023 7:30 pm $25 x ____ adults $20 x ____ seniors $0 x ____ students

Sun, May 21, 2023 3:00 pm $25 x ____ adults $20 x ____ seniors $0 x ____ students

Sat, Nov. 5, 2022 7:00 pm ___Tickets @ $100/each Fri, Dec. 2, 2022 7:30 pm ___ Tickets @ $20/each Sat, Apr. 15, 2023 6:00 pm ___ Tickets @ $75/each