The Dessoff Choirs’ 2011–2012 Season
For the most up-to-date information on Refracted Bach, please visit our new site here.
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Dessoff’s Midwinter Festival
Refracted Bach
This season, The Dessoff Choirs inaugurates its Midwinter Festival, a series of concerts and events that frame choral masterworks in a larger cultural and historical context.
Tu 1/31/2012 • WHY BACH MATTERS Lecture by George B. Stauffer
Fr 2/3 • STILE ANTICO Dessoff Choirs @ Church of St. Paul the Apostle
Tu 2/7 • Robin Holloway’s GILDED GOLDBERGS @ Weill Recital Hall
Sa 2/11 SING-IN: Cantatas Reflected in the B Minor Mass @ Imm. Lutheran
Sa, 3/3 • B MINOR MASS Dessoff & Arcadia Players @ St. Mary the Virgin
About the festival • Click for tickets and discount ticket packages
May: Lux Æterna—Music for Choir and Organ
The concert season wraps up at The Church of the Epiphany on May 12 with music for choir and organ. On the program, Benjamin Britten’s festival cantata Rejoice in the Lamb, anthems by Purcell and Howells, and more.
A pairing of great subtlety, richness, and power, this combination of Dessoff voices and the “king of instruments” is sure to surprise and delight.
November: On Tour with Ray Davies
In November, Dessoff backed Ray Davies in a four-city East Coast tour featuring choral versions of The Kinks’ greatest hits. David Temple directed the choir’s performances in Montclair, Philadelphia, New York, and Boston.New Year’s Eve Concert for Peace
A Child of Our Time
On December 31, Dessoff joined George Mathew and the Ubuntu-Shruti Orchestra at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, performing Michael Tippett’s A Child of Our Time in the annual New Year’s Eve Concert for Peace that Leonard Bernstein founded over a quarter century ago.
More information here.
Dessoff Midwinter Festival: Refracted Bach
For the most up-to-date information on Refracted Bach, please visit our new site here.
Click for tickets and discount ticket packages
January-March 2012
Johann Sebastian Bach is the great prism of European music history. A keen student of musical traditions and styles, Bach studied all the major trends in western music that preceded him. He synthesized various aspects of those genres, forging his own distinct musical language from the raw material of a tradition that he venerated. Even if we are not familiar with the models he studied, we encounter through Bach the many facets of the European Baroque: the sober counterpoint of the North Germans, the florid ornamentation of the French, the brilliant virtuosity and melodic invention of the Italians. But going further back, we also encounter in Bach’s music the stolid chorales of Martin Luther’s Reformation, the strict polyphony of the Italian Renaissance and even the ethereal beauty of Roman plainchant—music from the dawn of the common era. Johann Sebastian Bach was the keeper of the flame, a natural encyclopedist whose ability to synthesize all forms of western music ensured that his legacy would be forever entwined with his heritage.
In the same way that all earlier musical styles were refracted by Bach’s compositional prism—reinterpreted, renewed and reinvigorated—so too has Bach’s music been refracted by the prism of each successive generation of composers. J.S. Bach has remained the touchstone of western music for two and a half centuries, the authority figure that composers would either seek to please or defiantly reject. From the time of Bach’s own sons until today, musicians have grappled with Bach’s legacy. Many have been drawn to his mastery of counterpoint; others have been attracted to his depth of musical expression, his ability to convey a wide range of emotions, his peerless melodies, and the sheer joy of his music. By exploring Bach’s legacy through the music of the past 260 years, we are experiencing at once Bach’s reflected genius and the musical Zeitgeist of every generation.
Dessoff to Tour with Ray Davies
The Dessoff Chamber Choir to tour with Ray Davies
Performing The Kinks Choral Collection
Dessoff blew the roof off New York’s Town Hall and the Late Show with David Letterman the last time rock legend Ray Davies was in town; this year, we’re taking it on the road to New York, Philadelphia, Montclair, and Boston!
For the tour, Dessoff’s singers will be under the direction of choirmaster David Temple, who prepared and directed Dessoff’s 2009 Town Hall performances with Ray. David directs the Crouch End Festival Chorus and has worked with Ray on a variety of musical projects, including the Kinks Choral Classics recording.
2011 TOUR DATES
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 18 8:00 pm On sale now!
The Wellmont Theatre
Montclair, NJ
Tickets: $40, $60, $80
http://www.wellmonttheatre.com/event/63851
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 19 8:00 pm On sale – 10:00 am, Saturday, September 24
Temple Performing Arts Center
Philadelphia, PA
Tickets: $55
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 20 7:30 pm On sale now!
The Beacon Theatre
New York, NY
Tickets: $49.59-$114.50
http://www.thegarden.com/events/ray-davies-1111.html
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 23 8:00 pm On sale now!
The Wilbur Theatre
Boston, MA
Tickets: $66.15, $89.15
In support of his latest album, See My Friends, The Kinks front man Ray Davies embarks on a four-night East Coast tour, performing live with full choral ensemble. Best known as the lead singer and songwriter for the classic British rock band, Davies’ 50-year musical career has yielded some of the most iconic rock songs in history. Since the demise of The Kinks in 1996, he has embarked on a solo career as a singer/songwriter, releasing five albums of his own and receiving numerous awards for his talent.
Featuring Bill Shanley on guitar, Dick Nolan on bass, Damon Wilson on drums, Ian Gibbons and Gunnar Frick on keyboards, and The Dessoff Chamber Choir, Davies will recreate classic Kinks originals and perform solo material for one unforgettable night.
2010-2011 Season - Mystics and Masters
The choir’s projection and enunciation were unusually clear. … Beethoven’s spirit rang out with an explosive jubilance.
- The New York Times, March 30, 2010
Join the excitement as our 86th season begins under the baton of Dessoff’s new music director, Chris Shepard, a gifted conductor and Bach scholar who has delighted international audiences with his interpretations of choral works ranging from the mystical to the contemporary. We are also pleased to welcome our new executive director, Jane Colvin.
Our 2010-11 season kicks off in October, proudly continuing the tradition of Dessoff “firsts”—this time by appearing at Radio City Music Hall and singing in Elvish—as we perform the soundtrack from The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers live with the 21st Century Symphony Orchestra. (October 8 and October 9 at 7:30 pm — details here.)
In November, Dessoff presents a glorious array of French choral music, including the lush and tranquil Duruflé Requiem, in Manhattan (November 20th at 8:00 pm, St. James’ Church, Madison Ave at 71st Street) and Brooklyn (November 21st at 4:00pm, Old First Reformed Church). Tickets available at the door.
In December, we appear at Lincoln Center’s newly renovated Alice Tully Hall with the Juilliard Orchestra, under the baton of Philadelphia Orchestra music director designate Yannick Nézet-Séguin, in a performance of Ravel’s Daphnis et Chloé (December 13 at 8:00 pm, Alice Tully Hall).
In February, Dessoff performs Arvo Pärt’s spare, mystical Passio (February 25, 2011 at 8:00 pm, Church of St. Mary the Virgin in Times Square).
And our season concludes with a literal bang in May at St. George’s Church in Manhattan, with a program featuring 20th-century masters and their music for choir, pianos, and percussion (May 14, 2011 at 8:00 pm).
This season builds on last year’s rich artistic experiences, which included thrilling collaborations with Ray Davies on The Late Show with David Letterman and at The Town Hall, and with Iván Fischer and the Budapest Festival Orchestra at Avery Fisher Hall, alongside our self-produced concerts of music ranging from baroque masterpieces to a world premiere—not to mention the release of our latest CD, Glories on Glories, a live recording of American choral music ranging from Billings to Ives (available on iTunes).
Recent Dessoff highlights include acclaimed, sold-out performances of Benjamin Britten’s War Requiem and Mahler’s Symphony No. 8 at Avery Fisher Hall with the New York Philharmonic in Lorin Maazel’s final appearances as music director. Mahler’s Symphony No. 8, the capstone of the Philharmonic’s live recordings of the Complete Mahler Symphonies, features The Dessoff Symphonic Choir and is available for download on iTunes.
Click below for more information on individual concerts.
Dessoff to Back Ray Davies in East Coast Mini Tour
The Dessoff Chamber Choir to tour with Ray Davies performing The Kinks Choral Collection
ALL tour dates CANCELLED due to illness. If you've already purchased tickets, please contact venues to determine refund policy.
In support of his new album, See My Friends, The Kinks front man Ray Davies embarks on a four-night East Coast tour, performing live with full choral ensemble. Best known as the lead singer and songwriter for the classic British rock band, Davies’ 50-year musical career has yielded some of the most iconic rock songs in history. Since the demise of The Kinks in 1996, he has embarked on a solo career as a singer/songwriter, releasing five albums of his own and receiving numerous awards for his talent. [Photo by sjrowe53; Some rights reserved]
Featuring Bill Shanley on guitar, Dick Nolan on bass, Damon Wilson on drums, Ian Gibbons and Gunnar Frick on keyboards, and The Dessoff Chamber Choir, Davies will recreate classic Kinks originals and perform solo material for an unforgettable night. Check out Dessoff’s 2009 appearance with Davies on The Late Show with David Letterman.
2010 TOUR DATES
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 24 7:30 pm
The Beacon Theatre
New York, NY
Tickets: $49.50-$99.50 [on sale 10:00 am Friday, 10/22]
http://www.beacontheatre.com/events/Ray-Davies-11-24-10-.html
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 26 8:00 pm
The Wellmont Theatre
Montclair, NJ
Tickets: $40, $60, $80
http://www.wellmonttheatre.com/event/5450
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 27 8:00 pm
Verizon Hall, Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts
Philadelphia, PA
Tickets: $45
http://www.kimmelcenter.org/events/index.php?id=3942
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 28 8:00 pm
The Wilbur Theatre
Boston, MA
Tickets: $66.15, $89.15
http://thewilburtheatre.com/content/ray-davies-comes-wilbur