Westminster Williamson Voices James Jordan, conductor Corey Everly, piano

Abide Saturday, April 9, 2016, 8 p.m. Bristol Chapel, Westminster Choir College of Rider University Princeton, N.J. e Music for a Sacred Space Sunday, April 10, 2016, 3 p.m. Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul , PA 2 A Note from the Conductor

Every now and then, a line of text in a piece of music so deeply touches one that it is impossible to stop thinking about it. Within Thomas LaVoy’s choral work, As I Walked the Silent Earth, there is a line that says “I would tear a hole in the sky and give my heart to you.” That image is a perfect life analogy for vulnerability, honesty and human compassion and care that is, perhaps, what our lives are all about. I suppose that because the work was dedicated to this choir and its conductor, the text has an affixed connection anyway, at least for us.

There are certain pieces of music that by their very nature, “tear a hole in the sky” the “sky” of our spirits and souls. Certain musics, certain composers, and certain performances have a way of “tearing a hole” into us that deepens our lives and perhaps, even, brings new meaning to what we do and how we live. Gerard Manley Hopkins called that place our “Inscape.” The music for this concert has that very common thread in that all the pieces, in some way, provide an illuminative hole, through both sound and text, into perhaps a deeper understanding of life and living.

These concerts are meant to explore many sound worlds. From the Ola Gjeilo Spheres, to the stunning work for women’s choir, the Mendelssohn Veni Domine, to the joyful Jubilate Deo of Benjamin Britten, to the Kyrie from the Requiem of 1604 by Victoria, holes are torn not only into the sound worlds possible through choral singing, but “holes” that bore deeply into our spiritual “Inscapes” by the marriage of sounds and words.

For this program, The Westminster Williamson Voices will be at times divided into choirs composed of two equally balanced chamber ensembles, the St. John’s Choir and the St. Stephen’s Choir named after the two chapels that we sing in during the Choral Institute of Oxford at our Oxford home, St. Stephen’s House. During those weeks, the choir performs as two separate chamber choirs for the Institute conductors before combining back into the full choir for the concerts. Most of the music that you hear in these programs was recorded by what is, in essence, three separate ensembles, Williamson Voices, the St. John’s Choir and the St. Stephen’s Choir for multiple CDs to be released this year.

Both programs end with two deeply compelling “Hole in the Sky” works, Good Night, Dear Heart and these premiere performances of Abide by Dan Forrest. Williamson Voices was asked by Dr. Forrest to record the latter work before its release. (That performance can be viewed on the Williamson Voices YouTube channel).

As you can read later in these notes, Dr. Forrest sets one of America’s greatest poets and perhaps one of the greatest poems of our times with deep meaning and suggestions of our life journey. In both these works, Dan Forrest understands deeply the concept of that “Hole in the Sky,” and uses the genius of poet Jake Adam York in the second work, Abide, to teach us truly how to pass through that “hole in the sky” and live our lives with a bit more love and compassion for ourselves and others. - James Jordan

Program

Abide

I. Hark, I Hear the Harps Eternal arr. Alice Parker (b. 1925) Choir of St. John’s

Sunrise Mass Ola Gjeilo I. The Spheres (b. 1978)

Da pacem Domine Arvo Pärt (b. 1935) Choir of St. Stephen’s

II. Locus Iste Anton Bruckner (1824-1896) Choir of St. John’s Program 3

Jubilate Deo Benjamin Britten (1913-1976) Peter Carter, organ

Drei Motteten für weibliche Stimmen mit Begleitung ger Orgel, Op. 39 Felix Mendelssohn I. Veni Domine (1809-1847)

Sopranos and Altos of the Choir Moira Susan Gannon, soprano Peter Carter, organ

III. The Road Home Stephen Paulus (1949-2014) Choir of St. Stephen’s Emily Rosoff, soprano

Pilgrim’s Hymn Paulus

INTERMISSION

IV. Gesang der Parzen, Op. 89 (1833-1897)

V. Good Night, Dear Heart Dan Forrest (b. 1978)

Abide Forrest Text: Jake Adam York Premiere Performances Corey Everly, piano

Music for a Sacred Space

I. Hark, I Hear the Harps Eternal arr. Alice Parker (b. 1925) Choir of St. John’s

Sunrise Mass Ola Gjeilo I. The Spheres (b. 1978)

Da pacem Domine Arvo Pärt (b. 1935) Choir of St. Stephen’s

Requiem of 1605 Tomás Luis de Victoria I. Kyrie (c.1548-1611) 4 Program

II. Jubilate Deo Benjamin Britten (1913-1976) Peter Carter, organ

Drei Motteten für weibliche Stimmen mit Begleitung ger Orgel, Op. 39 Felix Mendelssohn I. Veni Domine (1809-1847)

Sopranos and Altos of Williamson Voices Moira Susan Gannon, soprano Peter Carter, organ

Locus Iste Anton Bruckner (1824-1896) Choir of St. John’s

III. Ave Redemptor Peter Relph (b. 1992) Jessica Stanislawczyk, soprano Maclain Hardin, alto Max Claycomb, tenor Peter Carter, bass

Quatre Motets sur des thèmes grégoriens, Op. 10 Maurice Durufle IV. Tantum ergo (1902-1986)

O Salutaris Hostia Ēriks Ešenvalds (b. 1977) Moira Susan Gannon, soprano Alex Meakem, soprano

INTERMISSION

IV. And Dream Awhile Blake Henson (b. 1983)

The Road Home Stephen Paulus (1949-2014) Choir of St. Stephen’s Emily Rosoff, soprano

Pilgrim’s Hymn Paulus

V. Good Night, Dear Heart Dan Forrest (b. 1978)

Abide Forrest Text: Jake Adam York Premiere Performances Corey Everly, piano Program Notes 5

Hark I Hear the Harps Eternal arr. Alice Parker (b. 1925) Text: Traditional

Hark I Hear the Harps Eternal comes from William Hauser’s book of shape note music, “Olive Leaf,” written in 1878. The system of musical notation was meant to be a read music that facilitated the communal singing of a whole congregation. Here, Alice Parker’s arrangement for mixed chorus celebrates the joviality of the hymn and also explores the journey of the eternal soul.

Hark, I hear the harps eternal Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Ringing on the farther shore, Hallelujah, praise the Lamb, As I near those swollen waters, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, With their deep and solemn roar. Glory to the great I AM.

Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Souls have crossed before me, saintly, Hallelujah, praise the Lamb, To that land of perfect rest; Hallelujah, Hallelujah, And I hear them singing faintly Glory to the great I AM. In the mansions of the blest.

And my soul though stained with sorrow, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Fading as the light of day, Hallelujah, praise the Lamb, Passes swiftly o’er those waters Hallelujah, Hallelujah, To the city far away. Glory to the great I AM.

Sunrise Mass Ola Gjeilo I. The Spheres (b. 1978)

The Spheres is also the name of the first movement (Kyrie) from my 2008 Mass for choir and string orchestra, called Sunrise. The piece [in this performance] is the a cappella version of that movement.

A lot of people have asked me why I used an English, seemingly unrelated, title for this setting of the Kyrie. Apart from the fact that I generally prefer to assign English titles to pieces with Latin text these days, it has to do with the initial idea behind the Sunrise Mass.

I wanted the musical evolution of the Mass to go from the most transparent and spacey, to something completely earthy and grounded; from heaven to earth, so to speak. So in The Spheres, I used a kind of overlapping fade-in/fade-out effect, to give a sense of floating in space, in darkness and relative silence, surrounded by stars and planets light-years away. However, I don’t follow this idea throughout the entire movement, since it eventually gathers into a big crescendo and ends with a clear, chorale version of the theme presented very slowly and muddled in the first part. So, in a way this movement is also a microcosm of the entire Mass, which also ends with a longer chorale in The Ground(Sanctus & Agnus Dei).

This a cappella version ofThe Spheres was premiered by the 2009 ACDA College Honor Chamber Choir with conductor Gary Graden in Oklahoma City, and the piece is dedicated to Mr. Graden.

James Jordan performed most of the early performances of the work immediately after its premiere across the United States. - Ola Gjeilo

Kyrie eleison. Lord have mercy. Christe eleison. Christ have mercy. Kyrie eleison. Lord have mercy.

Please note the unauthorized use of any recording device, either audio or video, and the taking of photographs, either with or without flash, is strictly prohibited. Out of courtesy to the performers and everyone in the audience, please refrain from using cell phones and electronic devices during the performance. 6 Program Notes

Da pacem domine Arvo Pärt (b. 1935)­

The Da pacem domine text derives from the ninth century Latin prayer for peace. Pärt started composing the work a few days after the Madrid train bombings on March 11, 2004. This was Pärt’s personal tribute to the victims of this horrific attack. The conductor Paul Hiller describes the texture of the piece as "a near harmonic stasis in which each pitch is carefully in position like stones in a Zen garden." The rehearsal letters in the score spell out the word AMEN to encompass the whole work as a universal prayer. - William Sawyer

Da pacem, Domine, in diebus nostris Give peace, O Lord, in our time Quia non est alius Because there is no one else Qui pugnet pro nobis Who will fight for us Nisi tu Deus noster If not You, our God.

Requiem of 1605 Tomás Luis de Victoria I. Kyrie (c. 1548-1611)

Kyrie is taken from Victoria’s setting of the Officium Defunctorum, or “Office of the Dead,” which was composed in 1605 for the funeral of Empress Maria, sister of King Felipe II of . Throughout his career Victoria published 11 volumes of choral music, however the Officium Defunctorum, constituting the 11th volume, is his only work published by itself. This particular setting of the Kyrie is separated into three distinct sections: the first features a full 6-part SSATTB choral texture, the second a smaller semi-chorus with the bass section tacet, with a return to the full texture for the final section.

Kyrie eleison. Lord have mercy. Christe eleison. Christ have mercy. Kyrie eleison. Lord have mercy.

Jubilate Deo Benjamin Britten (1913-1976) Text: Psalm 100 and the Lesser Doxology

Written in 1961 for the Duke of Edinburgh to be premiered at St. George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle, Jubilate Deo is meant to be a com- panion to his Te Deum of 1934. After a large repertoire of full of angst, the liturgical work harkens back to the simpler, more jovial works of Benjamin Britten. The energy of the A sections, with the higher voices and lower voices in dialogue over a bubbling organ accom- paniment, contrasts well with the more reflective B section. - Brian V. Sengdala O be joyful in the Lord, all ye lands: Serve the Lord with gladness And come before his presence with a song. Be ye sure that the Lord he is God: It is he that hath made us and not we ourselves; We are his people and the sheep of his pasture. O go your way into his gates with thanksgiving And into his courts with praise Be thankful unto him and speak good of his name For the Lord is gracious His mercy is everlasting` And his truth endureth from generation to generation Glory be the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be: World without end. Amen. Program Notes 7

Drei Motteten für weibliche Stimmen mit Begleitung ger Orgel, Op. 39 Felix Mendelssohn I. Veni Domine (1809-1847)

Mendelssohn’s source of inspiration for the Three Motets Op. 39, was a trip to visit the late Renaissance church of the Santissima Trinità dei Monti which is located in Rome. This church was the duty of the French Republic. On December 20, 1830, Mendelssohn wrote a letter to his parents, Abraham and Lea: "The French nuns sing there, and it is wonderfully lovely. ... Now, one should know one more thing: that one is not allowed to see the singers. Therefore, I have come to an unusual decision: I will compose something for their voices, which I remember exactly…” - William Sawyer

Veni Dómine! Veni! Et noli tardáre! Come Lord! Come! And do not tarry! Reláxa facínora plebe tuae, Redeem the sins of your people, et revóca dispérsos in terra tuam, and call back those scattered across your earth. Excite, Domine, poténtiam tuam, Summon your power, Lord, Et veni, ut salvos nos fácias and come and save us

Locus Iste Anton Bruckner (1824-1896) Text: Gradual for commemorating the dedication of a church

Locus iste was written for the dedication of the Votivkapelle of the New Cathedral in Linz, Austria in 1869. Written in C major, the piece opens with a homophonic A section and uses motives that are representative of building blocks with voices entering and then being stacked upon. Its architecture is an ABA form with a coda that introduces the only melisma in the motet on the word “Deo,” which is Latin for God. - Brian V. Sengdala

Locus iste a Deo factus est, This place was made by God, inaestimabile sacramentum a priceless holy place, irreprehensibilis est. it is without fault.

Ave Redemptor Peter Relph (b. 1992) Text: derived from Ave Maria, traditional Roman Catholic prayer

A friend of the Williamson Voices family, Peter Relph is a graduate of the University of Aberdeen, Scotland, majoring in composition, and is currently a master’s student in composition at The University of Cambridge, UK. This work is published in the Evoking Sound Choral Series (GIA).

The piece is a setting of the beautiful and powerful words of “Ave Redemptor.” The melody, which I wrote as a child, is supported by a hazy, slow-moving harmonic pedal. The music is constantly moving toward the phrase ...enim salvatio nunc inundavit super universam terram (“now salvation has overflowed upon all the world”). The worduniversam (“all”) is the one clear moment where both the choir and semichorus sing together in harmony, immediately followed by the receding of their voices to their initial volume.

The semi-chorus is intended to be a solo quartet (SATB), placed some distance from the main choir. At the beginning of the piece, the semichorus’ part should be almost drowned out by the choir, but become increasingly prevalent until the handover of the melody to the choir. At the very end, with the main choir singing “ave redemptor,” the semichorus could slowly leave the performance venue allowing the music to fully fade away.

“Ave Redemptor” serves as an elegy for Mardale Church, which was mostly dismantled and repurposed for the creation of Haweswater Reservoir, in the Lake District of northern England, in the 1930’s. The timeless quality of the flooded remains of the church has been a great inspiration for this music. - Peter Relph 8 Program Notes

Ave redemptor, Domine Jesus: Hail the Redeemer, Lord Jesus, Cuius ob opus By whose work Superatur mors, enim salvatio Death is defeated, for salvation Nunc inundavit super universam terram. Has now overflowed upon all of the world.

Quatre Motets sur des thèmes grégoriens, Op. 10 Maurice Durufle IV. Tantum ergo (1902-1986)

Tantum ergo is the last motet in the Quatre Motets sur des thèmes grégoriens, Op. 10, in 1960 which is composed for unaccompanied choir. Each individual motet is based on Gregorian chant tunes. They are ideal companion pieces for his Requiem. The piece begins by introducing the chant tune in the soprano part which is then followed by the altos, tenors, and basses. The tenors have a similar line to the sopranos but slight differences which are somewhat ornamented from the original chant melody line. This makes the soprano and tenor part have a canonic relationship to one another. Durufle instructs the tenors in the score to stand out in the balance just a hair (un peu en dehors), while the altos and basses sing a simple accompaniment which is based on the harmony of the chant and the overall structure of the tune.

- William Sawyer

Tántum ergo Sacraméntum Let us therefore, bowing low, Venerémur cérnui: Venerate so great a Sacrament; Et antíquum documéntum And let the old Law Nóvo cédat rítui: Give way to the new rite; Praéstet fídes suppleméntum Let faith afford assistance Sénsuum deféctui. To the deficiency of the senses.

Genitóri, Genitóque To the Begetter and the Begotten Laus et jubilátio, Let there be praise and jubilation, Sálus, hónor, vírtus quoque Salvation and honor, Sit et benedíctio: And power and blessing; Procedénti ab utróque And to One processing from both Cómpar sit laudátio. Let there be equal praise. Amen. Amen.

O Salutaris Hostia Ēriks Ešenvalds (b. 1977) Text: St. Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274)

"For me, harmony is most important – how it flows and becomes a new harmony. The melodic line is secondary. Perhaps this is because my ear is trained primarily to perceive harmonies. Nevertheless, I don’t want to write simple music ... it is important for me to create sounds that I truly feel. I conclude that I am constantly changing, searching for new paths, but absolutely not, once having found them, mass-producing them.” - Ēriks Ešenvalds

O Salutaris Hostia, is a part of one of the Eucharistic hymns written by the well-known theologian St. Thomas Aquinas for the Feast of Corpus Christi in the Roman Catholic Church. This was for the particular service of Lauds in the Divine Office. This particular text comes from the final two stanzas of the hymnVerbum supernal prodiens. The other two hymns written by St. Thomas Aquinas for the Feast of Corpus Christi contain the famous sections of Panis Angelicus and Tantum Ergo.

Ešenvalds sets this piece for choir and soprano duet. The simplicity of the harmony in the choir parts compliments the soloists soaring lines which creates a warm and inviting atmosphere. - William Sawyer Program Notes 9

O Salutáris Hóstia, O Redeeming Sacrifice, Quæ caéli pándis óstium: which opens the gates of heaven:

Bélla prémunt hostília, enemies threaten wars; Da róbur, fér auxilium. give us strength, send aid

Uni trinoque Domino To the Lord, three in one, Sit sempiterna gloria, be everlasting glory,

Qui vitam sine termino for life without end Nobis donet in patria. he gives us in his Kingdom. Amen. Amen.

And Dream Awhile Blake Henson (b. 1983) Text: Samuel Rogers (1763-1855) from The Sleeping Beauty

Samuel Rogers's poem The Sleeping Beauty continues to amaze and inspire me with its ability to evoke a sense of child-like innocence despite the sorrow inherent within the story. In order to strike a similar balance within And Dream Awhile I have chosen to weave the tune for the nursery rhyme Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star throughout the musical score. While some of the motives may seem obvious, others are quite veiled. - Blake Henson

Sleep on, and dream of Heaven awhile She starts, she trembles, and she weeps! Tho’ shut so close thy laughing eyes. Her fair hands folded on her breast: Thy rosy lips still wear a smile And now, how like a saint she sleeps! And more, and breathe delicious sighs! A seraph in the realms of rest!

Ah, now soft blushes tinge her cheeks Sleep on secure! Above controul And mantle o’er her neck of snow: Thy thoughts belong to Heaven and thee: Ah, now she murmurs, now she speaks And may the secret of thy soul What most I wish—and fear to know! Remain within its sanctuary!

The Road Home Stephen Paulus (1949-2014) Text: Michael Dennis Browne (b. 1940)

In the Spring of 2001 I received a commission from the Dale Warland Singers to write a short "folk" type choral arrangement… The tune is taken from The Southern Harmony Songbook of 1835. It is pentatonic and that is part of its attraction. Pentatonic scales have been extant for centuries and are prevalent in almost all musical cultures throughout the world. They are universal… It is just more evidence that the most powerful and beautiful message is often a simple one.

- Stephen Paulus

Tell me, where is the road I can call my own, After wind, after rain, When the dark is done. That I left, that I lost, so long ago? As I wake from a dream In the gold of day, All these years I have wandered, Oh, when will I know Through the air there's a calling from far away, There's a way, there's a road that will lead me home? There's a voice I can hear that will lead me home. Rise up, follow me, come away, is the call, With the love in your heart as the only song; There is no such beauty as where you belong: Rise up, follow me, I will lead you home. 10 Program Notes

Pilgrim’s Hymn Paulus Text: Michael Dennis Browne from The Three Hermits

As Stephen Paulus was writing his in one act based on a church story of Leo Tolstoy, The Three Hermits, he called Michael Dennis Browne, the opera’s librettist, to have him listen to the conclusion of the second scene. Browne recalled the music as “haunting, memorable,” and asked if Paulus would consider using the same melody in the third scene with different text. As the writing process continued, Browne hummed the tune to himself, repeatedly, while meditating on the text of Matthew 6:7-8 which was the epigraph to the original story by Tolstoy: “And in praying, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think they will be heard for their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.”

In the operatic score, Paulus changed the underlying texture and key of the melody and set Browne’s new text to it. This text is a meditation on a revelation of the Bishop whose sole task in the opera is to save the titular three hermits of an island by teaching them the Lord’s Prayer. At the end of the opera, the Bishop realizes that his efforts toward perfection were misplaced - salvation does not lie within his hands, but in the hands of God. The result was music that would be extracted to become thePilgrim’s Hymn. - Brian V. Sengdala

Even before we call on Thy name Even with darkness sealing us in, To ask Thee, O Lord, We breathe Thy name, When we seek for the words to glorify And through all the days that follow so Thee, fast, Thou hearest our prayer; We trust in Thee; Unceasing love, O unceasing love, Endless Thy grace, O endless Thy grace, Surpassing all we know. Beyond all mortal dream.

Glory to the Father, Both now and forever, and to the Son, And unto ages and ages, And to the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Gesang der Parzen, Op. 89 Johannes Brahms (1833-1897) Text: Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832) from Iphigenie auf Tauris

1882. The mind of Johannes Brahms was plagued with an ever-growing sense that the fin de siècle also meant the end of civilized society itself. Austria was unravelling at the seams; its leadership under Emperor Franz Josef unable to unite a polyglot country. To Brahms, even music itself, with rare exceptions like Antonin Dvořák, seemingly had no future. His dear friends faced the tragedies of separation, still recent deaths of their children, and aging in pain. Unsurprising, then, was Brahms when he wrote:

“In a city and a land where everything not rolls, but tumbles downhill, you can’t expect music to fare better. Really it’s a pity and a crying shame, not only for music but for the whole beautiful land and the beautiful, marvelous people. I still think catastrophe is coming.”

Through this meditation that festered in Brahms’ mind came the Gesang der Parzen, Op. 89. The piece was the last choral work that Brahms wrote using a classical text. Its likeness to the Schicksalslied (Song of Destiny), which also observes the rift between man and the gods, is clear. But the difference between the two is stark. In theSchicksalslied , Brahms counters the pessimistic ending of the poetry with an orchestral postlude of great beauty and a resolution of hope. An older Brahms will not write of the same fate for humanity in the Parzenlied.

Among the most unsettled harmonies he wrote, Brahms opens the Gesang der Parzen in discord only to reveal the central tonality of D in the third measure. Theodor Billroth, Brahms’ close friend and fellow musician, commented that “[they] will probably get a shock in the first few bars...You will, of course, have your conscious and unconscious grounds... but our modern ears are sometimes pained by it.” The three note short-short-long figure introduced in the beginning is rhythmically varied to great degrees all throughout the work. The choral writing is largely homophonic in comparison to recent, more contrapuntal choral works. Yet the score remains rich in texture with contralto and bass divisions enhancing a six-part choir with a depth of textures from the orchestra (the piano reduction was also written by Brahms). The overall form of the Parzenlied is a rondo with two major key sections accentuating the gravitas of the A sections. A hymn before the coda, a glimpse Program Notes 11

of light toward an ancient figure, appears to give hope, but the hope is false. The ancient refuses to look down upon his progeny and turns his blessing countenance away. The coda, a cycle of major thirds (D-F#-Bb-D) lauded later by Webern himself as the “beginning of the chromatic path” to the 20th century, ends on an ancient resonance of a fifth. Its outlook bleak, solitary, and quiet. Thus sang Johannes Brahms. - Brian V. Sengdala

Es fürchte die Götter Fear the gods, Das Menschengeschlecht! humanity! Sie halten die Herrschaft They hold dominion In ewigen Händen, in their eternal hands, Und können sie brauchen, and they can take Wie's ihnen gefällt. as it pleases them.

Der fürchte sie doppelt They should fear them doubly Den je sie erheben! whom they ever exalt! Auf Klippen und Wolken Upon cliffs and clouds Sind Stühle bereitet are the seats readied Um goldene Tische. around golden tables.

Erhebet ein Zwist sich, A discord arises, So stürzen die Gäste, so the guests are thrown out, Geschmäht und geschändet despised and dishonored In nächtliche Tiefen, into nightly depths Und harren vergebens, and, in vain, await, Im Finstern gebunden, bound in the darkness, Gerechten Gerichtes. just judgment.

Sie aber, sie bleiben The gods, however, remain In ewigen Festen in eternal feasts An goldenen Tischen. at golden tables. Sie schreiten vom Berge They stride from mountain Zu Bergen hinüber: over to mountain:

Aus Schlünden der Tiefe Out of the depths of the abysses Dampft ihnen der Atem steamed to them the breath of Erstickter Titanen, choking titans, Gleich Opfergerüchen, like sacrificial fumes, Ein leichtes Gewölke. a light cloud.

Es wenden die Herrscher The lord averts Ihr segnendes Auge his blessing eye Von ganzen Geschlechtern from all races Und meiden, im Enkel and avoids seeing, of the grandchild, Die ehmals geliebten, once beloved, Still redenden Züge silent speaking features Des Ahnherrn zu sehn. of the ancestor.

So sangen die Parzen; Thus sang the fates; Es horcht der Verbannte, the banished one hears it, In nächtlichen Höhlen in nightly holes Der Alte die Lieder, the ancient song, Denkt Kinder und Enkel thinks of his children and grandchildren, Und schüttelt das Haupt. and shakes his head. Translation: Brian V. Sengdala 12 Program Notes

Good Night, Dear Heart Dan Forrest (b. 1978) Text: Mark Twain’s eulogy to his daughter, Olivia Susan Clemens

In early October 2008, my brother and his wife found out that the four-month-old girl that they were soon to adopt from Ethiopia was in the hospital. They had been making plans for her, staring endlessly at her picture, and loving her from across the ocean, so the news was devastating. Unable to help her in any physical way, they prayed ceaselessly and made appeals to speed up the legal process in Ethiopia. Initially, she made a turn for the better, but on October 13, they received the news that she had died. God’s plans were not for her to ever see the people who had loved her from halfway around the world, but for her to be taken instead to His loving arms.

For me, life circumstances have never translated into musical inspiration; the two have always been separate. As a result of this tragedy though, I found myself longing to pour out a musical elegy.

My search for a suitable text led me all over the internet that night, but amazingly, it ended with a picture from a cemetery in my hometown where the great American author Mark Twain and his family are buried. My brother and I, from our youth, have known the poem that Twain placed on his beloved daughter Susy, when she died unexpectedly at 24 and left him heartbroken. I was stunned by the bittersweet irony of this text being from our hometown, and in honor of a beloved daughter who died unexpectedly. - Dan Forrest

Warm summer sun, shine brightly here, Warm Southern wind, blow softly here, Green sod above, lie light, lie light, Good night, dear heart; good night, good night.

Abide Forrest Text: Jake Adam York (1972-2012)

I first encountered Jake Adam York’s poem, Abide when a friend sent me an article from the New York Times Magazine memorializing his untimely death in 2012. York is known for his collection of poetry elegizing the martyrs of the Civil Rights movement in the U.S., and Abide may be his finest. (It was chosen for theNew York Times article by U.S. Poet Laureate Natasha Trethewey). It is part of his collection by the same title, published in 2012, inspired by a vinyl record of Thelonius Monk performing the classic hymn, “Abide with Me.”

My setting, then seeks to evoke several influences- a sense of Americana, a warm-late summer evening, and hints of “Abide with Me” (both subtle and direct). I chose a rather homophonic syllabic style for most of York’s text, inspired by his own unpretentious style in reading his own poetry (videos available online), but surrounded it with richer textures which envelop and embrace his own honest voice. - Dan Forrest Forgive me if I forget with the birdsong and the day’s last glow folding into the hands of the trees, forgive me the few syllables of the autumn crickets, the year’s last firefly winking like a penny in the shoulder’s weeds, if I forget the house, if I forget the day as the evening star pours out its whiskey over the gravel and asphalt I’ve walked for years alone, if I startle when you put your hand in mine, if I wonder how long your light has taken to reach me here. About the Artists 13

GRAMMY®-nominated conductor JAMES JORDAN is recognized His residencies, master classes and guest conducting have taken and praised around the musical world as one of America’s pre- him throughout the United States, Canada, Europe and Australia. eminent conductors, writers and innovators in choral music. He was Among the institutions where he has taught master classes are The described as a “visionary” by The Choral Journal, which cited his book Curtis Institute, Rhoades College, the University of North Texas, the Evoking Sound as a “must read.” The most published musician/author University of Buffalo, Temple University, the University of Arizona, in the world, his 35 books form the canon for teaching conductors the University of Aberdeen, the Gordon Gesellschaft Duetschland and choirs worldwide. At Westminster Choir College he is professor and the U.S. Army Soldiers Chorus. He has conducted more than and senior conductor, and he conducts Westminster Schola Cantorum 30 all-state choirs, and in 2009 he was named to the choral panel for and the internationally acclaimed Westminster Williamson Voices. The National Endowment for the Arts. Dr. Jordan serves as director of the Westminster Conducting Institute, one of the nation’s leading Dr. Jordan has studied with the legendary conductors and scholars summer programs for the training and education of conductors. In the of the past 40 years, including Elaine Brown, Wilhelm Ehmann, summer of 2013 he inaugurated, with co-director , Frauke Haasemann, Volker Hempfling and the legendary the Westminster Choral Institute at Oxford, a unique partnership music psychologist Edwin Gordon. His career as a conductor with St. Stephen’s House, one of the Halls of Oxford University. began as a finalist in the Leopold Stokowski Conducting Competition Since its establishment in 2013, this program has been recognized with The under Eugene Ormandy. as one of the world’s leading programs for the teaching of choral artistry to choral conductors. He has made two recordings of the music of James Whitbourn with the Westminster Williamson Voices on the Naxos label, This year, Dr. Jordan made his Carnegie Hall debut conducting which have garnered wide critical acclaim on both sides of the the New York premiere of the Stabat Mater of Paul Mealor, whose Atlantic. Gramophone hailed him as a conductor of “forceful Symphony No. 1, “Passiontiude” he premiered at St. Machar’s and intimate choral artistry,” and regarding the GRAMMY- Cathedral in Aberdeen Scotland. Dr. Jordan is the conductor/artistic nominated recording of , Choir and Organ wrote, director of a newly inaugurated professional choir, The Same Stream. “Jordan’s instinctive understanding of the score makes this a profound Recordings of the choir can be found at iTunes, and information and emotionally charged experience.” Reviewers have called his about the ensemble can be found at thesamestreamchoir.com. performances “deeply transcendent infused with deep emotion.” The Westminster Williamson Voices has been acclaimed on both Dr. Jordan has been honored as a distinguished alumnus at both sides of the Atlantic by reviewers and composers alike for its Susquehanna University and Temple University. He was awarded compelling sound and artistry. The choir is in residence each summer the distinguished Doctor of Music by the University of Aberdeen in at the Choral Institute at Oxford, a unique program for conductors Scotland in 2014 to honor his artistry and contributions to choral that explores artistry through performance and human connection music throughout the world. The University, established in 1485, (www.rider.edu/oxford). A friend to many of the world’s leading has awarded degrees throughout its history to only two Americans: composers, Dr. Jordan has premiered more than 40 choral works Dr. Jordan and Morten Lauridsen. He shares this honor with Gustav by the world’s leading composers, among them Jaakko Mantyjaarvi, Holst, Benjamin Britten and Dame Joan Sutherland. Blake Henson, Gerald Custer, Thomas LaVoy, Cortlandt Matthews, Dan Forrest, Paul Mealor, Dan Forrest and James Whitbourn. Comprehensive information about Dr. Jordan’s publications and work, including video interviews, can be found at giamusic.com/Jordan. Dr. Jordan’s career and publications have been devoted to innovative educational changes in the choral art, which have been embraced COREY EVERLY is a collaborative pianist, coach and conductor. He around the world. His research and writings have shaped far- will graduate from Westminster Choir College with a master’s degree reaching changes in the philosophy of music teaching and learning, in Piano Accompanying and Coaching in 2016, where he is a student conducting pedagogy, and the teaching of rhythm applying Laban of Dr. J.J. Penna. He is accompanist for the GRAMMY-nominated Effort/Shape to both music teaching and conducting pedagogy. Westminster Williamson Voices and Westminster Schola Cantorum. He is considered to be the world’s leading authority on the He has accompanied Westminster Schola Cantorum on multiple tours, application of Music Learning Theory to the choral rehearsal and he made his Carnegie Hall debut in 2010 with the Westminster process. A monumental 700-page book on the subject, Inside the Chapel Choir. Most recently he served as assistant conductor and Choral Rehearsal, will be released in the summer of 2016. In 2012, chorus master for Opera on the Avalon in Newfoundland, Canada. In he received the Iorio Research Prize from Rider University. 2013, he was the chorus master for Britten’s Saint Nicolas at the Shipley His exclusive publisher is GIA Music (Giamusic.com), Chicago. Arts Festival in West Sussex, UK. He has conducted more than 30 He is executive editor of the Evoking Sound Choral Series (GIA), musical theatre/opera productions spanning a wide range of styles. whose extensive catalog of almost 200 works stands as among the He holds a bachelor’s degree in Voice Performance from Westminster largest and most comprehensive choral series in world. His most recent Choir College where he studied with Faith Esham. He remains heavily publications, Discovering Chant, Sound as Teacher and The Musician’s active in choral music and currently collaborates with conductor Breath have received wide critical acclaim. James Jordan, composer James Whitbourn, and the Westminster Williamson Voices at the Choral Institute at Oxford each year. 14 About the Artists

The Grammy®-nominated WESTMINSTER WILLIAMSON Eric Whitacre’s Leonardo Dreams of His Flying Machine with VOICES, named for the founder of Westminster Choir College, the renowned Spiral Q Puppet Theater and the premiere of John Finley Williamson, is praised by reviewers on both sides of James Whitbourn’s Luminosity with The ArcheDream Blacklight the Atlantic. Williamson Voices is the resident choir of the Choral Dance Theater Company of Philadelphia. Institute at Oxford (CIO), now in its fourth year. The CIO is one of the leading institutes in the world for the training of conductors that The choir has premiered more than 40 choral works and emphasizes artistry in performance. Founded by James Jordan, the presented several early performances and premieres by noted ensemble has quickly distinguished itself in the choral world for its composers Jackson Hill, William Duckworth, Paul Mealor, distinctive artistry, recordings, educational outreach and its mission Tarik O’Regan, Roger Ames, Robert Moran, Blake Henson, to perform new music. The choir has additionally distinguished itself Jaakko Mäntyjärvi, Ugis Praulins, Gerald Custer, James Whitbourn, as a living choral laboratory. It is one of the few ensembles in the Thomas LaVoy, Cortlandt Matthews and Kile Smith and Dan Forrest. world that use chant as the center of their musicianship study and The choir has premiered three major works by British composer performance. This emphasis has grown out of its residencies and James Whitbourn that have attracted international attention. study at the Choral Institute at Oxford. The choir has embarked on a In 2007, it performed the world premiere of the chamber version of three-year project studying the performance practice and spirituality Annelies, the first major choral setting of the diary of . surround the works of Arvo Pärt. This project will culminate in the In 2008, it shared in a commission of Luminosity, a work for triple performance of his monumental Kanon Pokajanen. The first college choir, dancers, viola solo, organ and tanpura. In 2010, the choir choir to be a part of The Metropolitan Museum of Arts series, the premiered Whitbourn’s Requiem Canticorum. Past seasons have also ensemble will perform in museum’s Temple of Dendur in November included performances of Debussy’s Nocturnes with The Princeton in cooperation with the Arvo Pärt Project. Symphony Orchestra conducted by Rossen Milanov. In 2013, the choir performed the US premiere in New York of Paul Mealor’s Reviewers on both sides of the Atlantic are of one voice in praising Crucifixus for choir, orchestra and baritone soloist. In April 2014, the the ensemble for its world premiere recordings on the Naxos label. choir made its Lincoln Center debut at Alice Tully Hall performing Gramophone magazine has described the Westminster Williamson James Whitbourn’s Annelies. Voices as an ensemble of “intimate and forceful choral artistry,” with a tone that is “controlled and silken in sustained phrases as The choir has also assembled an impressive recorded discography. they are vibrantly sonorous in extroverted material.” The American It has recorded more than 30 choral masterworks on the Teaching Record Guide praised the ensemble as “without peer.” TheChoral Music through Performance CD box sets that are used by conductors Journal has described the Westminster Williamson Voices an around the world. The ensemble can also be seen and heard in the ensemble of “supreme artistry” and a choir that performs with “truth DVD The Empowered Choral Rehearsal: Choral Masterclasses with and precision.” And from the publication of the Arvo Pärt Project Simon Carrington. The choir has six world premiere recordings to this fall: “The Westminster Williamson Voices under his (Jordan’s) its credit, including its 2011 recording on the Naxos label, Living direction “are coming into their own in the American choral scene Voices: The Music of James Whitbourn. James Whirbourn’s Annelies, both here and abroad.” performed with The Lincoln Trio; , soprano and Bharat Chandra, clarinet was released by Naxos in 2013. London’s In July, 2013, The Williamson Voices performed as part of the world- Guardian newspaper wrote about the recording “The performance wide Britten 100 celebration: the 50th anniversary re-enactment as a whole…is well prepared and palpably committed as befits a performance of the premiere of St. Nicolas in the Lancing College premiere recording.” Gramophone lauded Williamson Voices on the Chapel in Sussex where the work was premiered with the composer Annelies recording as “exhilarating” and described the ensemble as conducting. In 2013, the choir also gave its UK debut performance at singing “with a precision and finesse normally found in the best of the Oxford as part of the Westminster Choral Institute at Oxford and the UK’s large chamber choirs.” SJE Artist series. This past summer, the choir performed Bernstein’s Chichester Psalms under the baton of the newly appointed Director of In the coming year, the choir will release its third recording on the New York’s St. Thomas Church, Daniel Hyde, on the day of the 50th Naxos label, a recording of Christmas music featuring the Missa Anniversary of the works’ premiere. Carolae of James Whitbourn, which is performed each year at the Westminster Choir College An Evening of Readings and Carols concert. The ensemble has established itself as a voice of composers of our The choir will also release another recording,A Hole in the Sky on the time, and it has been acclaimed for its creative programming GIAChoralworks label late this summer. The music recorded for that and collaborations with other art forms. Most notable were CD is the music is included in these programs. the ensemble’s performance at The Philadelphia Cathedral of About the Artists 15

Westminster Williamson Voices James Jordan, conductor Corey Everly, piano William Sawyer and Brian V. Sengdala, graduate assistant conductors SOPRANO Liana Booker, Bronx, NY Marigrace Maley, Massapequa, NY Elizabeth Richter, Garrison, NY* Micaela Bottari, Torrington, CT Nicole Michel, Ridgewood, NJ Emily Sebastian, Dover, DE Corinne Costell, Port Jefferson Station, NY Kate Miksits, Coplay, PA Jessica Stanislawczyk, Kendall Park, NJ Megan Gallagher, Bayport, NY Sara Munson, Rockaway, NJ Esther Teh, Pompano Beach, FL Katelyn Hemling, Baltimore, MD Megan Pendleton, Oakland, CA* ALTO Amanda Agnew, Massapequa Park, NY Samantha Goldberg, Philadelphia, PA* Emily Rosoff,Saratoga Springs, NY Kathleen Dunn, Glen Rock, NJ Allison Griffiths,Croghan, NY Caitlin Scharar, Smithtown, NY David Falatok, Akron, OH Maclain Hardin, Columbus, GA Kristin Schenk, Doylestown, PA Amira Fuller, St. Louis, MO Lauren Lazzari, New Hampton, NY Joslyn Thomas,Albertson, NY Moira Susan Gannon, Lafayette Hill, PA* Alex Meakem, Ringwood, NJ Kathryn Trave, Holland, PA TENOR Aldo Aranzulla, Lancaster, PA Victor Cristobal, Franklin Park, NJ Brian Pember, Greenfield Township, PA Jesse Borower, Charlotte, NC Jonathon Feinstein, Rockville Centre, NY* William Sawyer, Sudbury, MA* John Burke, Ringwood, NJ Anthony Kurza, Ringwood, NJ Tyler Smalling, West Babylon, NY Max Claycomb, Quakertown, PA David Lawn, Largs, Scotland Dan Wells, Philadelphia, PA Igor Correa, Caracas, Venezuela Benjamin Norkus, Point Pleasant, NJ

BASS Joshua Acampado, Bridgewater, NJ Corey Everly, Boswell, PA Eric Roper, New Providence, NJ ** Conner Allison, Estero, FL* Storm Kowaleski, Silver Spring, MD* Robin Schott, Jamison, PA Lawrence J. Besch, Bethesda, MD Colton Martin, Falls City, NE Brian V. Sengdala, Greenwich, CT Holden Bihl, Robbinsville, NJ Joshua Palagyi, Albany, NY Hunter Thomas,State College, PA John Brewer, Southbury, CT Jose Proença, Weston, FL Peter Carter, Woodstock, GA James Roman, Moorestown, NJ

* denotes section leader ** denotes head section leader Roster approved 2/9/16 16 About Us

Rider University’s WESTMINSTER COLLEGE OF THE choral conducting; and piano accompanying and coaching. ARTS educates and trains aspiring performers, artists, teachers The SCHOOL OF FINE AND PERFORMING ARTS and students with artistic interests to pursue professional, is located on Rider’s Lawrenceville campus. Its programs scholarly and lifelong personal opportunities in art, dance, include arts administration, musical theatre and fine arts with music and theatre. The College consists of three divisions: tracks in dance, music, theatre and art. WESTMINSTER Westminster Choir College, the School of Fine and Performing CONSERVATORY OF MUSIC is a community music school Arts and Westminster Conservatory. WESTMINSTER that serves the Central New Jersey/Eastern Pennsylvania area CHOIR COLLEGE is a college of music and graduate with on-campus and community-based music instruction as school located on Rider’s Princeton campus. Renowned for well as community choral, orchestral and theatre ensembles. its tradition of choral excellence, Westminster offers programs RIDER UNIVERSITY is a private co-educational, student- in music education; music theory and composition; sacred centered university that emphasizes purposeful connections music; voice, organ, and piano performance and pedagogy; between academic study and education for the professions.

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