Our 24-25 season promises to bring you more of what you’ve come to expect from Kantorei. Standards of the choral repertoire mixed with new and exciting voices, performed at the highest artistic level.
Highlights of our season include the world premiere of a new work we’ve commissioned from GRAMMY award winning composer Christopher Tin in October. Chris will join us for these concerts, and I’ve invited him to conduct half of the concerts. We’ll be recording this program for our third internationally released album in January.
At the holidays, we’ll be featuring the talents of our collaborative pianist, Alicia Rigsby as we perform American composer Randall Thompson’s Frostiana featuring poetry of Robert Frost which includes his “Choose Something Like a Star” and “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening.” Alicia will also accompany the choir in Eric Whitacre’s “The Boy Who Laughed at Santa Claus”, Ogden Nash’s poem about a boy who mocked the existence of Santa.
In March, we will split Kantorei in half to perform concerts of music for double and expanded chorus, including our dear friend, composer Terry Schlenker’s Mass for Double Choir. We’ll also perform music of Brahms, Mendelssohn and Healy Willan.
Our last concerts in May will bring the immigration and displacement crisis to light. Caroline Shaw wrote “To the Hands” combining texts and thematic musical ideas from Dietrich Buxtehude’s 17th century masterpiece, Membra Jesu Nostri with Emma Lazarus’ sonnet The New Colossus, famous for its engraving at the base of the Statue of Liberty. The poem’s lines “Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free” is the inspiration for the title of these concerts. We’ll also perform the regional premiere of composer Melissa Dunphy’s N-400 Erasure Songs, a multi-movement work with texts derived from different sections of the N-400 Application for Naturalization (the form immigrants must complete to become U.S. citizens.)
I hope you are able to join us for the entire season. Please consider introducing us to some of your friends! To make that easy, we’re returning our season membership that gives you significant discounts to invite people into the Kantorei experience.
Welcome to the 2024-2025 Kantorei season!
It is with great pleasure that I introduce to you our 2024-2025 season! It is also with great excitement I introduce myself as Kantorei’s new Board President! I am thrilled to be serving Kantorei in this capacity and I look forward to connecting with all our incredible patrons and friends throughout the year.
This coming season promises to inspire, encourage and empower you and I cannot wait for you to join us! Your continued support allows us to thrive and elevate the lives of those around us through music. I sincerely thank you for being a part of Kantorei!
Now, mark your calendars, follow along on social media and we will see you soon!
Kantorei Board of Directors
AUDIENCE TESTIMONIALS:
“Beautiful arrangements, high caliber... They are always artful, intelligent, and amazing performances.”
“…one of the most incredible and spine-tingling concerts that I have heard in a long time. Looking forward to the rest of the season.”
JOSHUA CORWYN President
Kantorei is a Denver-based, choral ensemble comprised of volunteer singers under the direction of Managing 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 for major choral conventions across the U.S. and with The Aspen Music Festival, 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. In the summer of 2022, Kantorei performed the Central American premiere of Jake Runestad’s “El Último Hilo” in Guatemala City and Antigua, Guatemala, along with Guatemalan choir Vocalis. In the fall of 2021, Kantorei began its three-year collaboration with M. Roger Holland, II as Artist-in-Residence.
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. In early winter 2025, Kantorei will once again join forces with Grammywinning producers Soundmirror to record choral works of Grammy-winning composer Christopher Tin, this time on the Decca label.
Kantorei’s vision is “to elevate the human experience through choral excellence.”
KANTOREI 2024-2025 CONCERT SEASON
OCTOBER 5 & 6:
TRANSFIGURATIONS: CHORAL MUSIC OF CHRISTOPHER TIN
S aturday, 10/5 @ 7:30pm, First Plymouth UCC
Sunday, 10/6 @ 3:00pm, Wellshire Presbyterian Church
DECEMBER 6: A WINTER'S NIGHT
Friday, 12/6 @ 7:30pm, Bethany Lutheran Church
DECEMBER 7, 8, 20: FROSTIANA
S aturday 12/7 @ 7:30pm, First Plymouth UCC
Sunday 12/8 @ 2:00pm, Parsons Theatre
Friday 12/20 @ 7:30pm, Saint John’s Episcopal Cathedral
MARCH 8-9:
DOUBLE YOUR PLEASURE: MUSIC FOR DOUBLE CHOIR
S aturday, 3/8 @ 7:30pm, First Plymouth UCC
Sunday, 3/9 @ 3:00pm, Wellshire Presbyterian Church
MAY 17-18: YEARNING TO BREATHE
S aturday, 5/17 @ 7:30pm, First Plymouth UCC
Sunday, 5/18 @ 3:00pm, Wellshire Presbyterian Church
“Thank you for the joy you have brought into my life.”
“I’ve been smiling all day long. I’m so glad I got to experience the beauty of Kantorei’s performance. It was truly heartwarming.”
“What an incredible experience…words cannot convey the magnitude of the program…spellbinding. Not soon to be forgotten.”
OCTOBER 5 & 6, 2024
TRANSFIGURATIONS: Choral Music of Christopher Tin
Join us as we kick off our 2024-25 season with a performance of Grammy Award-winning Christopher Tin's captivating choral music. The program features the ethereal Transfigurations with lyrics by Charles Anthony Silvestri, focusing on the transfiguration of light into life, life into dust, and the transfiguration of the soul. Also featured is the world premiere of a piece commissioned by and written for
Kantorei. Christopher Tin will conduct half of this concert, providing a rare opportunity to see a composer lead his own works. Experience Tin's signature blend of classical and world music influences, with sweeping melodies and texts in multiple languages. This concert promises an unforgettable journey through the composer's evocative musical landscape.
DECEMBER 7, 8, & 20, 2024
FROSTIANA
Celebrate the magic of the season with a festive concert featuring beloved winter classics and contemporary holiday gems. This enchanting program promises to warm hearts and kindle the spirit of the season. Featured in these performances will be Randall Thompson's beloved Frostiana, a seven-movement work setting the poetry of Robert Frost to music. Thompson's lyrical, expressive style perfectly captures the essence of Frost's words, creating a musical landscape as vivid and evocative as New England in winter.
Also included in the program is Eric Whitacre's playful The Boy Who Laughed at Santa Claus based on the poem by Ogden Nash; Ola Gjeilo's Wintertide, a hauntingly beautiful work that evokes the quiet wonder of a snowy landscape; and Sarah Quartel’s A Winter’s Day, featuring cello and piano. `Rounding out the program will be a selection of seasonal favorites, including traditional carols and modern holiday classics. From the jubilant to the serene, celebrating both the joy and the peaceful contemplation of the season.
MARCH 8 & 9, 2025
DOUBLE YOUR PLEASURE: Music for Double Choir
This unique program offers a rare opportunity to experience multiple double-choir works in a single concert, providing insight into how different composers through the ages have approached the spatial and textural possibilities of two choirs this challenging and rewarding format. Featured in this concert will be Colorado’s own Terry Schlenker's Mass for Double Choir, a modern masterpiece that pays homage to the great polychoral traditions of the past while infusing them with contemporary harmonic language.
We will also explore Johannes Brahms' F estund Gedenksprüche (Op. 109), Healey Willan’s An Apostrophe to the Heavenly Hosts, and Felix Mendelsohn’s Heilg. Whether you're a longtime choral music enthusiast or new to the world of antiphonal composition, this concert promises to be a memorable exploration of the rich possibilities of the human voice.
MAY 17 & 18, 2025
YEARNING TO BREATHE
In this powerful exploration of human longing and belonging, Kantorei will perform Caroline Shaw’s To the Hands, a modern response to Dieterich Buxtehude's 17th-century work Ad Manus (also included in the program), touching on themes of human connection, suffering, and compassion, often relating to current social issues like the refugee crisis. Also featured is Melissa Dunphy’s N-400 Erasure Songs, a multi-movement work with texts derived from different sections of the N-400 Application for Naturalization (the form immigrants must
complete to become U.S. citizens), using the erasure technique - selectively removing words from existing text to create poetry. Experience how these diverse works, spanning from Baroque to contemporary, address themes of humanity, compassion, and identity. Each piece offers a unique perspective on our shared struggles and aspirations. Join us for a performance of moving choral music that speaks to the human condition and our collective yearning for connection and understanding.
Photo courtesy of Catherine Norwood
Photo courtesy of Andy Wilkinson
Photo courtesy of Melissa Dunphy`
A WINTER'S NIGHT:
An evening with the Cherry Creek HS Meistersingers
One night only (membership discount does not apply)
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.
Alison N. Roman
MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP
Alison Roman was a beloved member of the Kantorei family and a fiercely dedicated music educator. She touched countless lives, and for this reason, with the blessing of Alison’s family, the Kantorei board of directors has named the Kantorei Individual Scholarship the Alison N. Roman Memorial Scholarship.
The Alison N. Roman Memorial Scholarship is designed to support students from underrepresented communities who intend to pursue the choral arts in college, whether as a major or through participation in college choral groups. In addition, we are committed to narrowing the equity gap that can prevent BIPOC, Asian, & Latinx students from participating in the arts.
If you would like to contribute, you can do so on the enclosed order form. You can also make a donation online at www.kantorei.org/community-engagement
VENUES
FIRST PLYMOUTH UCC
October 5, December 7, March 8, May 17
ADDRESS
3501 S Colorado Boulevard, Cherry Hills Village, 80113
MORE INFORMATION www.firstplymouthchurch.org
WELLSHIRE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
October 6, March 9, May 18
ADDRESS
2999 S Colorado Boulevard, Denver, 80222
MORE INFORMATION www.wpcdenver.org
SAINT JOHN'S ESPICOPAL CATHEDRAL
December 20
ADDRESS
1350 N WASHINGTON STREET, DENVER, 80203
MORE INFORMATION
WWW.SJCATHEDRAL.ORG
PARSONS THEATRE – NORTHGLENN ARTS
December 8
ADDRESS
1 E Memorial Parkway, Northglenn, 80233
BOX OFFICE
303-450-8888 www.NorthglennARTS.org
BETHANY LUTHERAN CHURCH
December 6
ADDRESS
4500 E Hampden Avenue, Cherry Hills Village, 80113
MORE INFORMATION www.bethany-denver.org
BECOME A SEASON MEMBER!
New this year is a membership option designed to expand upon the Kantorei concert experience! What’s included:
» 25% off main concert series tickets (up to 10 tickets per concert series – does not include Salon, A Winter’s Night, or the Dec 8th performance)
» VIP Reserved seating at included concerts
» Recognition in our concert programs that you are one of our inner-circle super-fans!
» Other special offers, discounts, and invitations throughout the season
By purchasing one $50 membership for your household, you more-than-breakeven by simply purchasing two discounted tickets to each concert series. AND you can buy up to eight more tickets to each concert to invite your friends and family at the discounted price!
Available through October 6, 2024
Kantorei would like to thank our sponsors for their generous and ongoing support!
TICKET ORDER FORM
Music of Christopher Tin
Yearning to Breathe
(if purchased) & Tickets Subtotal $______________
Additional Donation to Kantorei $______________ Thank you!
Additional Donation to the Alison N. Roman Memorial Scholarship Fund $______________ Thank you!
Additional Donation to the Elevate Classroom Grant Fund $______________ Thank you!
Total Amount Enclosed $
PAYMENT INFORMATION (PLEASE DO NOT SEND CASH)
Check enclosed - Please make checks payable to “Kantorei .” -ORCredit card Number: __________________________________________________________ Expiration: ______/________ CVV ________ Zip: __________
DETACH AND MAIL ORDER FORM AND CHECK TO:
K antorei, 3501 South Colorado Boulevard, Englewood, CO 80113 I would like to become a member! $50
