Author: nchorus-adm

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Israel in Egypt – Handel Israel in Egypt George Frideric Handel adopted the oratorio style out of necessity: He had made a good living in England as an opera promoter (and sometime composer), but in the 1730’s Italian opera had lost much of its appeal. Both Handel and his competitors were victims of the popularity…

2013 Fall – Great Britain, Great Britten!

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in Program Notes, Uncategorized

Great Britain, Great Britten! The title of this concert– “Great Britain, Great Britten”– alludes to the centenary, on November 22, 2013, of the English composer, conductor and pianist (Edward) Benjamin Britten (1913-1976). Britten, born on St. Cecilia’s Day– Cecilia is the patron saint of music, and from his birth his parents expected music of him!…

2013 Spring – American Made – by American Composers

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American Made – a program of music by American Composers How It All Began American music diverged from its Eurasian roots very early: Distinctive sounds and texts were developing before America became a nation. Much of the earliest music was surely lost, although some hymns and songs were in print before the Revolution. American folk…

2012 Fall – A Christmas Contata – Nils Lindberg – and other Seasonal Music

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A Christmas Cantata (Nils Lindberg) Nils Lindberg is not by any means an ordinary composer. Most composers, even 20th-century composers, can be classified according to the nature of their work, i.e., classical, pop, choral, symphonic, religious, etc. while Lindberg has composed in all of these genres. From the first, he took a very unconventional path…

2012 Spring – Opera Choruses

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Opera Choruses While operas typically are the province of a few soloists, many have lovely choral parts as well. This is the third such program Dr. Martinez has assembled since he assumed Directorship of the Chorus in 1989. Some of the numbers are repeats from our earlier concerts, but many are new. The notes below…

Messiah – Handel

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Messiah First, the essentials: Georg Friederich Handel was born in Halle-on-Saal, Saxony, in 1685, distinguished himself as an organist and composer at an early age; a sojourn in Italy taught him to write Italian operas; he returned to Hanover in 1710 to be Kapellmeister to Georg Ludwig, the Elector of Hanover (later King George I…

Magnificat – Bach

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Magnificat J. S. Bach is now recognized as one of the most important pillars of today’s classical music, but that recognition was not accorded until much after his time. (Felix Mendelssohn was instrumental in a ‘rediscovery’ of Bach in the late 1820’s.) Bach was nonetheless well-known in his own day, primarily as an organist and…

Dona Nobis Pacem – Williams

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Dona Nobis Pacem Ralph (pronounced in the British fashion, “Rayf”) Vaughan Williams was acclaimed as Britain’s premier composer of the first half of the twentieth century. The third child of the Anglican vicar at the village of Down Ampney, (about 32 km SE of Gloucester), he was not yet three in 1875 when his father…

St Celcilia Mass – Gounod

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St Celcilia Mass Charles-Francois Gounod was born in Paris in 1818 to a talented, but financially unsuccessful, painter and his pianist wife. Charles’ father died before he was five years old, and his mother maintained her husband’s painting classes as well as her own piano teaching. Charles showed early talent in both areas, but gave…

Classic Cole Porter

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