Mark Singleton, Artistic Director Paul Mealor, Composer-In-Residence presents: Behold the Roses – The music of Paul Mealor

Featuring Primi Voci of the Connecticut Children’s Chorus

Mark Singleton, Conductor

Saturday, May 20th 2017 – 7:30pm

St. Patrick-St. Anthony Church, 285 Church St, Hartford, CT 06103 Sunday, May 21st 2017 – 5:00pm

Cathedral of Saint John the Divine, 1047 Amsterdam Ave, New York, NY 10025 Best Wishes for Another Terrific Season of Voce

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All works composed by Paul Mealor (b.1975)

I. Traditional prayer Ave Maria The Beatitudes

II. Now Sleeps the Crimson Petal 1. Now sleeps the crimson petal Text by Alfred, Lord Tennyson (1809-1892) 2. Lady, when I behold the roses sprouting Anonymous 3. Upon a bank with roses set about Text by John Ward (1571-1638) 4. A Spotless Rose Anonymous

III. Shine Forth a Path of Stars Two Jacobite Songs on Poems by Peter Davidson 1. Lord Derwentwater’s Rose - Jack Pott, tenor (1928-2004) 2. Jacobite Song - Jared Gravely, baritone

IV. Text by Paul Mealor In My Dreams I am the Gentle Light

V. She Walks in Beauty Text by Lord Byron (1788-1824)

~ Intermission ~

VI. Between Eternity and Time – Liz Bologna, soprano Text by Emily Dickinson (1830-1886) 1. Come slowly, Eden! 2. The Bequest 3. The heart asks pleasure first

VII. To Seek Where Shadows Are (U.S. Premiere) Text by Christina Rossetti (1830- 1894) 1. Dreamland 2. Dreaming 3. In the Bleak Midwinter

VIII. Wherever You Are The Military Wives’ Prayer Ubi Caritas Traditional hymn text

~ Fini ~

Texts & Translations

Ave Maria

Ave Maria, gratia plena, Dominus tecum. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Benedicta tu in mulieribus, Blessed art thou among women, et benedictus fructus ventris tui, Jesus. and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Sancta Maria, Mater Dei, Holy Mary, Mother of God, ora pro nobis peccatoribus, pray for us sinners, nunc et in hora mortis nostrae. Amen. now and in the hour of our death. Amen.

The Beatitudes

Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God. Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heav’n. Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, And say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heav’n: For so persecuted they the prophets which were before you. Amen.

Now Sleeps the Crimson Petal

1. Now sleeps the crimson petal 3. Upon a bank with roses set about Now sleeps the crimson petal, now the white; Upon a bank with roses set about Nor waves the cypress in the palace walk; Where pretty turtles joining bill to bill, The firefly wakens: waken thou with me. And gentle springs steal softly murmuring out, Now droops the milk-white peacock like a ghost, Washing the foot of pleasure’s sacred hill. And like a ghost she glimmers onto me. There little love sore wounded lies. Now lies the Earth all Danae to the stars, His bow and arrows broken, And all thy heart lies open unto me. Bedewed with tears from Venus’ eyes. Now folds the lily all her sweetness up, O grevious to be spoken. And slips into the bosom of the lake: So fold thyself, my dearest, thou, and slip 4. A Spotless Rose Into my bosom and be lost in me. A Spotless Rose is growing, sprung from a tender root, Of ancient seers’ foreshowing, of Jesse promised fruit. 2. Lady, when I behold the roses sprouting Its fairest bud unfolds to light amid the cold, cold Lady, when I behold the roses sprouting, winter, and the dark midnight. Which clad in damask mantles deck the arbours, The Rose which I am singing, whereof Isaiah said, And then behold your lips where sweet love harbours, Is from its sweet root springing in Mary, purest Maid; My eyes present me with a double doubting; Through God’s great love and might For, viewing both alike, hardly my mind supposes The Blessed Babe she bare us Whether the roses be your lips or your lips the roses. Amid the cold, cold winter and the dark midnight. Shine Forth a Path of Stars

1. Lord Derwentwater’s Rose 2. Jacobite Song The north is gone now. Vict’ry in loss, The falcon flown, far in the starving air Devotion to the best most injured King So many lost, this long, half secret war. The scaffold stairs shine forth a path of stars. The regiments like snow all over bourne The blade the rose’s thorn in the hand of God. The boat rowed far from the cold shore, long gone. The blackbird taken in the fowler’s snare He is no far who will return no more The burn is frozen and the bird is flown The rose is withered and the tower is down. Snow, falcon, blackbird, water, rose and tower; Faded, flown, taken, frozen, fallen, gone.

In My Dreams

As I lie here at night, as my eyes give in to sleep, As I dream of you, here in my arms, I’m holding you, loving you. As you sleep there, my love, as your eyes give in to rest, As you dream of me, there in your arms, I’m holding you, loving you. In my dreams, you’re in my arms, In my dreams, my heart is holding you, feeling you, loving you, In my dreams, you’re always there, In my dreams our love will never die; Always you, always love, in my dreams. All alone here I lie, as the darkness falls around, As I think of you, and your warm embrace, I’m home again, ever safe. I’ll dream of you for evermore, I’ll dream of holding you, feeling you, always in my dreams.

I am the gentle light She walks in beauty

I am the gentle light, She walks in beauty, like the night of cloudless The stars at night, the morning bright; climes and starry skies; and all that’s best of I am the still, small voice, dark and bright meet in her aspect and her eyes: The living choice, the heart’s rejoice. Thus mellow’d to that tender light And if you follow me, I’ll be Which heav’n to gaudy day denies. With you for all eternity; One shade the more, one ray the less, I will hold onto you, my love will set you free. Had half impair’d the nameless grace I am forever love, Which waves in ev’ry raven tress, Light from above; the peaceful dove; Or softly lightens o’er her face; I am your loving friend, Where thoughts serenely sweet express Your heart I tend, until the end. How pure, how dear their dwelling place. And if you follow me, I’ll be And on that cheek, and o’er that brow, With you for all eternity; So soft, so calm, yet eloquent, I will hold onto you, my love will set you free. The smiles that win, the tints that glow, I am forever, my love will set you free. But tell of days in goodness spent, A mind at peace with all below, A heart whose love is innocent. Between Eternity and Time

1. Come slowly, Eden! 2. The Bequest Come slowly, Eden! Lips unused to Thee, You left me, sweet, two legacies of love Bashful, sip thy jasmines, A Heav’nly Father would content, As the fainting bee, Had He the offer of; Reaching late his flower, You left me boundaries of pain Round her chamber hums, Capacious as the sea, Counts his nectars Between eternity and time, Enters, and is lost in balms! Your consciousness and me.

3. The heart asks pleasure first The heart asks pleasure first, And then, excuse from pain; And then, those little anodynes That deaden suffering; The heart asks pleasure first, And then, to go to sleep; And then, if it should be The will of its Inquisitor, The liberty to die.

To Seek Where Shadows Are (U.S. Premiere)

1. Dreamland And round about him the May bushes are white. Where sunless rivers weep Away to poppied death; cool shadows deepen Their waves into the deep, Across the sleeping face: She sleeps a charmed sleep: So fails the summer with warm delicious breath; Awake her not. So what has autumn to give us in its place? Led by a single star, A Song of Cherished lips. She came from very far To seek where shadows are. 3. In the Bleak Midwinter Rest, rest forevermore upon a mossy shore; In the bleak midwinter frosty wind made moan, Rest, rest at the heart’s core Earth stood hard as iron, water like a stone; Till time shall cease. Snow had fallen, snow on snow, In the bleak midwinter long ago. 2. Dreaming Angels and archangels may have gathered there, Young Love lies dreaming, dreaming, Cherubim and seraphim thronged the air – But who shall tell the dream? But only His mother in her maiden bliss A perfect sunlight on rustling forest tips; Worshipped the Beloved with a kiss. Or perfect moonlight upon a rippling stream; What can I give Him, poor as I am? In Maytime of the year, among the lilies, If I were a shepherd I would bring a lamb; Lap’ed in the tender light: If I were a wise man I would do my part; White lambs come grazing, Yet what I can, I give Him White doves come building there: Give my heart. Or perfect silence, or songs of cherished lips.

Wherever you are

Wherever you are, my love will keep you safe; My heart will build a bridge of light across both time and space. Wherever you are, our hearts still beat as one, I hold you in my dreams each night, until your task is done. Light up the darkness, my wondrous star; Our hopes and dreams, my heart and yours, forever shining far. Light up the darkness, my prince of peace; May the stars shine all around you, may your courage never cease.

(Greater love hath no man than this, That a man lay down his life for his friends.)

Wherever I am, I will love you day by day, I will keep you safe, cling onto faith, along the dark, dark way. Wherever I am, I will hold on through the night; I will pray each day, a safe return, will look now to the light. Light up the darkness, my wondrous star; Our hopes and dreams, my heart and yours, forever shining far. Light up the darkness, my prince of peace; May the stars shine all around you, may your courage never cease.

Ubi Caritas

Composed for the Marriage of His Royal Highness Prince William of Wales, K.G. with Miss Catherine Middleton (now TRH The Duke & Duchess of Cambridge) and first performed by the Choirs of Westminster Abbey and Her Majesty’s Chapel Royal, St. James’s Palace, conducted by James O’Donnell, at Westminster Abbey, Friday, 29th April 2011

Ubi caritas et amor, Where charity and love are, Deus ibi est. God is there. Congregavit nos in unum Christi amor. Christ’s love has gathered us into one. Exultemus, et in ipso jucundemur. Let us rejoice and be pleased in Him. Timeamus, et amemus Deum vivum. Let us fear, and let us love the living God. Et ex corde diligamus nos sincero. And may we love each other with a sincere heart.

Blessing Gaelic Blessing

May the road rise to meet you, May the wind be always at your back. May the sun shine warm upon your face, May the rains fall soft upon your fields. And until we meet again, May God hold you in the palm of His hand.

About Voce: Its Mission and Its Musicians Voce is an auditioned, professional mixed choir whose sound reflects the unique musical vision of its Artistic Director and co-founder, Mark Singleton. After working with Voce in April, 2008, Morten Lauridsen -- the most widely performed composer in the United States -- had this to say about Voce: “Voce is clearly already in the upper echelon of American chamber choirs. During my recent residence with the ensemble I was constantly astonished at the level of artistry displayed by both the singers and their conductor, Mark Singleton. I have no doubt that this superb chorus will soon be recognized throughout the United States as exemplifying choral performance at its finest.” Dr. Lauridsen then returned in 2009 to record an entire CD of his works with Voce. The CD, entitled “Sure on This Shining Night,” was complimented for its “tender warmth, exquisite nuance, and enduring spirit” by the American Record Guide.

Since our founding in 2006, Voce has sought to provide performance and educational opportunities for today’s singers and the next generations of musicians. We are a vocational ensemble -- we use our music to evoke artistry in others. Recent studies have confirmed the value of singing in education, as represented by the following important findings:

• Choral singing is an integral part of arts education, which is a necessary component of a comprehensive and competitive education. Singing in choir promotes academic achievement and develops necessary life skills • The collective expression of a chorus singing together has the power to lift spirits and transform lives (source: www.ChorusAmerica.org)

Voce’s Board of Directors and Officers

Thomas F. Cooke II – President David Pettyjohn Robert Borden (ex officio, past President) Hal Rives Jane Currie John Skar Jennifer Ferrand Kelly Donna B. Stamm (ex officio) James A. Grigsby Bob Willard Bob Lautensack

Voce Administrator: Media Manager: Producer & Marketing Manager: Melanie Wade Cometa Jennifer McCann Ali Singleton

About Mark Singleton, Artistic Director Stephen Mark Singleton is a renowned conductor, composer, writer and guest speaker. His unique career path has taken him all over the world including China, Africa, South America and Europe. As a frequent guest conductor and clinician, Mark has worked with choirs and orchestras of all ages and styles. His energetic and magnetic leadership has made him one of the most sought-after conductors in New England.

Mark is a champion of new music - particularly music of composers in the early stages of their careers. With Voce and Dr. Peter Bagley, he co-founded the "Peter Bagley Commissioning Fund for New Works of Art" in order to promote music of young up-and-coming composers. He has premiered numerous works for choir and remains committed to performing new works of art.

Mark is frequently asked to be a guest speaker at concerts, universities, and faith communities. He currently serves on the faculty of the Hartt School of Music Community Division as Director of Primi Voci from the Connecticut Children’s Chorus. Mark has also served on the faculty of the University of Connecticut and Central Connecticut State University as well as having taught in public schools. While at UCONN, he conducted the Concert Choir, Collegium Musicum and the Women's Chorus.

He has prepared choruses and served as guest conductor for many orchestras including the National Symphony of China, Hartford Symphony Orchestra, New Haven Symphony Orchestra, Liberty Symphony Orchestra, Arcadiana Symphony Orchestra, Yale Symphony Orchestra and the Eastern Connecticut Symphony Orchestra. Currently, Mark serves as the Artistic Director of Voce, Director of Music at Immanuel Congregational Church, and Chorus Director for the Eastern Connecticut Symphony Orchestra.

Mark holds an undergraduate degree in cello performance and church music from William Jewell College and a Master of Music degree in choral conducting from the University of Connecticut. He has pursued additional conducting studies at the Robert Shaw Festival, the Dennis Keene Choral Festival and the Conductor’s Institute of South Carolina. His principal conducting teachers include Peter Bagley, Charles Bruffy, and Phillip C. Posey.

His work has been described by Morten Lauridsen as "exemplifying choral performance at its finest." The American Record Guide described his last album as demonstrating "tender warmth, exquisite nuance and enduring spirit," and Stereophile Magazine called his work "heartbreakingly beautiful."

About Paul Mealor Paul Mealor has been described as ‘the most important composer to have emerged in Welsh choral music since William Mathias‘ (New York Times, 2001) and his music is ‘marked by something outside of himself that is beautifully spatial and evocative of landscape… it illuminates both our past and our future‘ (The Guardian, 2011).

Topping the Classical Charts for six weeks with his bestselling album, A Tender Light (featuring Tenebrae Choir and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra) in November 2011, he also broke records by being the first classical composer to hold both the classical and pop chart No 1’s at the same time in December 2011, securing the UK Christmas No 1 with his piece for The Military Wives Choir and Gareth Malone, Wherever You Are. Wherever You Are entered the UK Pop Singles Chart at number 1 on 19th December, selling over 556,000 copies in one week, more than the rest of the Top 12 combined, and was nominated for Best British Single in the 2012 BRIT Awards. It has been named, by the Official Charts Company as, the fastest selling single since Elton John’s Candle in the Wind. Also, in April of 2012 Mealor was voted the nation’s favorite living composer during the UK Classic FM Hall of Fame.

Born in St Asaph, North Wales in 1975, Paul Mealor studied composition privately as a boy with William Mathias and later with John Pickard, and at the University of York with Nicola LeFanu (BA Hons, 1997, PhD, 2002) and in Copenhagen with Hans Abrahamsen and Per Nørgård. His music has been commissioned and performed at many festivals and by many orchestras and choruses and has been broadcast on every major TV and Radio station throughout the world. Since January 2003 he has taught in the Music Department at the University of Aberdeen where he is Professor of Composition.

Mealor was catapulted to international stardom in April 2011, when 2.5 billion people (the largest audience in broadcasting history) heard his Motet, Ubi caritas performed by the choirs of Westminster Abbey and Her Majesty’s Chapel Royal, conducted by James O’Donnell at the Royal Wedding Ceremony of His Royal Highness Prince William and Catherine Middleton (now TRH The Duke & Duchess of Cambridge) at Westminster Abbey. It since topped the Classical singles charts in the USA, UK, Australia, France and New Zealand.

In July 2011, Mealor signed to Decca Records and signed a publishing deal with Novello & Co. His first album for Decca, A Tender Light – a collection of sacred anthems recorded by Tenebrae and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra – spent six weeks at No 1 of the Specialist Classical Charts. He is currently preparing his second album for Decca and has contributed new works to a number of other Decca albums, including his song In My Dreams for X factor star Jonjo Kerr, which entered the pop charts at number one, knocking Bruce Springsteen off the top spot; De Profundis for the St Petersburg Chamber Choir on the album Tranquillity (which also made No 1 in the Classical Charts in August 2012), and the first ever musical setting of St Francis’ prayer, You Are The Holy Lord God for Friar Alessandro’s debut album.

Mealor wrote a number of works for HM Queen Elizabeth II’s Diamond Jubilee and has recently completed his first symphony Passiontide – a large work for soprano, baritone, choir and orchestra – which received its premiere at the composer’s fortieth birthday concert in November 2015, and is currently working on a number of pieces for chorus and orchestra. He has just finished filming a programme on the music of Benjamin Britten and appeared in the BBC 2 programme, The Choir, as well as making his Carnegie Hall debut with a sell-out performance of his Stabat mater with the DCINY chorus and orchestra conducted by James Jordan.

Mealor is the first President of ‘Ty Cerdd’ – Wales’s National Centre for music making and Vice- President of the Llangollen International Eisteddfod and the North Wales International Music Festival. He is composer in residence with Canada’s top professional choir, Pro Coro, and is the Curator of the JAM on the marsh festival in Kent. He has received many awards and honours for his music including Honorary Fellowships from Bangor University (2013) and Glyndwr University (2012) in Wrexham, and the Glanville Jones Award, from the Welsh Music Guild, for his outstanding contribution to music in Wales (2013). He was appointed a Free Burgess of The City of Aberdeen in 2012 by The Lord Provost of Aberdeen, and is President and Patron of many Welsh and Scottish organisations.

Members of Voce include: Soprano Alto Tenor Bass Jennifer Lamson* Pamela Frigo Johnson* Jack Anthony Pott* Tom Cooke* Liz Bologna Sarah Armstrong Adam Atkins Dylan Armstrong Jennifer Ferrand-Kelly Salli-Jo Borden Andrew Brochu Robert Borden Jennifer McCann Sarah Chasse Ehren Brown Jonathan Clune Megan Sherry Gretchen Collins Floyd Higgins Herb Menzel Ali Singleton Meredith Neumann Josh Hummel Jeffrey Vanags Alyssa Venora Margaret Tyler Alex O’Neil Melanie Wade Cometa David Pettyjohn *Principal Mark Singleton, Artistic Director Stephen Scarlato, Accompanist Members of Primi Voci include: Valerie Barbosa Hannah Hervieux Lucia Palladino Alivia Begin Caitlyn Krueger Bethany Pelletier Zoe Corning Hannah Loiselle Pritika Seshadri Emily Cunningham Katherine Mankowski Ashley Soucie Margot Cunningham Sarah Marze Emily Steele Gioia Geddicks Marie Menhart Krista Steinmetz

Mark Singleton, Artistic Director Mi-Young Kim, Accompanist

Voce would like to thank Minuteman Press for their sponsorship, Bob Bingham for his promotion assistance and Steve Lurie for his photography and video production.

Voce would also like to thank Rachel Golder for sponsoring the May 21st performance and Rosalind van Stolk for funding transportation.

Voce’s new album “Music of the Spheres” is available for purchase at the ticket table during Intermission. Also available are Voce’s album featuring the works of Morten Lauridsen, "Sure on This Shining Night" as well as copies of “Voce Live” and “Voce Sings for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation,” including music of Howells, Taverner, Lennon & McCartney, and others, from Live Performances – October 14 & 15, 2006.

Auditions for Voce will be held June 17th and 18th at Immanuel Congregational Church, 10 Woodland Street, Hartford, CT 06105. Please check out the Auditions section of Voce’s website, www.voceinc.org , for more information, or email [email protected].

Please consider making a donation to Voce, Inc. in support of our 2017-2018 concert season. Contributions may be made on our website, www.voceinc.org, or by check made out to “Voce, Inc.” and mailed to Voce, Inc., c/o New England Guild Wealth Advisors | 139 Simsbury Road, Avon, CT 06001.

Our primary method of keeping in touch with the greater Voce community is through email. We would love to include you on our email list. Please help us to stay in touch with you by sending an email to [email protected], asking that you be added to our email notification list. Please provide us with your name, as well. You can also sign up for notifications through a link in our website, www.voceinc.org. There you will also find a lot of other interesting information about Voce.

Facebook.com/vocesings @VoceInc @voceinc

www.voceinc.org We’d like to acknowledge the generous support of our 2016-2017 season by the following:

$2,500 or more Becca Coffman & Mike Lurie Rachel Golder John Delmhorst & Michele Jones Goldman Sachs Jennifer Ferrand Kelly Harvey & Lewis Sally Fleming Seabury Ed & Susan Forst Simsbury Bank E. Paul Grimmeisen SKY Investment Group, LLC Helen & Don Hughlett Webster Bank Matthew Johnson Brooks & Carol Lee Joslin $1,000 - $2,499 Steve & Cindy Lurie Thomas Cooke & Rosalind van Stolk Connie & Nicholas Mason Jane Currie & Pam Perry Jennifer McCann Barbara David David Pettyjohn Albert G. van Stolk Mark & Ali Singleton Smart Clicks - Jeff & Pam Lacko $0 - $999 Anne Stanback Susan Ahearn Allan & Sally Taylor Louis & Cynthia Allyn Sally & Thomas Tresselt Peter Bagley John Tyler Robert & Salli-Jo Borden UBS - Ted Almy Gilman Burke Marki Ware & Harold Rives Jonathan Clune

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Simsbury Bank is proud to support the Voce choral concert season and the beautiful music it brings to the community. We applaud the Voce leadership and its members for their dedication to providing performance and educational opportunities to the local choral community.

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