16 minute read
Program 1: Messiah Artist Profiles:
FORT WORTH SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
ROBERT SPANO, MUSIC DIRECTOR KEVIN JOHN EDUSEI, PRINCIPAL GUEST CONDUCTOR KEITH CERNY, Ph.D., PRESIDENT AND CEO Saturday, December 10, 2022, at 7:30 p.m. Will Rogers Auditorium Fort Worth, TX
Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra George Jackson, Conductor Molly Netter, Soprano Luthien Brackett, Mezzo-soprano Steven Soph, Tenor Jonathan Woody, Bass The University of North Texas A Cappella Choir
HÄNDEL’s Messiah
Sinfonia
PART, THE FIRST Arioso (Tenor): Comfort ye, my people Aria (Tenor): Ev'ry valley shall be exalted Chorus: And the Glory of the Lord Recitative (Bass): Thus saith the Lord Aria (Alto): But who may abide the day of His coming Chorus: And He shall purify Recitative (Alto): Behold, a virgin shall conceive Air (Alto) and Chorus: O thou that tellest good tidings to Zion Arioso (Bass): For behold, darkness shall cover the earth Air (Bass): The people that walked in darkness Chorus: For unto us a Child is Born Pifa (Pastoral Symphony) Recitative (Soprano): There were shepherds abiding in the field Arioso (Soprano): And lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them Recitative (Soprano): And the angel said unto them Arioso (Soprano): And suddenly, there was with the angel
Chorus: Glory to God Air (Soprano): Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion Recitative (Alto): Then shall the eyes of the blind Air (Alto & Soprano): He shall feed his flock like a shepherd Chorus: His yoke is easy, and His burthen is light
Intermission
PART, THE SECOND Chorus: Behold the Lamb of God Air (Alto): He was despised Chorus: All we like sheep have gone astray Recitative (Soprano): He was cut off out of the land of the living Air (Soprano): But Thou didst not leave His soul in Hell Air (Bass): Why do the nations so furiously rage together Air (Tenor): Thou shalt break them Chorus: Hallelujah
PART, THE THIRD Air (Soprano): I know that my Redeemer liveth Chorus: Since by man came death Recitative (Bass): Behold, I tell you a mystery Air (Bass): The trumpet shall sound Chorus: Worthy is the Lamb that was slain / Amen
Video or audio recording of this performance is strictly prohibited. Patrons arriving late will be seated during the first convenient pause. Program and artists are subject to change.
PROGRAM NOTES : GEORGE FRIDERIC HANDEL
MESSIAH
Part I Part II Part III
DURATION: About 105 minutes
PREMIERED: Dublin, 1742
INSTRUMENTATION: Two oboes, two bassoons, two trumpets, timpani and strings, harpsichord, organ, chorus, and soprano, alto, tenor and bass soloists
“I should be sorry if I only entertained them. I wish to make them better.”
— George Frideric Handel (Born 1685 Germany; died 1759)
ORATORIO: a long dramatic composition based on a religious theme for solo voices, chorus, and orchestra, and performed without action, costume or scenery.
FURTHER LISTENING:
Handel: Deidamia (HWV 42) Samson (HWV 57) Te Deum for the Victory of Dettingen in D major, HWV 283
Mendelssohn: Elijah
by Jeremy Reynolds
The difference between opera and oratorio is simple: operas are fully staged productions with costumes and sets and narrative. Oratorios are more often dramatized religious works performed as concert works.
Handel was a master of both genres. The German composer decided in 1712 to make England his home, supported by a healthy salary of £200 a year from Queen Anne. His early operas, written in the Italian opera seria style, delighted and captivated the British public, but tastes evolved over the decades — by the time he composed his ill-fated Deidamia, its 1741 premiere only received two follow-up performances, rendering the work an artistic and financial failure.
He abandoned opera for oratorio. Handel had already written a couple of successful oratorios, and after the disastrous Deidamia debacle, a previous collaborator, Charles Jennens, sent Handel the oratorical text that would become Messiah. Handel attacked the project with fervor — the speed with which he set the text to music is legendary. Some have attributed that efficiency to religious ecstasy. Really, while Handel was a practicing member of the Church of England, much of the speed can be attributed to the fact that Handel borrowed melodies from many of his previous works, adjusting them into a brilliant, cohesive whole.
(Jennens, a catty writer of middling talent and lofty ego, disagreed, remarking: “a fine Entertainment, tho’ not near so good as he might & ought to have done.” Curmudgeon.)
The music, written for a smaller complement of musicians than in his previous operas, begins with stately dotted rhythms, traditionally associated with royalty. Messiah, of course, draws on Biblical texts, a blend of Old Testament and New to detail the story of the birth and resurrection of Christ. Part I details the prophesies and annunciation to the shepherds. Part II centers on the Passion of Jesus, culminating in the famous Hallelujah Chorus. Part III is about the resurrection and Christ’s heavenly glorification. To illustrate these texts, Handel composed an inventive series of aria-like songs and choruses, all with captivating melodies and contrapuntal trappings.
At nearly two hours of music, there’s not a single dominating tonal center. That said, Handel bases much of the dramatic drive around a push toward the key of D Major, musically illustrating Christ’s ascension by associating this key with the glory of Christ in heaven. The Part I aria, “But who may abide,” fixes on D minor, and from there, the music pushes toward the brilliant D major of the chorus “Glory to God in the Highest,” where the trumpets enter for the first time. Part II features music as far away from D as possible as Christ wanders the earth (“He was despised” is in E-flat major, a key that wouldn’t appear at all in music in D), but this part finishes with the Hallelujah Chorus in a resplendent D major. Part III features the famous “The Trumpet Shall Sound” and wraps with a D major “Amen.”
Messiah is Handel’s most famous work, regularly performed around Christmas time to this day and one of the best-loved works in the classical canon.
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ABOUT GEORGE JACKSON
George Jackson is quickly making a name for the breadth and commitment of his work, whether in opera, symphonic repertoire or contemporary scores, building strong relationships with the orchestras he conducts. Jackson is Music Director of the Amarillo Symphony, and will lead them in their Centenary year in 2023-24.
Jackson’s skill in preparing complex scores has led to an ongoing relationship with Ensemble Intercontemporain. Together they released the world premiere recording of Steve Reich’s Reich/ Richter on Nonesuch Records, following successful performances of the work in Rome, Paris and Luxembourg. He also conducted the group for the French premieres of works by Rebecca Saunders and James Dillon at the 2019 Festival d’Automne à Paris. With Collegium Novum Zürich Jackson conducted Noli me tangere, a new work by Isabel Mundry, and with Brussels Philharmonic he led the world premiere of Claire-Mélanie Sinnhuber’s new work, Chahut.
He is increasingly sought-after as a guest with European orchestras, who appreciate his fearless conducting and thorough rehearsal technique. Recent engagements include Orchestre de Paris, RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Birmingham Contemporary Music Group, and the orchestra of Opéra de Rouen.
Praised for his natural affinity for opera, he has received acclaim for his work in productions of Hänsel und Gretel and The Excursions of Mr Brouček (Grange Park Opera), Le nozze di Figaro (Opera Holland Park), and Il barbiere di Siviglia (Theater an der Wien). Future plans include the world premiere of Gods of the Game, a collaborative opera commissioned by Sky Arts for Grange Park Opera.
-Robert Matthew-Walker, Classical Source
The son of actor parents, Jackson began inventing theatrical entertainments with his sister at an early age, as well as learning the violin, and later served as a drummer and guitarist in post-punk, rock and Irish folk bands, developing broad musical tastes that he retains to this day.
Jackson's formative experiences include his participation at Lucerne Festival Academy and at Aspen Music Festival, where he was awarded the Aspen Conducting Prize in 2015. He is passionate and informed about the art and traditions of conducting, and regularly passes on his enthusiasm through podcasts on the subject.
ABOUT MOLLY NETTER
A versatile and joyous musician, Canadian-American soprano Molly Netter enlivens complex and beautiful music, both old and new, with “a natural warmth” (LA Times) and “clear, beautiful tone and vivacious personality” (NY Times). She can be heard on five GRAMMYnominated albums since 2017 and has performed as a soloist with ensembles such as the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, New World Symphony, the Boston Early Music Festival, Apollo’s Fire, Musica Angelica, Contemporaneous, Juilliard415, Heartbeat Opera, and the Bang on a Can All-Stars. She has been a full-time member of the Choir at Trinity Wall Street since 2015. Molly is an active performer, curator, educator and advocate of new music, regularly commissioning new works by living composers. Recent collaborators include David Lang, Julia Wolfe, Amy Beth Kirsten, Doug Balliett, Katherine Balch, Molly Joyce, and Jessica Meyer, among others. Notable chamber performance highlights include inaugural casts of Pulitzerwinning operas Angel’s Bone (Du Yun, 2015) and PRISM (Ellen Reid, 2017). She was a featured curator/performer on Trinity Wall Street’s 2018 acclaimed “Time’s Arrow Festival,” programming an eclectic evening of Barbara Strozzi paired with newly commissioned contemporary works. In 2020 she began commissioning an entirely new repertoire for self-accompanied singer and clavicytherium, emphasizing the florid voice, early music vocal techniques and improvisation as a bridge between style and genre.
Molly holds a BM in composition and contemporary voice from Oberlin Conservatory and an MM in early music voice from the Yale Institute of Sacred Music. She is currently on voice faculty at the Oberlin Baroque Performance Institute.
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ABOUT LUTHIEN BRACKETT
Born in San Diego, California to parents who loved to read, Luthien was named for the character of the elf princess Lúthien Tinùviel in J.R.R. Tolkien’s legendarium. According to her mother and father, at the age of two, she clambered up onto the table during a dinner party and sang “You Light Up My Life” from start to finish with perfect pitch. That was probably her first public performance.
Praised by the press for her “lushness and delicacy,” “easy, appealing alto” and “silky tone among all registers,” Luthien is in great demand as a concert soloist and professional chorister. She received her undergraduate training at Westminster Choir College in Princeton, New Jersey, where she was a member of the Westminster Choir and sang under the batons of some of the world’s most respected conductors, including Wolfgang Sawallisch and Kurt Masur. After completing her Bachelors degree, she entered the professional arena, and spent many years building a distinguished career, with performing engagements across the U.S. and abroad. She has recently completed her post-graduate studies at the University of York in the United Kingdom.
ABOUT STEVEN SOPH
In 2022, Steven debuts with the Seattle, Fort Worth, and Aiken Symphony Orchestras in Handel’s Messiah, with the South Dakota Symphony Orchestra in Bach’s St. Matthew Passion, in the Baldwin Wallace University Bach Festival as Evangelist in Bach’s Christmas Oratorio, and as a member of Vancouver, B.C.’s The Leonids and Louisville’s Artefact. Steven returns to the Charlotte Bach Festival as Evangelist in Bach’s St. John Passion and as a soloist in Bach’s Easter Oratorio, to Baltimore Choral Arts to perform and record Anthony Blake Clark’s completion of Mozart’s Requiem, to Providence’s Ensemble Altera for their debut recording, to the Oregon Bach Festival covering St. John and St. Matthew Passion Evangelists, to Tucson’s True Concord Voices and Orchestra for Beethoven’s 9th Symphony Finale, and to the Santa Fe Desert Chorale’s Summer Festival.
An active Bach interpreter, Steven has “expertly inhabited” (Chicago Classical Review) and “intoned the long, intricate and gruelingly difficult lines of the Evangelist with precision of pitch and rhythm” (Palm Beach Arts Paper) in Bach’s St. Matthew Passion with Chicago Chorale and Seraphic Fire (Mendelssohn version). He performed “with a tenor ranging from feathered intimacies to powerful, glinting top notes” (The Dallas Morning News) and was deemed “first-class across the board” (Chicago Classical Review) as the Evangelist in Bach’s St. John Passion with the University of North Texas’ Collegium (1725 version) and Chicago Chorale. Steven appeared in Bach’s B minor Mass with Symphony Orchestra Augusta, the Indianapolis Baroque Orchestra, Spire Chamber Ensemble (Kansas City), and Chicago Chorale; Bach’s Magnificat with Voices of Ascension (NYC), True Concord Voices & Orchestra (Tucson), and Seraphic Fire; and employed “brilliant clarity and warm color” (South Florida Classical Review) in Bach’s Easter Oratorio with Seraphic Fire.
Steven holds degrees from the University of North Texas and Yale School of Music where he studied at Yale’s Institute of Sacred Music with renowned tenor James Taylor. Steven attended the American Bach Soloists Academy in 2011, was a 2014 Carmel Bach Festival Adams Fellow, and a 2016 Oregon Bach Festival Young Artist. www. stevensoph.com
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ABOUT JONATHAN WOODY
Bass-baritone Jonathan Woody is a sought-after performer of early and new music in New York and across North America. In increasing demand as a soloist, Jonathan has made appearances in recent seasons with historically-informed orchestras such as Boston Early Music Festival, Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra, Bach Collegium San Diego, Portland Baroque Orchestra and New York Baroque Incorporated. In the 2017/18 season, Jonathan appeared with Apollo’s Fire on a national tour of Monteverdi’s L’Orfeoin the role of Caronte and participated in the Britten-Pears Young Artist Programme in Aldeburgh, UK.
Jonathan is also committed to ensemble singing at the highest level and is regularly featured as a member of the Grammy®-nominated Choir of Trinity Wall Street, where he has earned praise as “charismatic” and “riveting” from the New York Times for his solo work. In 2019, Jonathan will join the Clarion Music Society and the English Concert on a fournation tour of Handel’s Semele, covering the roles of Somnus and Cadmus. An avid performer of new music, Jonathan has premiered several works in recent years, including Ted Hearne’s The Source (2014), a seminal work on the subject of Pvt. Chelsea Manning’s actions regarding the leak of classified U.S. documents. He is also featured on the cast recording of that work (New Amsterdam) and has reprised it in 2016 at LA Opera’s REDCAT and SF Opera Lab in 2017. Other recent premieres include works by Ellen Reid (p r i s m), NYC premiere of Missy Mazzoli’s Breaking the Waves, Du Yun (2017 Pulitzer-Prize winner Angel’s Bone), Zachary Wadsworth and Laura Schwendiger. Festival appearances include Staunton Music Festival, Portland Bach Festival, Carmel Bach Festival (as 2013 Virginia Best Adams Fellow), Oregon Bach Festival (as 2014 Vocal Fellow), American Bach Soloists Academy, and Amherst Early Music (appearing with New York Polyphony).
On the operatic stage, Jonathan has joined Opera Lafayette, Gotham Chamber Opera, New Amsterdam Presents and Beth Morrison Projects for recent productions, and he was a 2015-2016 Vocal Fellow for American Opera Projects’ Composers and the Voice forum. Jonathan has recorded with the Choir of Trinity Wall Street under the Musica Omnia label and is featured on their Grammy® recording of Israel in Egypt.
Allen Hightower is the director of Choral Studies at the University of North Texas, where he leads the master’s and doctoral programs in choral conducting, and oversees a comprehensive choral program of ten ensembles. Allen serves as the conductor of the UNT A Cappella Choir, and the UNT Grand Chorus which collaborates annually with the UNT Symphony Orchestra in performances of major choral-orchestral works. As a member of UNT’s Early Music faculty, he leads the vocal ensemble Vox Aquilae, an artistic partner of the UNT Baroque Orchestra. Since arriving at UNT in 2016, the A Cappella Choir has received invitations to perform for the Texas Music Educators Association in 2020, the national conference of the American Choral Directors Association in 2021, and the Southwestern Region of ACDA in 2022. Vox Aquilae and the Baroque Orchestra were featured in the 2022 virtual conference of the National Collegiate Choral Organization. Dr. Hightower serves on the music staff of Stonebriar Community Church in Frisco, Texas. He was recently appointed Director of the Houston Symphony Chorus.
Prior to his appointment at UNT, Dr. Hightower held the Weston Noble Endowed Chair in Music at Luther College in Decorah, Iowa, where he served as conductor of the renowned Nordic Choir and artistic director of Christmas at Luther. As Luther’s Director of Choral Activities, he gave leadership to a choral program that included four conductors, six choirs, and over 530 singers. Under Dr. Hightower’s direction, the Nordic Choir performed at the 2014 North Central Division of ACDA, recorded six compact discs, made annual concert tours throughout the United States, and toured Europe on two occasions. From 2000-2010, Dr. Hightower served as Professor of Music and Director of Choral Studies at Sam Houston State University. During his tenure, the SHSU Chorale toured Europe, performed for the 2007 National Convention of the American Choral Directors Association, the 2010 Southwestern Division of ACDA, and the 2003, 2006, and 2010 conventions of the Texas Music Educators Association.
As a conducting student of the Texas choral legend Bev Henson, Allen earned his undergraduate degree in music education and piano from Sam Houston State University. He went on to earn a master’s degree in choral conducting from the Eastman School of Music where he was a student of Baroque scholar Alfred Mann, and a master’s degree in orchestral conducting from Baylor University, where he served as assistant conductor to Stephen Heyde and accompanist to Donald Bailey and the Baylor Chamber Singers. Allen earned his doctorate in conducting from the University of California, Los Angeles, where he served as assistant conductor to Donald Neuen. Hightower pursued additional orchestral conducting studies with Jung-Ho Pak at the University of Southern California, additional choral conducting studies with Joseph Flummerfelt at Westminster Choir College, and choral-orchestral conducting with Helmuth Rilling at the Oregon Bach Festival. After winning first prize in the graduate division of the American Choral Directors Association’s Conducting Competition in 1997, Allen served as assistant to Paul Salamunovich, conductor of the Los Angeles Master Chorale.
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UNT A CAPPELLA CHOIR
Soprano Danah Berry Harli Daniel Reagan Dunn Taylor Fenner Emma Garcia Marissa Guerrero Danielle Harrington Madison Lang Hyejin Lee Kyuyim Lee Katelyn Spivey Katherine Stedman Ruth Sytsma Hannah Watkins Alto Nicole Barbeau Sarah Decker Trinity Del Regno Madeline Friesen Raquel Guest Meredith Hinshaw Elizabeth King Kassidy Montan Brianna Nelson Madison Pfaffenberger Anna Schmelter Savanna Singleton Chloe Spellmann Tenor Caleb Aguirre Samuel Benavidez Ezechiel Daos Joshua Durrwachter Jack Forden Cecil Garrison Xavier Howard Benjamin Johnson Marquis McBride Chase Shaw Kenneth Sieloff Craig Smith William Swinney Nicholas Veazey Bass Jacob Augsten Seth Bazan Joseph Boatwright Hawkins Burns Brian DeStefano Matthew Dexter Xavier Garcia Peter Mooney Cameron Purcell Zachary Rohwer Max Rubenstein-Miller Timothy Sanchez Avery Sanderlin
Allen Hightower, director Dong Hyun Kang, rehearsal pianist
Founded in 1938, the University of North Texas A Cappella Choir has a distinguished history of conductors that includes Wilfred Bain, Frank McKinley, Hal Gibbons, Mel Ivey, and Jerry McCoy. Allen Hightower assumed leadership of the choir upon his appointment as Director of Choral Studies at UNT in the Fall of 2016. The A Cappella Choir is frequently invited to regional, national, and international conferences. Most recent engagements include National ACDA in 2021 (live-streamed), 2013 (Dallas), 2005 (Los Angeles), and 1999 (Chicago); NCCO in 2008 (Cincinnati); and the International Choral Festival in 2012 (Daejeon, South Korea) and in 2009 (Taipei). The A Cappella Choir is one of ten choral ensembles at UNT which includes the University Singers, Concert Choir, Kalandra, Chorale, Camerata, Vox Aquilae, Grand Chorus, Conductor’s Chorus, and UpFront!. The Choral Studies program works closely with the renowned Vocal Studies and Opera programs at UNT, creating an ideal environment for student singers.
