The St. Augustine Music Festival Presents
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The St. Augustine Music Festival Presents Let Freedom Sing AT THE ST. AUGUSTINE AMPHITHEATRE The St. Augustine Music Festival Chamber Orchestra and The Ritz Chamber Players & Choir SATURDAY, JUNE 19, 2021 | 3:00 PM & 7:30 PM The St. Augustine Music Festival and the Ritz Chamber Players celebrate Juneteenth – also known as Freedom Day! June 19, 1865 celebrates the emancipation of those who had been enslaved in the United States. The SAMF Chamber Orchestra and the Ritz Chamber Players, bring together a united, multi-community choir performing an inspiring selection of Negro Spirituals and classical works all rejoicing in the triumphs of the civil rights movement. The Festival Choir will be joined by renowned choral conduc- tors Dr. Herbert Vincent-Ricardo Pea’dro Jones and Deborah McDuffie. Enjoy this musical celebration of Songs of freedom spanning the African Diaspora and beyond. Let Freedom Sing! In the evening, the SAMF Festival Chamber Orchestra – joined by the Ritz Chamber Players – present an evening of musical diver- sity and classics with featured pianist Terrence Wilson performing Beethoven, Piano Concerto No. 5. PROGRAM 3:00 PM WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART | Exsultate, Jubilate Exsultate, Jubilate ~ Allegro. Alleluja ~ Molto allegro Alison Buchanan, Soprano. Gabriela Peña, Violin. Megan Rios , Violin. Lauren Hodges, Viola. Betsy Federman, Cello. ADOLPHUS HAILSTORK | Songs of Love and Justice (words of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.) I. Love II. Decisions MARGARET BONDS | Three Dream Portraits, (Text: Langston Hughes) Mistrel Man ~ Dream Variation ~ I, Too HALL JOHNSON | Ride on King Jesus Alison Buchanan, Soprano. Terrence Wilson, Piano. LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN | Trio in D Major, Op. 70, No. 1, Ghost Allegro vivace e con brio ~ Largo assai ed espressivo ~ Presto. Gabriela Peña, Violin. Betsy Federman, Cello. Terrence Wilson, Piano. • • • PAUSE • • • PROGRAM (CONT.) JAMES W. JOHNSON | Lift Every Voice And Sing – arr. Carter JAMES W. JOHNSON | In Bright Mansions Above – arr. Carter KEITH HAMPTON | True Light A. JEFFREY LAVALLEY | O Give Thanks JESSE WILLIAMS | We Praise Your Name JAMES WEST | The 150th Psalm Juneteenth Festival Choir Dr. Herbert Vincent-Ricardo Pea’dro Jones, Conductor Jason Alexander, Keyboard. Richard Christie, Bass Guitar and Drummer. Bryant Wesley, Drums. PROGRAM NOTES THE RITZ CHAMBER PLAYERS are hailed by The Baltimore Sun as “one of the most interesting and dynamic ensembles to emerge in recent years.” Boasting some of the world’s preeminent musicians spanning the African diaspora, it brings a fresh, new energy to the classical music genre. Its members perform with prestigious orga- nizations such as the New York Philharmonic, Boston Symphony, Chicago Symphony, Pittsburgh Symphony, Philadelphia Orchestra and the London Symphony. Founded in 2002 by clarinetist and Artistic Di- rector Terrance Patterson, the Ritz Chamber Players combines excep- tional artistry on stage with inspiring educational programs in schools and throughout the community. Through its concert series in Jacksonville and performances across the United States, the Ritz Chamber Players continues to build the participation of multicultural audiences that reflect our diverse society. ALISON BUCHANAN, SOPRANO Praised for her musical versatility, her luscious voice and her ability to communicate with an audience, British soprano Al- ison Buchanan is a graduate of the Guildhall School of Music in London and the Curtis Institute in Philadelphia. Alison is the winner of the Kathleen Ferrier, the Luciano Pavarotti, the Washington International and the Maggie Teyte competitions. As a young artist with San Francisco Opera, Alison made her debut with the company as Mimi in La Boheme whilst an Adler she was invited to L.A Opera to sing Nedda in I Pagliacci working with Placido Domingo and Franco Zeffirelli. Alison has performed with New York City Opera as Bess in Porgy & Bess and Elvira in Don Giovanni, Opera com- pany of Philadelphia, Michigan Opera and Wexford Opera. She has performed under the batons of Sir. Simon Rattle, Sir. Colin Davis, Donald Runnicles and David Robertson to name but a few, with orchestras such as the Royal Philharmonic, the Philippines Philharmonic, the London Symphony, the BBC Symphony Orchestra, the Israel Kibbutz Orchestra and the Boston Symphony Orchestra. More recently, Ms. Buchanan joined Marin Alsop for performances in Brazil with the São Paulo Symphony Orchestra, returned to the Boston Symphony Orchestra to perform in Porgy & Bess, gave recitals in St. Louis, Washington DC and in Jacksonville, performed the role of Janthe in Der Vampyr with the American Symphony Orchestra at Carnegie Hall, performed concerts with the Detroit Symphony and gave a recital at National Saw- dust in Brooklyn. Buchanan recently released a recording of the songs of Dr. George Walker accompanied by the composer for Albany records, sang Knoxville Summer 1915, Barber, at the Kennedy Center with the Apollo Orchestra and joined members of the Boston Symphony, the New York Philharmonic and the Atlanta Symphony for the Classical Pops Festival in Barbados. PROGRAM NOTES (CONT.) TERRENCE WILSON, PIANO Acclaimed by the Baltimore Sun as “one of the biggest pianistic talents to have emerged in this country in the last 25 years” pianist Terrence Wilson has appeared as soloist with the symphony orchestras of Atlanta, Baltimore, Cincinnati, Dallas, Detroit, Houston, Washington, DC (Nation- al Symphony), San Francisco, St. Louis, and with the orchestras of Cleve- land, Minnesota, and Philadelphia and the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra. Conductors with whom he has worked include Christoph Eschenbach, Alan Gilbert, Neeme Järvi, Jesús López-Cobos, Lawrence Renes, Robert Spano, Yuri Temirkanov, Stanislaw Skrowaczewski and Gunther Herbig. Abroad, Terrence Wilson has played concerti with such ensembles as the Lausanne Chamber Orchestra in Swit- zerland, the Malaysian Philharmonic, the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, and the Orquestra Sinfonica do Estado de Minas Gerais in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. He has toured with orchestras in the US and abroad, including a tour of the US with the Sofia Festival Orchestra (Bulgaria) and in Europe with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra conducted by Yuri Temirkanov. Terrence Wilson has received numerous awards and prizes, including the SONY ES Award for Musical Excel- lence, an Avery Fisher Career Grant, and the Juilliard Petschek Award. He has also been featured on several radio and television broadcasts, including NPR’s “Performance Today,” WQXR radio in New York, and programs on the BRAVO Network, the Arts & Entertainment Network, public television, and as a guest on late night network television. In 2011, Wilson was nominated for a Grammy in the category of “Best Instrumental Soloist With an Orchestra” for his (world premiere) recording with the Nashville Symphony conducted by Giancarlo Guerrero of Michael Daugherty’s Deus ex Machina for piano and orchestra - written for Wilson in 2007. In the spring of 2021, Terrence Wilson was appointed to the piano faculty at Bard College Conservatory of Music in Annandale-on-Hudson, NY. Terrence Wilson is a graduate of The Juilliard School, where he studied with Yoheved Kaplinsky. He has also enjoyed the invaluable mentorship of the Romanian pianist and teacher Zitta Zohar. A native of the Bronx, he resides in Montclair, New Jersey. HERBERT VINCENT-RICARDO PEA’DRO JONES Dr. Herbert Vincent-Ricardo Pea’dro Jones is one of the nation’s foremost figures in choral conducting and pedagogy and an expert in the intersec- tion between theology and musical expression. A Southern transplant to Pennsylvania, Dr. Jones has cultivated a broad-based, multifaceted career as a choral conductor, educator, operatic and oratorio bass, liturgical dancer, orator and pastor, teaching and performing across the United States and Europe. Dr. Jones holds numerous degrees: B.S. in Music, M.S. in Coun- seling Psychology, M.Mus. in Choral Conducting/Music Educa- tion, M.Divinity (M.Div.) in Sacred Music, Dance & Drama, D.M.A. in Music, Choral Conducting, Performance Pedagogy & Choral Music Education, and has done Ph.D Studies in Ethnomusicology. Dr. Jones has taught in the Public Schools of Mississippi (grades 6-12), the Private High School sector (The Piney Woods School, Mississippi, The Neighborhood Academy-Pittsburgh) and colleges in universities in North Dakota, Arkansas, Pennsylvania, and Mississippi, respectively. Dr. Jones continues to maintain an active schedule conducting seminars and workshops, guest conducting, and adjudicating choral festivals and competitions. DEBORAH MCDUFFIE 2016 Onyx Magazine “Woman on the Move”, 2014 Interpublic Group of Companies “Pioneer in Advertising”, 2006 Cultural Council Arts Awards “Educator of the Year” and African American Literary and Media Lifetime Achievement “Phoenix” Award winner Deborah McDuffie has an impressive forty year career combining talents in production, performance, composing, arranging, marketing, advertising, special promotions, lecturing and teaching. PROGRAM NOTES (CONT.) Credited with being the first female jingle composer/producer in the music industry, Ms. McDuffie is a multi-award-winning pioneer, a “behind the scenes” legend, so to speak. Most recently she was nominated for Grammy’s “Educator of the Year” Award in 2014. She has composed, produced and worked with Patti Austin, Wynton Marsalis, Janet Jackson, Gladys Knight, Al Green, Grover Washington, Jr., Jose Feliciano, Patti Labelle, Luther Vandross, Michael Bolton, Roberta Flack, Teddy Riley,