VIEW THIS EMAIL IN YOUR BROWSER FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE PRESS CONTACTS October 29, 2018 Aleba Gartner, 212/206-1450 Tickets & Information: 212/854-7799 [email protected] millertheatre.com Lauren Bailey, 212/854-2380 [email protected] "one of the the UK’s greatest cultural exports’" — Musical Toronto Miller Theatre at Columbia University School of the Arts continues its 2018–2019 Early Music series with Tallis Scholars A Renaissance Christmas Featuring a world premiere by NICO MUHLY commissioned by Miller Theatre for this occasion Saturday, December 1, 2018, 8:00 p.m. Church of St. Mary the Virgin (145 West 46th Street between 6th & 7th Avenues) Tickets $40–$55; Students with valid ID: $7–$33 From Miller Theatre Executive Director Melissa Smey: “We are excited for the return of the Tallis Scholars this season in the ethereal setting of the Church of St. Mary the Virgin. For over 40 years this celebrated vocal ensemble has delighted audiences with the choral works of Renaissance composers, and this season they kick off a special holiday concert with the world premiere of a new work by Nico Muhly that we commissioned for them.” Early Music Saturday, December 1, 2018, 8:00 p.m. Church of St. Mary the Virgin 145 West 46th Street between 6th & 7th Avenues Tallis Scholars: A Renaissance Christmas The renowned Tallis Scholars make their annual appearance on Miller’s Early Music series with beloved, festive Renaissance favorites including Palestrina’s Missa Hodie Christus natus est. The thrilling program features the world premiere of a work commissioned by Miller Theatre for the occasion by sought-after American composer Nico Muhly. Muhly's opera Marnie is currently enjoying a run at The Metropolitan Opera. Artists: Tallis Scholars Peter Phillips, director Watch the Tallis Scholars perform Victoria's First Lamentation for Maundy Thursday Tallis Scholars thetallisscholars.co.uk The Tallis Scholars were founded in 1973 by their director, Peter Phillips. Through their recordings and concert performances, they have established themselves as the leading exponents of Renaissance sacred music throughout the world. Peter Phillips has worked with the ensemble to create, through good tuning and blend, the purity and clarity of sound which he feels best serve the Renaissance repertoire, allowing every detail of the musical lines to be heard. It is the resulting beauty of sound for which The Tallis Scholars have become so widely renowned. The Tallis Scholars perform in both sacred and secular venues, usually giving around 70 concerts each year across the globe. In 2013 the group celebrated their 40th anniversary with a World Tour performing 99 events in 80 venues in 16 countries and travelling sufficient air-miles to circumnavigate the globe four times. They kicked off the year with a spectacular concert in St Paul’s Cathedral, London, including a performance of Thomas Tallis’ 40-part motet Spem in alium and the world premieres of works written specially for them by Gabriel Jackson and Eric Whitacre. Their recording of the Missa Gloria tibi Trinitas by John Taverner, was released on the exact anniversary of their first concert in 1973 and enjoyed six weeks at number one in the UK Specialist Classical Album Chart. On 21st September 2015 the group gave their 2000th concert at St John’s Smith Square in London. Highlights in the 2017-18 season included performances at: White Light Festival at Lincoln Center in New York; Amsterdam Musikgebouw; Klara Festival Brussels; Brugge Concertgebouw, as well as touring around United States, Europe and the United Kingdom. Recordings by The Tallis Scholars have attracted many awards throughout the world. In 1987 their recording of Josquin's Missa La sol fa re mi and Missa Pange lingua received Gramophone magazine’s Record of the Year award, the first recording of early music ever to win this coveted award. In 1989 the French magazine Diapason gave two of its Diapason d'Or de l'Année awards for the recordings of a mass and motets by Lassus and for Josquin's two masses based on the chanson L'Homme armé. Their recording of Palestrina's Missa Assumpta est Maria and Missa Sicut lilium was awarded Gramophone's Early Music Award in 1991; they received the 1994 Early Music Award for their recording of music by Cipriano de Rore; and the same distinction again in 2005 for their disc of music by John Browne. The Tallis Scholars were nominated for a Grammy Award in 2001, 2009 and 2010. In November 2012 their recording of Josquin's Missa De beata virgine and Missa Ave maris stella received a Diapason d’Or de l’Année and in their 40th anniversary year they were welcomed into the Gramophone ‘Hall of Fame’ by public vote. In a departure for the group in Spring 2015 The Tallis Scholars released a disc of music by Arvo Pärt called Tintinnabuli which has receive great praise across the board. The latest recording of Josquin masses Missa Di dadi and Missa Une mousse de Biscaye was released in October 2016. Peter Phillips thetallisscholars.co.uk/peter­phillips Peter Phillips has dedicated his career to the research and performance of Renaissance polyphony, and to the perfecting of choral sound. Having won a scholarship to Oxford in 1972, he gained experience as an undergraduate in conducting small vocal ensembles, already experimenting with the rarer parts of the repertoire. He founded The Tallis Scholars in 1973, with whom he has now appeared in over 2,200 concerts and made over 60 discs, encouraging interest in polyphony all over the world. As a result of this commitment Peter Phillips and The Tallis Scholars have done more than any other group to establish the sacred vocal music of the Renaissance as one of the great repertoires of Western classical music. Peter Phillips also conducts other specialist ensembles. He is currently working with the BBC Singers, the Netherlands Chamber Choir, the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir, and the Choeur de Chambre de Namur. He is patron of the choirs of Merton College (Oxford), Sansara (London), El Leon de Oro (Spain), and of the Festivals of Portsmouth and Clifton; he also hosts the annual Tallis Scholars Summer Course in Avila (Spain). In 2014 he launched the London International A Cappella Choir Competition in St John's Smith Square, attracting choirs from all over the world. In addition to conducting, Peter Phillips is well-known as a writer. For 33 years he contributed a regular music column (as well as one, more briefly, on cricket) to The Spectator. In 1995 he became the owner and Publisher of The Musical Times, the oldest continuously published music journal in the world. His first book, English Sacred Music 1549­1649, was published by Gimell in 1991, while his second, What We Really Do, appeared in 2013. During 2018 BBC Radio 3 will broadcast his view of Renaissance polyphony, in a series of six hour-long programs. In 2005 Peter Phillips was made a Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French Minister of Culture, a decoration intended to honor individuals who have contributed to the understanding of French culture in the world. In 2008 Peter began an association with Merton College, Oxford, where he helped to found the chapel choir, and where he is a Bodley Fellow. Upcoming Concerts in Miller Theatre's Early Music Series Single tickets: $30-$45 Church of St. Mary the Virgin (145 West 46th Street) Saturday, January 26, 2019, 8 p.m. ORLANDO CONSORT Love's Command—Sacred Poetry & Music Saturday, February 16, 2019, 8 p.m. NEW YORK POLYPHONY Music From Over the Alps Miller Theatre millertheatre.com Now in its 30th Anniversary Season, Miller Theatre at Columbia University is the leading presenter of new music in New York City and one of the most vital forces nationwide for innovative programming. In partnership with Columbia University School of the Arts, Miller is dedicated to producing and presenting unique events, with a focus on contemporary and early music, jazz, opera, and multimedia performances. Founded in 1988, Miller Theatre has helped launch the careers of myriad composers and ensembles over the years, serving as an incubator for emerging artists and a champion of those not yet well known in the United States. A four-time recipient of the ASCAP/Chamber Music America Award for Adventurous Programming, Miller Theatre continues to meet the high expectations set forth by its founders—to present innovative programs, support the development of new work, and connect creative artists with adventurous audiences. Major support for Miller Theatre’s 2018­19 Season is provided by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and the New York State Legislature Directions and information are available online at millertheatre.com or via the Miller Theatre Box Office at 212.854.7799. For photos, please contact Lauren Bailey at 212/854-2380 or [email protected]. For further information, press tickets, photos, and to arrange interviews, please contact Aleba & Co. at 212/206-1450 or [email protected]. Copyright © 2018 Aleba & Co., All rights reserved. subscribe to this list unsubscribe from this list update subscription preferences .