Contact: Jennifer Wada Communications 718-855-7101 [email protected] 1440 Broadway, 23rd Floor www.wadacommunications.com New York, NY 10018 212–400–7255 ORATORIO SOCIETY OF NEW YORK PERFORMING HANDEL’S MESSIAH AT CARNEGIE HALL = A NEW YORK TRADITION OF THE HIGHEST ORDER Kent Tritle Conducts OSNY’s 143rd Annual Performance of the Holiday Classic on Wednesday, December 21, 2016, at 8:00 pm Kathryn Lewek, Jakub Józef Orliński, William Ferguson, and Adam Lau are Soloists Kent Tritle leading the Oratorio Society of New York at Carnegie Hall (photo by Tim Dwight) “A vibrant and deeply human performance, made exciting by the sheer heft and depth of the chorus's sound.” -The New York Times (on Messiah) The Oratorio Society of New York has the distinction of having performed Handel’s Messiah every Christmas season since 1874, and at Carnegie Hall every year the hall has been open since 1891 – qualifying the OSNY’s annual rendition of the holiday classic as a New York tradition of the highest order. On Wednesday, December 21, 2016, Music Director Kent Tritle leads the OSNY, New York’s champion of the grand choral tradition, in its 143rd performance of Messiah, at Carnegie Hall. The vocal soloists are Kathryn Lewek, soprano; Jakub Józef Orliński, countertenor; William Ferguson, tenor; and Adam Lau, bass. Oratorio Society of New York’s 143 Performance of Handel’s Messiah – Dec. 21, 2016 - Page 2 of 4 “Each performance is fresh” -Kent Tritle Performing an iconic work such as Messiah every year presents the particular challenge of avoiding settling into a groove. But each annual performance is fresh, says Tritle: “Handel’s Messiah is a perfect example of what is so special about live performance. As we come to the work again, we are changed people from the year before. We experience the words and musical gestures differently, so the notes come alive every year in a new and exhilarating way.” Among the soloists, soprano Kathryn Lewek, who has made The Magic Flute’s Queen of the Night her signature role around the world, sang in the OSNY’s 2013 Messiah. Jakub Józef Orliński was the first countertenor to win the OSNY’s Lyndon Woodside Oratorio-Solo Competition when he took first place this past spring; he is a graduate student at The Juilliard School. Tenor William Ferguson is also a Woodside Competition winner and has sung with both the Metropolitan Opera and New York City Opera. Bass Adam Lau sang in the OSNY’s collaborative performance of Mahler’s Symphony No. 8 this past spring and was a winner of a 2015 George London Award. OSNY at Carnegie Hall in 2016-17 To close the OSNY’s Carnegie Hall season, Kent Tritle will lead the ensemble in one of the supreme works for chorus and orchestra, Bach’s Mass in B Minor, with soloists Leslie Fagan, Christopher Ainsley, Lawrence Jones, and Sidney Outlaw, on May 8, 2017. Britten’s War Requiem – April 6 & 7, 2017, at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine The third OSNY collaboration with the Manhattan School of Music at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine will be Britten’s massive and haunting War Requiem. For the past two years, Kent Tritle, who serves as Director of Cathedral Music and Organist at the Cathedral and Director of Choral Activities at MSM, has led collaborative performances by the three groups in events that re-envision the giant choral concerts of the 19th and early 20th century. The first was Verdi’s Requiem in 2015, followed by Mahler’s Symphony No. 8 earlier this year, performed in both its original orchestration and in a new arrangement by David Briggs for vocal soloists, choruses, and organ – and a recording of the April 7 performance of the organ arrangement is about to be released by the Pro Organo label. The April 6 & 7, 2017, performances of War Requiem will feature soloists Susanna Phillips, John Matthew Myers, and Matthew Worth joining the OSNY, the Manhattan School of Music Symphony and Symphonic Chorus, and the Cathedral Choristers of St. John the Divine. Lyndon Woodside Oratorio-Solo Competition – Finals, April 8, 2017 Next year marks the 40th anniversary of the OSNY’s annual Lyndon Woodside Oratorio–Solo Competition, which remains the only major competition to focus exclusively on oratorio singing. Countertenor Jakub Józef Orliński, a soloist in this year’s Messiah performance, was the 2016 first prize winner. “Through the Competition we’ve been able to shine a bright spotlight on this repertoire and encourage singers, who would otherwise just prepare for opera, to consider the richness of oratorio music,” says Mr. Tritle. The April 8, 2017, final round at Weill Recital Hall is a public event. Oratorio Society of New York’s 143 Performance of Handel’s Messiah – Dec. 21, 2016 - Page 3 of 4 Since its founding in 1873, the Oratorio Society of New York, New York’s 200-voice avocational chorus, has become the city’s standard for grand choral performance – having performed world, U.S., and New York premieres of works as diverse as Brahms' Ein Deutsches Requiem (1877), Berlioz' Roméo et Juliette (1882), a full-concert production of Wagner's Parsifal at the Metropolitan Opera House (1886), Britten's The World of the Spirit (1998), Juraj Filas’ Song of Solomon (2012), and Paul Moravec’s Blizzard Voices (2013). On its 100th anniversary the Oratorio Society received the Handel Medallion, New York City’s highest cultural award, in recognition of these contributions. www.oratoriosocietyofny.org Kent Tritle is one of America’s leading choral conductors. Called “the brightest star in New York's choral music world” by The New York Times, he is also Director of Cathedral Music and Organist at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine and Music Director of Musica Sacra, the longest continuously performing professional chorus in New York. In addition, Tritle is Director of Choral Activities and Chair of the Organ Department at the Manhattan School of Music, and a member of the graduate faculty of The Juilliard School. An acclaimed organ virtuoso, Tritle is also the organist of the New York Philharmonic and the American Symphony Orchestra. www.kenttritle.com Kathryn Lewek, soprano, has established herself as one of opera’s strongest coloratura sopranos of this generation. Ms. Lewek’s interpretation of her signature role, Queen of the Night in The Magic Flute, has garnered international critical acclaim. This season, Ms. Lewek’s engagements include role débuts as Ginevra in Ariodante with Salzburger Pfingstfestspiele in Austria, with whom she will also perform a concert in Monte Carlo, and Rosina in Il barbiere di Siviglia with Toledo Opera and Opera Carolina. She will also perform in concert as the soprano soloist in Mozart’s Mass in C Minor with Music of the Baroque. http://www.uzanartists.com/portfolio/kathryn-lewek/ Jakub Józef Orliński, countertenor, in addition to having won the first prize in the 2016 OSNY’s Woodside Competition, is also a Grand Finals winner of the 2016 Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions and winner of the 2015 Marcella Sembrich International Vocal Competition, among others. He holds a master’s degree from the Fryderyk Chopin University of Music, Warsaw and is currently working toward his Graduate Diploma at The Juilliard School. In Europe he has performed operas by Handel, Telemann and John Blow, and Purcell songs with ballet at the Leipzig Opera House. Also an accomplished dancer, Mr. Orliński has taken prizes at several dance competitions and has been featured as a dancer, model and acrobat for such companies as Levi’s, Nike, Samsung, Mercedes-Benz, and MAC Cosmetics. www.jakubjozeforlinski.com William Ferguson, tenor, the 2007 first prize winner of the OSNY’s Woodside Competition, has been acclaimed for his versatility in both opera and concert. Notable opera performances include his Santa Fe Opera debut in 2006 as Caliban in the U.S. premiere of Thomas Adès’s The Tempest, and his Opera Australia debut in 2005, singing Truffaldino in The Love for Three Oranges directed by Francesca Zambello (subsequently released on the Chandos label). He has performed with the Metropolitan Opera, New York City Opera, and Opera Theatre of St. Louis, among others. www.williamferguson.com Oratorio Society of New York’s 143 Performance of Handel’s Messiah – Dec. 21, 2016 - Page 4 of 4 Adam Lau, bass, makes his Carnegie Hall debut with this performance. Last summer Mr. Lau made his debut with the Minnesota Orchestra, singing the role of Lodovico in Otello. He also returned to the San Francisco Symphony to sing in Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9, having made his debut with that orchestra last season, singing Handel's Messiah. Highlights of his 2016–17 season include his first Wagnerian role, that of Donner in Das Rheingold, in his return to North Carolina Opera. He will make his debut with Lyric Opera of Kansas City, singing the title role in Le nozze di Figaro. www.adampaullau.com ORATORIO SOCIETY OF NEW YORK 144th Season Kent Tritle, Music Director Wednesday, December 21, 2016, at 8:00 pm Carnegie Hall ORATORIO SOCIETY OF NEW YORK Kent Tritle, conductor Kathryn Lewek, soprano Jakub Józef Orliński, countertenor William Ferguson, tenor Adam Lau, bass HANDEL Messiah Tickets: $90–$25; also available as part of a subscription At the Carnegie Hall Box Office, 57th St. and 7th Ave. By phone at CarnegieCharge, 212-247-7800, or online at www.carnegiehall.org For more information, visit www.oratoriosocietyofny.org Video: "The Power of Live Music" - Kent Tritle on the Oratorio Society of New York 2016-17 Concert Season Photos: Kent Tritle and the Oratorio Society November 14, 2016 .