20 MAY @ 7:30PM MONTVIEW BLVD. PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH 1980 Dahlia St., Denver
21 MAY @ 3PM
FIRST PLYMOUTH CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH 3501 S. Colorado Blvd., Cherry Hills Village
Kantorei’s 20th Anniversary Celebration Concert { Featuring choral music of Mark Hayes }
PROGRAM All Creatures of Our God and King Mark Hayes, piano Frank Perko III, organ
Grace, Grace
The men of Kantorei; Mark Hayes, piano
Spirit Suite Mark Hayes, piano
I. In That Great Gittin’ Up Morning Shannon Lemmon Elrod, soprano
II. Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child Kali Paguirigan, mezzo-soprano
III. Didn’t My Lord Deliver Daniel? Matt Gierke, tenor
I’ve Been in the Storm So Long Ain’t-A That Good News Here’s One
Mark Hayes, piano; Patrick Medina, saxophone; Sarah Harrison, bass; Kevin Gunnerson, percussion
I’m Gonna Let It Shine
Mark Hayes, piano, Patrick Medina, saxophone, Sarah Harrison, bass, Kevin Gunnerson, percussion
arr. Mark Hayes (b. 1953)
ABOUT MARK HAYES Mark Hayes is an award-winning concert pianist, composer, arranger and conductor. His personal catalog, totaling over 1,000 published works, includes work for solo voice, solo piano, multiple pianos, orchestra, jazz combo, small instrumental ensembles, and choruses of all kinds. Mark received a Bachelor of Music degree summa cum laude in Piano Performance from Baylor University in 1975. He has conducted the SWACDA and MCDA Community and Church Honor Choir, and served as guest conductor at Carnegie Hall, featuring his Te Deum and Magnificat. In 2010, Baylor University Center for Christian Music Studies awarded Mark the Award for Exemplary Leadership in Christian Music. Mark arranged and orchestrated the music for Civil War Voices, which won six awards including "Best Musical" in the 2010 Midtown International Theatre Festival in New York. He conducted the world premiere of his work for chorus, orchestra and narrator, The American Spirit, at Lincoln Center in May 2011 and the world premiere of his Requiem in Lincoln Center in May 2013. He conducted the European premiere of his Requiem in Rome in 2014 in a sacred music festival sponsored by the Vatican. In addition to his involvement in the sacred and secular choral music fields, Hayes is an accomplished orchestrator and record producer. The album, I've Just Seen Jesus, which Mark arranged, orchestrated and co-produced, received the Dove Award for Praise and Worship Album of the Year in 1986. In June 2010 Mark released his first CD of original songs titled All Is Well, featuring Kansas City jazz artist, Monique Danielle. Whether concertizing on the other side of the globe or composing at his home in Kansas City, Missouri, Mark is blessed to live out his mission "to create beautiful music for the world".
Kantorei (“singers”) formed in 1997 under Richard Larson’s leadership and has expanded into an auditioned, 55-voice ensemble under the direction of Artistic Director Joel M. Rinsema. Its members come from schools with strong choral music programs, such as Augustana, Brigham Young, Concordia, Luther, St. Olaf, Wartburg, and the University of Northern Colorado. Kantorei’s mission is to elevate the human experience through choral excellence. Kantorei has been featured in several Regional and National conferences, including the 2008 National Performing
Arts Convention and the 2010 Southwestern Regional ACDA Convention. In March 2011, Kantorei performed by invitation at its second National ACDA Convention, including a featured performance at Orchestra Hall in Chicago. Richard Larson retired from Kantorei in May 2013, and was subsequently named Artistic Director and Conductor Emeritus. Current Artistic Director Joel M. Rinsema began his tenure with the choir in the 2014-2015 season. Santa Barbara Music Publishing Inc., publishes the Kantorei Choral series (www.sbmp.com)
MEET OUR GROUP SOPRANO
ALTO
TENOR
BASS
Mary Christ Theresa Derr Juliane Dowell Kim Dunninger Beryl Fanslow Christina Graham Wendi Sue Grover Heather Gunnerson Stacie Hanson Jade Howard Shannon Lemmon-Elrod Sara Michael * Alicia Rigsby ∞ Brenda Rolling Pearl Rutherford Annie Sullins
Emily Alexander Jan Ankele Lindsey Aquilina Lizabeth Barnett Lyn Berry-Helmlinger Sarah Harrison § * Melissa Menter Erin Meyerhoff Jennifer Moore Kali Paguirigan Tegan Palmer Michelle Tombre Andrea Ware
Kai Berry-Helmlinger* Landon Covington Keith Ferguson Mason France Matthew Gierke Kevin Gunnerson Keith Harrison Jason Hindman Steve Howie Alex Menter Jonathan Von Stroh Ryan Wright
Michael Bizzaro Michael Boender Garth Criswell Andrew Halladay * Stephen Hooper Brad Jackson Karl Johnson Brad Larson John Ludwig Larry Meerdink Marc Petersen John Schaak Matt Weissenbuehler
* Section Leader
∞ Collaborative Pianist
§ Assistant Conductor
ABOUT THE CHOIR 9
ARTISTIC DIRECTOR
JOEL M. RINSEMA was named Artistic Director of Kantorei in 2014. Dedicated to expanding the artistic reach and transformative power of quality choral arts, he won the coveted Louis Botto Award for Innovative Action and Entrepreneurial Zeal from Chorus America in 2013. For 15 years, he served as the Assistant Conductor and President/ CEO of the Grammy-winning Phoenix Chorale, working with internationally renowned conductor Charles Bruffy. Joel assisted in all aspects of artistic planning and leadership, and during his tenure, Phoenix Chorale recordings earned a total
of two Grammy awards and eight Grammy nominations. The group’s recording “Northern Lights: Music of Ola Gjeilo” was named iTunes Classical Vocal Album of the year in 2012. Joel holds a Master of Music degree in vocal performance from Arizona State University, and a B.A. in vocal and choral performance from Whitworth College in Washington. In March of 2017, Joel began his tenure as the North American Choral Promotion Manager for Oxford University Press based in Oxford, England, United Kingdom in addition to his work with Kantorei.
SARAH HARRISON teaches choir and AP Music Theory at Cherry Creek High School in Greenwood Village. Under her direction, choirs have appeared at several regional and state conventions. She is also on faculty at the summer Sitka Fine Arts Camp in Alaska and serves on the board of Colorado All-State Choir. Prior to CCHS, Sarah opened and spent five years at Silver Creek Middle/Senior High School in Longmont, CO. In addition to teaching, Sarah sings with various
ensembles throughout the community, including Kantorei, and is an orchestral and jazz string bassist. She was Kantorei’s Interim Director for the 2013-2014 season, and recently served as Colorado’s ACDA High School Mixed Repertoire and Standards Chair. Sarah earned her Bachelor of Music Education degree, with instrumental and vocal certification, from St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minn., and her Master of Music in conducting and music education from Colorado State University.
ALICIA RIGSBY came to Colorado in 1997 after completing her Master of Music degree in piano performance and music theory at Indiana University, Bloomington. Alicia is one of the original members of Kantorei, both as a singer and accompanist. She has performed with the Estes Trio, the Aspen Music Festival and the Boulder Chamber Orchestra, and teaches music at the Homeschool Connection, an extension
of Woodrow Wilson Academy in Westminster. She is passionate about music as an art form, a teaching tool and an expressionistic medium, and enjoys having all of the musical opportunities in her life.
ASSISTANT CONDUCTOR
ACCOMPANIST
KANTOREI BOARD OF DIRECTORS Kevin Gunnerson, President Jason Hindman, Vice President Susan Lewkow, Treasurer Juliane Dowell, Secretary Mark Aquilina Michael Bizzaro Theresa Derr
Keith Ferguson Katherine Mulready -----------Sara Michael,
Administrative Assistant & Librarian
Sabrina Green,
*Kantorei is a 501(c)(3) organization and any donations to the group are deductible to the fullest extent allowed by law. Please consult your tax advisor for more information.
Marketing and Development Director
ABOUT THE STAFF & BOARD OF DIRECTORS