LUX AETERNA, May 21, 203

Sunday, May 21, 2023 at 5pm

All Souls Church

1157 Lexington Ave., New York, NY 10075

others

MESSAGE FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Welcome to the last concert of Musica Viva NY’s 2022-23 season!

What an amazing year it has been for Musica Viva NY! It was our first full season in person, post-pandemic, where we were able to perform to live audiences at our beautiful home at All Souls. We filled the sanctuary with the monumental sounds of Orff’s Carmina Burana and welcomed The Allen Stevenson School Select Chorus. We heard our quartet in residence, Aeolus Quartet, masterfully perform music by women composers, and we had an exceptionally unique and emotional experience listening to David Lang’s Little Match Girl Passion, coupled with peaceful and beautiful music written by living American composers. At our special and successful fund-raising event in February, Come (Back) to the Cabaret, our singers showcased their versatile musical talents spanning musical theater, jazz, bluegrass and much in-between.

And today we are ending on a high note, celebrating light, optimism, creativity, and renewal, and proudly presenting the world premiere of The Luminous Ground, commissioned by Musica Viva NY from the renowned composer, Richard Einhorn

This year, our Community Engagement programs have become a major part of our organization’s impact, with increased grants to support that work. In partnership with New York City public schools and New York Public Library, we have shared our musical knowledge and skills with hundreds of kids in all five boroughs. In addition, we are partnering with the New Amsterdam Boys and Girls Choir for workshops and performances, and restarting our “Music at Meals” performances for Monday Night Hospitality at All Souls.

Our exceptional Artistic Director Alejandro Hernandez-Valdez’s 10th year anniversary with Musica Viva NY is fast approaching, and thanks to the commitment of our Board, Foundation support and many individual donors, we are well on the way to making our first celebratory project a reality. Musica Viva NY’s first recording under Alejandro’s baton will happen this fall and will feature two of our commissions by living American composers - Joseph Turin and Gilda Lyons. You will find more details at the back of this program.

I too am approaching an anniversary - in my case the end of my first full season as the Executive Director of Musica Viva NY. I am so proud to be part of this excellent organization and I look forward to continuing my work with Alejandro and our extraordinary Board and team to grow and present programs and projects that bring solace and joy to as many people as possible in New York City and beyond. As one of our reviewers recently said: “Musica Viva NY is a treasured institution that makes living in New York City a joy”

As always thank you for coming, and thank you for supporting Musica Viva NY!

Sincerely,

—Jasna Vasić, Executive Director

Sunday, May 21, 2023 at 5 pm

All Souls Church

LUX AETERNA

Schubert, Einhorn, Lauridsen and others

Musica Viva NY Choir and Orchestra

Alejandro Hernandez-Valdez, conductor

Trent Johnson, piano

PROGRAM

Jessie Montgomery (1981-), ................................... Starburst

Judith Bingham (1952-), ................... The Darkness Is No Darkness

Emily Donato, soprano

Samuel Sebastian Wesley (1810-1876), Thou Wilt Keep Him in Perfect Peace

Franz Schubert (1797-1828), ............... Mass No. 2 in G Major, D. 167

I. Kyrie

II. Gloria

III. Credo

IV. Sanctus et Benedictus

V. Agnus Dei

Erinn Sensenig, soprano

Shawn Bartels, tenor

Paul Whelan, baritone Intermission

Richard Einhorn (1952-), The Luminous Ground (World premiere, commission by Musica Viva NY)

Morten Lauridsen (1943-), .................................. Lux Aeterna

I. Introitus

II. In Te, Domine, Speravi

III. O Nata Lux

IV. Veni, Sancte Spiritus

V. Agnus Dei - Lux Aeterna

We hope you will join us for a reception after the concert.

ABOUT THE PROGRAM

Musica Viva NY closes its 2022-2023 season with a program conjuring musical images of light, from sunbeams shining through stainedglass windows in houses of worship, to spherical rays radiating in various patterns across the galaxy. Allegories of light are omnipresent in the works programmed by Jessie Montgomery (b. 1981), Judith Bingham (b. 1952), Samuel Sebastian  Wesley (1810-1876), Franz Schubert (1797-1828), Richard Einhorn (b.1952), and Morten Lauridsen (b. 1943), whether light comes to symbolize religious salvation in the context of a mass setting, or implies personal enlightenment through artistic means.

The program opens with Jessie Montgomery’s Starburst (2021) for string orchestra. The work’s aesthetic reflects that of a starburst, its musical motifs and textures rapidly reforming to locate their place within the larger form of the constellation. Montgomery writes that within Starburst, “exploding gestures are juxtaposed with gentle fleeting melodies in an attempt to create a multidimensional soundscape.” The transformation of musical structures paired with dizzying virtuosic passages leaves no asteroid unturned in the search for enlightenment.

British composer Judith Bingham’s The Darkness Is No Darkness (1993) ushers us into a realm of traditional spiritual enlightenment. A fantasy on S. S. Wesley’s anthem Thou Wilt Keep Him in Perfect Peace (1853), Bingham’s choral work is set to biblical text from Isaiah 26 and Psalm 139. Meditative drones in the lower voices sing “there is no darkness” soon to be pierced by a beam of soprano clarity, God’s light vanquishing all darkness. Warm vocal harmonies eventually envelop the night, soon dissolving into soft hums. The Darkness Is No Darkness is followed by Wesley’s Anglican anthem, transporting us to the gothic arches of Winchester Cathedral with balanced part-writing reflecting the peace of one’s mind when focused on God.

This pairing prepares us for an expansion of liturgical enlightenment via Franz Schubert’s Mass no. 2 in G Major, D. 167 (1815). This six-movement missae breves was written by an 18-year-old Schubert in just six days and follows a typical mass ordinary setting intended for performance at Schubert’s home parish, the Lichtentaler Pfarrkirche in Vienna. The omnipresence of light as triumphing over darkness is heard through Schubert’s alternation between G and D major, keys contextually understood to communicate triumph, satisfaction, faith, and peace. The opening Kyrie does just this in presenting harmonic stability paired with a flowing triple-meter dance. We soon hear an extolling Gloria, the excitement momentarily interrupted by the soprano and bass duet of Domine Deus supported by choral responses ensuring God’s glory. The Credo presents a lesson in homophonic voice leading featuring expressive Romantic harmonies that serve the text. The choir begins by floating over a bass ostinato with the occasional dialogue between upper and lower voices until they converge when singing of the climatic crucifixion. Interestingly, Schubert’s setting of the Creed omits the text “I believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church,” a nod to his

ABOUT THE PROGRAM

reformist religious position under the guise of contemporary Josephism. The grandiose Sanctus features our first fugue of the mass, Osanna in excelsis ushering us to the Benedictus trio sung by soprano, tenor, and baritone soloists. This trio is soon echoed by the choir’s Osanna in excelsis fugue once more, rejoicing before the final movement shifts from exultation to reflection. A lento Agnus Dei closes the mass, the soprano and baritone soloists asking for mercy which is soon granted by the choir’s deliverance of “dona nobis pacem” as we return to our lucid home key.

Schubert’s mass is followed by the world premiere of a commission by Richard Einhorn titled The Luminous Ground (2023), expanding our interpretation of spiritual enlightenment. Einhorn’s inspiration for the work stems from Buddhist philosopher Nāgārjuna’s definition of “The Luminous Ground,” that which is the stage in a person’s progress towards enlightenment when “the pacifying light of wisdom dawns” and “attachment and aversion have thoroughly ceased.” This nearly unimaginable state of serenity materialized, for Einhorn, through the light sculptures of James Turrell, specifically, an installation at the Guggenheim Museum in 2013. “After writing (and rejecting) several extensive sketches that took a different approach,” Einhorn shares, “I returned to my initial impression of Turrell’s art and sought to turn its contemplative nature into a slow, gradually changing soundscape that always remains still and hushed. A wordless chorus performs long, sustained, overlapping drones that interweave with the strings. The piano plays simple chords and fragments of melody that, in the final section become a soft, chiming chord whose repetitions grow farther apart.”

The program closes with Morten Lauridsen’s Lux Aeterna (1997), composed as a means of solace as Lauridsen mourned the loss of his mother. Each movement of the work includes sacred Latin text that references light as a means of spiritual illumination. A solo organ Introitus featuring motives from Rilke’s Contre Qui, Rose and O Magnum Mysterium paves the way for chanting iterations of “Requiem aeternam,” the canon of voices climaxing as they sing of perpetual light, “Et lux perpetua.” The next movement, In Te, Domine, Speravi, references a 17th-century polyphonic setting of “Herzliebster Jesu,” transfiguring the perpetual light of our requiem into that of a meditative hymn. This pensive ambiance continues through O Nata Lux, an a cappella motet where the source of light is revealed to be one of salvation, of Jesus Christ. This meditation is brightened through Veni, Sancte Spiritus as the reintroduction of the organ celebrates the coming of the Holy Spirit. Lauridsen’s process of grief concludes in revisiting the opening Requiem soon followed by a celebration of “Alleluia,” as with death comes eternal life. The works featured in this program encourage us to embrace experiences of illumination and enlightenment in our lives, celebrating the endurance of evening light as we drift toward summer.

—Madison Schindele

MEET THE ARTISTS

Founded in 1977, Musica Viva NY is a chamber choir of thirty professionals and highly skilled volunteers, based in Manhattan’s historic All Souls Church. Its mission is to bring world-class music to a widening community through its annual concert series, community engagement programs, and an ambitious artistic vision. Under the baton of Alejandro Hernandez-Valdez since 2015, Musica Viva NY has been praised by The New York Times as an “excellent chorus.” Musica Viva NY has toured in France (2004), Germany (2006) and Italy (2012).

Esteemed conductor and pianist Dr. Alejandro Hernandez-Valdez is Artistic Director of Musica Viva NY and Director of Music at the historic Unitarian Church of All Souls in Manhattan. He is also Artistic Director and cofounder of the New Orchestra of Washington, and Artistic Director of the Victoria Bach Festival. He has earned accolades from The Washington Post as a conductor “with the incisive clarity of someone born to the idiom,” as well as praise from The New York Times for leading “a stirring performance” of Brahms’ Ein deutsches Requiem. At a concert commemorating the 100th Anniversary of the WWI Armistice (featuring the world premiere of Joseph Turrin’s cantata, And Crimson Roses Once Again Be Fair) Oberon’s Grove wrote: “Maestro Alejandro Hernandez-Valdez drew rich, warm sounds from the musicians” in “a beautiful and deeply moving program.” He is featured in El mundo en las manos/Creadores mexicanos en el extranjero (The World in Their Hands/Creative Mexicans Abroad), a book by the Mexican Ministry of Foreign Affairs honoring Mexican nationals who are leading figures in diverse artistic fields. He is the recipient of a 2016 Shenandoah Conservatory Alumni of Excellence Award for his exemplary contribution to his profession, national level of prominence, and exceptional integrity. A passionate advocate of new music, Hernandez-Valdez has commissioned and premiered works by Joan Tower, Arturo Márquez, Joseph Turrin, Gilda Lyons, Seymour Bernstein, Viet Cuong, Juan Pablo Contreras, Elena Ruehr, Ramzi Aburedwan, Jorge Vidales, Mokale Koapeng, Trent Johnson, Javier Farias, Andrés Levell, Zachary Wadsworth, Martin Spruijt, Joel Friedman, and other notable composers.

Hernandez-Valdez’s guest conducting engagements include appearances at The Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., Lincoln Center in New York City, and the historic Degollado Theatre in Guadalajara, Mexico, where he has directed the Jalisco Philharmonic. He resides in New York City.

Trent Johnson is the Assistant Director of Music and Organist of the All Souls Unitarian Congregation in NYC and Music Director and Conductor of the Oratorio Singers of Westfield, New Jersey. He is also an organist at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, where he plays the “Mighty Wurlitzer” organ for the Cristmas Spectacular Show. He is a graduate of the Peabody Institute of the

MEET THE ARTISTS

Johns Hopkins University and The Juilliard School.  He has recorded the organ works of Pulitzer Prize winning composer George Walker for Albany Records, and is a frequent collaborator with brass instrumentalists. As a composer, he has written numerous works for chorus and orchestra, orchestral works, concertos, chamber music, song cycles, an opera, and works for organ and piano. Trent is the recipient of grants from  Meet the Composer, funding from the NEA, and is the recipient of the Wladimir and Rhoda Lakond Award in composition from the American Academy of Arts and Letters in New York City.

Shawn Bartels, Tenor, is a native of Gillette, Wyoming. Roles include Count Almaviva (Il Barbiere di Siviglia), Lindoro  (L’Italiana in Algieri), Il Podestà (La finta giardiniera), Nanki-Poo (The Mikado), The Vain Man/ The Snake (The Little Prince), Alfred (Die Fledermaus), the Roasting Swan (Carmina Burana) and St. Nicolas in Britten’s  Saint Nicolas. He appeared as the Ballad Singer (Of Mice and Men) with Glimmerglass Opera. Mr. Bartels sang Uriel (The Creation) under the baton of Robert Shaw, appeared at Carnegie Hall in both Mozart’s Vesperae de Dominica and Coronation Mass and appeared in Jonathan Miller›s stagings of Bach›s  St. Matthew Passion and Monteverdi›s  L’Incoronazione di Poppea at The Brooklyn Academy of Music. He performed The Prologue/Quint (The Turn of the Screw) with Broomhill Opera (London) and Skylight Opera, and sang Don Ottavio (Don Giovanni) with Ensemble D’Opera European (Marseille, France).  Most recently, Shawn has appeared with the Victoria Bach Festival, the Society of Musical Arts and the State Repertory Opera of New Jersey.  He has been a soloist with Musica Viva NY since 1996.  He received his Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance from the University of Northern Colorado and his Master in Music in Vocal Performance from Florida State University.  Shawn is a member of the New York guitar-pop band Portraiture, who released their EP, “Cruel Yellow” in 2017.

Soprano Emily Donato, born and based in New York City, most recently appeared as the soprano soloist in Bach’s B Minor Mass at Carnegie Hall with the Oratorio Society of New York led by Maestro Kent Tritle, and in the same work with Voices of Ascension led by Maestro Dennis Keene in April 2022. This summer, Emily will be Soprano Fellow and member of the Virginia Best Adams Masterclass Quartet at the Carmel Bach Festival. In 2021, she was awarded first prize in the Lyndon-Woodside Oratorio Competition held at Riverside Church in NYC. Ms. Donato has performed as a soloist with Maestros Masaaki Suzuki, Simon Carrington, David Hill, and Nicholas McGegan. Emily is an alumni of the Grammy award winning Brooklyn Youth Chorus, holds her Bachelor of Arts in Music from Bard College, and her Master’s in Music from the Yale School of Music.

MEET THE ARTISTS

Currently based in Brooklyn, NY, soprano and voice teacher Erinn Sensenig is a passionate performer of early music and the music of living composers, both as professional choir member and soloist. She was most recently seen as History Teacher in Paul’s Case and as a soprano soloist in Handel’s Messiah with Ad Astra Music Festival. Erinn has recently been seen as choir member and soloist with the choirs of The Cathedral Church of Saint John the Divine, Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church, Temple E-manuel, Unitarian Church of All Souls, Ember Ensemble, Musica Viva NY, New York Virtuoso Singers, the American Symphony Orchestra. When living in Texas, Erinn performed with professional ensembles including Victoria Bach Festival and Orpheus Chamber Singers. She was a founding member of Verdigris Ensemble, a Dallas choir focused on multidisciplinary performance. Erinn is a staff singer and Artistic Operations Manager at Unitarian Church of All Souls in Manhattan. Erinn received a degree in Music Education from Westminster Choir College. She owns Noisemaker Studios, where she teaches private voice students ages 12 and up.

Born in Christchurch, New Zealand, Paul Whelan’s international career has included debuts at the Metropolitan Opera, Royal Opera Covent Garden, Paris Opera, Bolshoi Opera, Hamburg State Opera, Bavarian State Opera, Netherlands Opera, Welsh National Opera, English National Opera, Opera Australia, Kansas, New Orleans and Boston Lyric Opera. Recent roles have included Gremin in Eugene Onegin (Lyric Opera Kansas City) Daland in Der Fliegende Hollander (Hawaii, NZ) Timur in Turandot (Opera New Orleans) Raimondo in Lucia (ENO) Seneca in L’Incoronazione di Poppea (Lille, Dijon) Nick Shadow in The Rakes Progress (NZO) Banco in Macbeth (Opera North) Figaro, Dikoy in Katya Kabanova (Scottish Opera) Giorgio in I Puritani (Boston Lyric Opera, Opera Victoria) Don Giovanni (Opera Australia, NZ Opera, Lithuania and Prague) Commendatore (Garsington festival, Theatre de Champs Elysee) Conductors with whom he has collaborated include Sir Simon Rattle, Kent Nagano, Yehudi Menuhin, Valery Gergiev, Gary Bertini, David Zinman, Andris Nelsons, David Robertson, Nello Santi, Sir Colin Davis, Sir Charles Mackerras. Recordings include A Midsummer Night’s Dream with LSO (Phillips) and L’Incoronazione di Poppea (Virgin Classics). Paul is a winner of the Cardiff Singer of the world Lieder prize and pursues a busy concert career.

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TEXTS

The Darkness is No Darkness

Judith Bingham

The darkness is no darkness with Thee, But the night is as clear as the day, The darkness and the light (no darkness at all), In Thee is no darkness at all, But the night is as clear as the day. Surely the darkness shall cover Thee? In Him is no darkness at all.

from Isaiah 26 and Psalm 139

Thou Wilt Keep Him in Perfect Peace

S.S. Wesley

Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on Thee. The darkness is no darkness with Thee, But the night is as clear as the day. The darkness and the light to Thee are both alike, God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. For Thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory, For ever more.

Schubert Mass in G

Kyrie

Kyrie eleison. Christe eleison. Kyrie eleison.

Gloria

Gloria in excelsis Deo, Et in terra pax hominibus bonae voluntatis.

Laudamus te, benedicimus te, Adoramus te, glorificamus te.

Gratias agimus tibi propter magnam gloriam tuam.

Domine Deus, Rex coelestis, Deus Pater omnipotens.

Domine Fili unigenite, Jesu Christe.

Domine Deus, Agnus Dei, Filius Patris.

from Isaiah 26 and Psalm 139

Kyrie Lord, have mercy. Christ, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.

Gloria Glory to God in the highest, And peace on earth to men of good will. We praise you, we bless you, We worship you, we glorify you. We give you thanks for your great glory.

Lord God, King of Heaven, God the Father Almighty. Lord only-begotten Son, Jesus Christ.

Lord God, Lamb of God, Son of the Father.

Qui tollis peccata mundi, Miserere nobis.

Qui tollis peccata mundi, [Suscipe deprecationem nostram. Qui sedes ad dexteram Patris, miserere nobis.]

Quoniam tu solus sanctus, tu solus Dominus, Tu solus altissimus, [Jesu Christe.]

Cum Sancto Spiritu in gloria Dei Patris, Amen.

TEXTS

You who take away the sin of the world, Have mercy on us. You who take away the sin of the world, [Hear our prayer. you who sit at the right hand of the Father, have mercy on us.]

For you alone are holy, you alone are Lord, you alone are the Most High, [Jesus Christ.]

With the Holy Spirit in the glory of God the Father, Amen.

Credo

Credo in unum Deum, Patrem omnipotentem, factorem coeli et terrae, visibilium omnium et invisibilium. [Et] in unum Dominum Jesum Christum, Filium Dei unigenitum, [et] ex patre natum

ante omnia saecula, Deum de Deo, lumen de lumine, Deum verum de Deo vero.

Genitum non factum, consubstantialem Patri; per quem omnia facta sunt.

Qui propter nos homines et [propter] nostram salutem descendit de coelis.

Et incarnatus est de Spiritu Sancto, ex Maria virgine; et homo factus est.

Crucifixus etiam pro nobis sub Pontio Pilato, passus et sepultus est.

Et resurrexit tertia die secundum Scripturas, et ascendit in coelum, sedet ad dexteram Patris, et iterum venturus est cum gloria, judicare vivos et mortuos, cujus regni non erit finis.

Et in Spiritum Sanctum Dominum, et vivificantem, qui ex Patre Filioque procedit,

Credo

I believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is, seen and unseen. [And] in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father, God from God, light from light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, of one being with the Father; through him all things were made. For us and [for] our salvation he came down from heaven. He became incarnate from the Virgin Mary by the power of the Holy Spirit, and was made man. For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate; he suffered death and was buried. He rose again on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures; he ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of the Father; he will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end. And I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of Life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son;

TEXTS

qui cum Patre et Filio simul adoratur, et conglorificatur, qui locutus est per Prophetas.

[Et unam sanctam catholicam et apostolicam Eccelsiam.]

Confiteor unum baptisma in remissionem peccatorum, [et expecto resurrectionem] mortuorum, et vitam venturi saeculi. Amen.

with the Father and the Son he is worshipped and glorified. He has spoken through the prophets.

[I believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church;]

I acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins;

[I look for the resurrection] of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen.

Sanctus

Sanctus, Sanctus, Sanctus, Dominus Deus Sabaoth.

Pleni sunt coeli et terra gloria tua. Osanna in excelsis.

Benedictus

Benedictus qui venit in nomine Domini.

Osanna in excelsis.

Agnus Dei

Agnus Dei qui tollis peccata mundi, miserere nobis.

Agnus Dei qui tollis peccata mundi, miserere nobis.

Agnus Dei qui tollis peccata mundi, dona nobis pacem.

Lux Aeterna - Lauridsen

Introitus

Requiem aeternam dona eis, Domine, et lux perpetua luceat eis

Te decet hymnus, Deus, in Sion, et tibi reddetur votum in Jerusalem: Exaudi orationem meam, ad te omnis caro veniet.

Requiem aeternam dona eis, Domine, et lux perpetua luceat eis.

Sanctus

Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of Hosts. Heaven and earth are full of your glory, Hosannah in the highest.

Benedictus

Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord, Hosannah in the highest.

Agnus Dei

Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world, have mercy on us. Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world, have mercy on us. Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world, grant us peace.

Rest eternal grant them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine on them.

You are praised, God, in Zion, And homage will be paid to you in Jerusalem: Hear my prayer, To you all flesh will come. Rest eternal grant them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine on them.

TEXTS

In Te, Domine, Speravi

Tu ad liberandum suscepturus hominem

non horruisti Virginis uterum. Tu devicto mortis aculeo, aperuisti credentibus regna cœlorum.

Exortum est in tenebris lumen rectis. Miserere nostri, Domine, miserere nostri.

Fiat misericordia tua, Domine, super nos quemadmodum speravimus in te.

In te Domine, speravi: non confundar in aeternum.

In Te, Domine, Speravi

Tu ad liberandum suscepturus hominem

non horruisti Virginis uterum. Tu devicto mortis aculeo, aperuisti credentibus regna cœlorum.

Exortum est in tenebris lumen rectis. Miserere nostri, Domine, miserere nostri.

Fiat misericordia tua, Domine, super nos quemadmodum speravimus in te.

In te Domine, speravi: non confundar in aeternum.

O Nata Lux

O nata lux de lumine, Jesu redemptor saeculi, dignare clemens supplicum laudes preces que sumere. Qui carne quondam contegi dignatus es pro perditis. Nos membra confer effici, tui beati corporis.

Veni, Sancte Spiritus

Veni, Sancte Spiritus et emitte cœlitus lucis tuae radium. Veni, pater pauperum, veni, dator munerum, veni, lumen cordium.

Thou, having delivered mankind, did not disdain the Virgin’s womb. Thou overcame the sting of death and opened to believers the kingdom of heaven.

A light has risen in the darkness for the upright.

Have mercy on us, O Lord, have mercy on us.

Let thy mercy be upon us, O Lord, for we have hoped in thee. In thee, O Lord, I have trusted: let me never be confounded.

Thou, having delivered mankind, did not disdain the Virgin’s womb. Thou overcame the sting of death and opened to believers the kingdom of heaven.

A light has risen in the darkness for the upright. Have mercy on us, O Lord, have mercy on us. Let thy mercy be upon us, O Lord, for we have hoped in thee. In thee, O Lord, I have trusted: let me never be confounded.

O born light of light, Jesus redeemer of the world, mercifully deem worthy and accept praises and prayers from your supplicants.

Who once was clothed in the flesh for those who are lost. Allow us to become members of your holy body.

Come, Holy Spirit, And send from heaven

Your ray of light.

Come, Father of the poor, Come, giver of gifts, Come, light of hearts.

Consolator optime, dulcis hospes animae, dulce refrigerium. In labore requies, in aestu temperies, in fletu solatium.

O lux beatissima, reple cordis intima Tuorum fidelium. Sine tuo numine, nihil est in homine, nihil est innoxium.

Lava quod est sordidum, riga quod est aridum, sana quod est saucium. Flecte quod est rigidum, fove quod est frigidum, rege quod est devium.

Da tuis fidelibus, in te confidentibus, sacrum septenarium. Da virtutis meritum, da salutis exitum, da perenne gaudium.

Agnus Dei – Lux Aeterna

Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi, dona eis requiem.

Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi, dona eis requiem.

Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi, dona eis requiem sempiternam. Lux aeterna luceat eis, Domine, cum sanctis tuis in aeternum, quia pius es.

Requiem aeternum dona eis, Domine, et lux perpetua luceat eis. Alleluia. Amen.

The best of Consolers, Sweet guest of the soul, Sweet refreshment. In labor, thou art rest, In heat, thou art the tempering, In grief, thou art the consolation.

O light most blessed, Fill the inmost heart Of all thy faithful. Without your grace, There is nothing in us, Nothing that is not harmful.

Cleanse what is dirty, Moisten what is dry, Heal what is hurt. Flex what is rigid, Heat what is frigid, Correct what goes astray.

Grant to thy faithful, Those that trust in thee, Thy sacred seven-fold gifts. Grant the reward of virtue, Grant the deliverance of salvation, Grant joy everlasting.

Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, grant them rest. Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, grant them rest. Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, grant them rest forever.

May eternal light shine on them, Lord, as with your saints in eternity, because you are merciful. Grant them eternal rest, Lord, and let perpetual light shine on them, Alleluia. Amen.

MUSICA VIVA NY AND ORCHESTRA

Soprano

Beth Clancy

Emily Donato*

Mary Esbjornson

Katie McCreary*

Emily Mikesell

Erinn Sensenig*

Laura Villanueva

Reldalee Wagner

Elena Williamson*

Kate Wolfe

Sarah Worthington

Alto

Michelle Demko

Holly Drew

Rodolfo Girón*

Kate Katigbak

Madalyn Luna*

Dinah Nissen

Devony Smith*

Andrew Troup*

Tenor

Shawn Bartels*

Paul D’Arcy*

Erik Rasmussen

Erik Resurreccion

Nathan Siler*

Bass

David Baldwin*

James Dargan*

Matt Goinz*

Matt Mueller*

Harold Norris

Paul Whelan*

Augustus Young *section leader

Violin 1

Doori Na, Concertmaster

Jeremiah Blacklow

Hannah Min

Violin 2

KJ McDonald*

Ben Russell

Viola

Amadi Azikiwe*

Vitalii Yaremii

Maurycy Banaszek

Cello Caleb van der Swaagh*

Bass

Lizzie Burns*

Flute

Ryu Cipris

Oboe

Kemp Jernigan

Clarinet

Bixby Kennedy

Bassoon

Erik Holtje

Horns

Rachel Drehmann

Ray Henninger

Bass trombone

Jennifer Wharton

*principal

SPONSOR MUSICA VIVA NY

There are many opportunities to play a role in bringing Musica Viva NY ’s season to life as a sponsor, including:

• Underwrite a concert

• Underwrite a recording

• Underwrite a tour

• Underwrite the appearance of a guest artist

Naming opportunities are available for sponsors.

Contact Jasna Vasić, Executive Director at jasna@musicaviva.org .

MUSICA VIVA NY

Alejandro Hernandez-Valdez

Conductor and Artistic Director

Trent Johnson

Assistant Director of Music

Jasna Vasić Executive Director

Erinn Sensenig

Operations and Production Manager

Our Team

Dinah Nissen, Esq.

Marketing Director

Kate Phillips

Director of Community Engagement

Barbara de Bellis Librarian

Nathan Siler

Digital Marketing Consultant

Board of Directors

Julie Brannan President

Heidi DuBois Vice-President

Winnie Olsen Secretary

Lisa O’Brien, Esq. Treasurer

Constance Beavon

Shu-Wie Chen

Melanie Niemiec

Dinah Nissen, Esq.

Advisory Board

Harold Norris

Kate Phillips

David Rockefeller, Jr.

Thomas Simpson

Seymour Bernstein

Laurel Blossom

Renée Fleming

Galen Guengerich

Susan Jolles

Walter Klauss

Artistic Director Emeritus

Jean-Louis Petit

Bruce Saylor

To find out about ways to support Musica Viva NY through employer matching, volunteering, and monthly giving, please contact our Executive Director at jasna@musicaviva.org

MUSICA VIVA NY PATRONS 2022-23

We are deeply grateful to our Patrons listed below for their support of our 2022-2023 season. Thank you for joining us! Your support for our outstanding Musica Viva NY artists, our high-caliber, innovative choral and chamber music performances, and our community engagement is vital and essential.

Corporate and Foundation Support

The Heart & Soul Charitable Fund

New York City Department of Cultural Affairs

The Alice M. Ditson Fund

The Rea Charitable Fund

The Blackbaud Giving Fund

The Womens’ Alliance

Appassionato $10,000 and above

Melanie & David Niemiec

Susan & David Rockefeller, Jr.

Con Fuoco $5,000 to $9,999

Don & Georgia Gogel

Jennifer Shotwell

Con Brio $3,000 to $4,999

Shu-Wie Chen

Heidi & Nicholas DuBois

Lois Gaeta, in Memory of David Remember Baker

Pamela Healey

Gunleif Jacobsen & Thomas Simpson Charitable Fund

Dinah Nissen & Elizabeth Apelles

Lisa O’Brien

Fritz Reuter

Madonna K. Starr

Brenda Walker & Peter Swords

Susan Witter

Risoluto $1,000 - $2,999

Constance Beavon

Bill Bechman & Tom Garlock

Tom & Heli Blum

Julie Brannan

Lisa & Richard Cashin

Eleanor Drew

Victor Fidel & Heather Floyd

Galen Guengerich & Holly Atkinson

Elizabeth Harvey

Cherie Henderson & David Poppe

Lena Kaplan

Carri Lyon

Margaret T. MacCary

Ricardo Mestres Jr. & & Patricia T. Hayot

Harold Norris & Kell Julliard

Winnie Olsen

Laura Pedersen

Lynne Randall & Tom Malone

One anonymous donor

Espressivo $500 - $999

Lynne & Richard Allen

Barbara de Bellis, in memory of

Greta Minsky

Robin Bossert

Miles Chapin

Sandra Fisher

Dixie Goss & Dan Cryer

Mary Gundermann

Rose Marie Morse

Kate Phillips

Karen Steele

Deborah Taylor

Beverley Benz Treuille & Phillippe Treuille

Ned Whitney & Martha Howell

Klaus & Aracy Winter

One anonymous donor

MUSICA VIVA NY PATRONS 2022-23

Cantabile $150 - $499

Christina Bellamy

Heather Campbell

Marjory & Jeffrey Friedlander

Mary Geissman

Dana Ivey

Michele Jawin & Dr. Mark Kroll

Beryl Jones-Woodin

Steven Lane

Rev. Dick Leonard*

Millie & John Liebmann

Dede McMahon

Marilynn Scott Murphy

Eleanor Preiss

Marilyn Reagan

Katherine Redd

Claire Richard

Bradford & Gail Rodney

Judith Samuelson & Vic Henschel

Paula Stelzner

Alison Tung

Stacy Westreich

Four anonymous donors

Dolce $25 - $149

Anne Brewer

Danielle Buonaiuto

Michelle Demko

Millicent Essandoh-Bergwerk

Bonnie Hetzel

Nancy Jacobson

Elaine Jurumbo

Peggy Kampmeier & Ed Harsh

Carol Kirkman

Kimberley Kriger

Elizabeth Millard Whitman

Nathalie Moore

Rosanna Nissen

Elizabeth Novak

Mary Persic

Priscilla Pochna

Linda Rousseau

Arvind Seth

Ellen & John Shapiro

Sarah Woods

Brad Woolbright

Two anonymous donors

*Deceased

This list reflects gifts received from June 1, 2022 to May 10, 2023.

MUSICA VIVA NY 2023-2024 SEASON

We are close to finalizing our 2023-2024 season and will be announcing the details soon. In the meantime, please save the dates and review the exciting benefits available at certain levels of support on the next page (you will see some changes from 20222023 benefits):

2023-2024 CONCERT SEASON DATES

October 29, 2023: Mexamophorsis

December 3, 2023: Crimson Roses

March 3, 2024: Because

May 19, 2024: Perpetual Light

PATRON SUPPORT LEVELS FOR OUR 2023-2024 SEASON

We need your generous contributions for our 2023-2024 season to support the outstanding concerts and community engagement programming of the Musica Viva NY choir and instrumentalists. There is a level for every budget, and you will enjoy special benefits as a measure of our thanks. Your contribution can be made as a one-time gift, or on a recurring basis.

PATRON LEVELS

APPASSIONATO

$10,000 and above

• Invitation to a dinner featuring a special performance by the Artistic Director

• Invitation to a season preview with the Artistic Director in the choir loft

• Six complimentary season subscriptions

• Reserved seating

• Two free passes to each concert’s Saturday dress rehearsal

CON FUOCO

$5,000 to $9,999

• Invitation to a dinner featuring a special performance by the Artistic Director

• Invitation to a season preview with the Artistic Director in the choir loft

• Five complimentary season subscriptions

• Reserved seating

• Two free passes to each concert’s Saturday dress rehearsal

CON BRIO

$3,000 to $4,999

• Invitation to a dinner featuring a special performance by the Artistic Director

• Invitation to a season preview with the Artistic Director in the choir loft

• Four complimentary season subscriptions

• Reserved seating

• Two free passes to each concert’s Saturday dress rehearsal

RISOLUTO

$1,000 to $2,999

• Invitation to a season preview with the Artistic Director in the choir loft

• Three complimentary season subscriptions

• Reserved seating

• Two free passes to each concert’s Saturday dress rehearsal

ESPRESSIVO

$500 to $999

• Invitation to a season preview with the Artistic Director in the choir loft

• Two complimentary season subscriptions

• Preferred seating

CANTABILE

$150 - $499

• Invitation to a season preview with the Artistic Director in the choir loft

• One complimentary season subscription

• Preferred seating

DOLCE $25-$149

• Acknowledgment in program at all levels

Please support Musica Viva NY’s recording project: Matching grant until May 31, 2023!

As the tenth anniversary of Alejandro Hernandez-Valdez’ tenure as Artistic Director of Musica Viva NY approaches, we are excited to announce a plan to honor his accomplishments. This November Musica Viva NY is going to make a recording featuring two pieces Alejandro has chosen that are close to his heart - both were commissioned and premiered by Musica Viva NY.

Joseph Turrin wrote his cantata And Crimson Roses Once Again Be Fair using texts by war poets, to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the end of World War One. Musica Viva NY performed it with orchestra on that anniversary.

Gilda Lyon’s piece Momotombo is scored for a cappella chorus and Musica Viva NY gave its world premiere on March 27, 2022. The composer wrote the eponymous piece about a famous volcanic formation in Nicaragua.

We plan to release the recording and CD in the spring of 2024, to coincide with the unveiling in Washington, DC of a sculpture wall titled “A Soldier’s Journey” which will be the central feature of the World War I memorial there.

In addition to some other funding we have secured, we need to raise $25,000. If we do that by the end of May we will achieve our fundraising goal, because that $25,000 will be matched dollar for dollar by a generous Musica Viva NY Board member. At May 11, thanks to many generous supporters, we were almost two-thirds of the way to our goal and we are hoping that you will help close the gap.

We are extremely grateful to The Alice M. Ditson Fund for its support of this project, and to those listed below for their generous support towards raising that $25,000:

Shellie Bailkin, Bill Bechman & Tom Garlock, Julie Brannan, Anne Brewer, Eleanor Drew, Richard Einhorn, Lois Gaeta, Elizabeth B. Harvey Fund, Pamela Healey, Lena Kaplan, Carol Kirkman, Millie & John Liebmann, Margaret MacCary, Miriam Michel, Melanie & David Niemiec, Dinah Nissen, George & Jane Nissen, Mary Persic, Priscilla Pochna, Katherine Redd, Fritz Reuter, Elaine Richard, Susan & David Rockefeller, Jr., Epp Sonin, Madonna Starr, Karen Steele, William Steele, Brenda Walker & Peter Swords, Margaret Williamson, Rachel Ziemba, two anonymous gifts, and the matching grant of $20,000 from our generous anonymous donor.

Reflects contributions made from March 3, 2023 to May 11, 2023

For more information about the project and how to support it visit our website at www.musicaviva.org.

Musica Viva NY is extremely grateful for the following help with its 2022-23 season from:

All Souls NYC (www.AllSoulsNYC.org) for Musica Viva NY’s meeting, rehearsal, performance, and reception spaces as well as for the facilities and events staff who help make all productions run smoothly

Heart & Soul Fund, Inc. for its longtime support of our outreach programming

MVNY’s Community Engagement is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council

The Women’s Alliance

Musica Viva NY 1157 Lexington Avenue New York, NY 10075 212 794 3646

info@musicaviva.org