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To ur N o t e s PERFORMING ARTS NEWS FROM AROUND THE WORLD 1997-1998 Highlights Trinity Church Traces its Roots Duquesne Wins at Marktoberdorf Alaska Children in Europe Rutgers Women Explore Ireland California Youth Orchestra in Britain and Ireland Spreading Goodwill in the Baltic Republics Missa Gaia on the Riviera Honor Band at WASBE Portland Girlchoir in Australia Festival Sir Simon Rattle conducts The Damanation of Faust in Birmingham Opportunities in the Pacific Northwest ‘VOICES IN For nine days in July, Morrell in the Sheldonian Theatre, Ox- THE CITY’ A the City of Birming- ford. To celebrate the 100th birthday of Alabama Choir Does Europe! ham (England) rang the recording company EMI, the Cleve- HUGE to the sounds of land Orchestra Chorus then joined forces Amherst in Spain and Portugal SUCCESS superlative choral with the City of Birmingham Symphony singing. More than Orchestra and Chorus to give a stunning 2,000 singers from Great Britain, the USA performance of Walton’s Belshazzar’s and Canada took part in over 20 choral Feast, conducted by Sir Simon Rattle in concerts, workshops and master classes, Symphony Hall, Birmingham. They then thrilling the large audiences which filled recorded the work for release by EMI later Symphony Hall and other venues. this year. It was the first major choral festival The final concert of ‘Voices in the in Birmingham since the great triennial City’ proved to be another blockbuster, festivals of the 19th century, which saw with over 300 singers sharing the plat- the first performances of Mendelssohn’s form with a much enlarged CBSO to Elijah and Elgar’s The Dream of perform Berlioz’s dramatic oratorio, The Gerontius, among others. ACFEA Tour Damnation of Faust. Two choruses from Consultants, in a unique collaboration North America, the William Hall Master with the City of Birmingham Symphony Chorale and the Vancouver Bach Choir, Orchestra, Sir Simon Rattle and ‘Voices in directed by William Hall and Bruce Pullan, Locations: the City’ Artistic Director Simon Halsey, were invited to join forces with the City of London had been given the task of providing Birmingham Symphony Chorus and New York choruses for three major projects. Youth Chorus and the City of Birming- San Francisco The Cleveland Orchestra Chorus, ham Choir for a thrilling performance, Seattle directed by Gareth Morrell, was the first again conducted by Sir Simon Rattle. Canberra to arrive. They had already given two Sandwiched between these two Berlin critically acclaimed performances of events in Symphony Hall, ACFEA orga- Paris Brahms’ Requiem, one with the BBC nized a third combined choral concert in Venice National Orchestra and Chorus of Wales Lichfield Cathedral as the final concert of Prague conducted by Richard Hickox in St David’s the Lichfield Festival. Singers from the Moscow Hall, Cardiff, and the other with the St Petersburg Academy of Oxford conducted by Gareth Continued on page 2 1 DUQUESNE The choir treated audience members to TWICE Paul Elliott Cobbs, a promi- Duquesne Mozart’s Coronation Mass, Stravinsky’s nent orchestral conductor SINGERS WIN AT University Symphony of Psalms and a selection from IN TWO from the Pacific North- MARKTOBERDORF Chamber their own a cappella program. The next YEARS?! west, completed a tour of Singers, day several chorus members attended an Austria and Italy in April directed by Brady Allred, undertook their open-air mass with His Holiness the Pope. with his chamber orchestra from the third and most extensive concert tour Following an overnight train ride, Northwest School, Seattle. from May 12 to June 12, 1997. This tour the ensemble arrived in Tallinn, Estonia, On arrival in Europe, the students was destined to be different from the ready to sing again. Their concert in the were met with snow in Salzburg, which moment they invited a local percussion Black Head Hall had the best acoustics yet provided an atmospheric backdrop to group, Tempus Fugit, to join them. Four and they recorded it for their next CD. their concert — and a shivering but spir- players and a wide array of instruments From Tallinn they continued to St Peters- ited audience! Their tour quickly warmed augmented the Chamber Singers’ reper- burg, where they stayed again with local up as the group went into Italy,where toire, an attractive proposition to concert families and performed a joint concert they gave concerts to thrilled audiences in presenters abroad. with a local choir in the famous Glinka Venice, Vicenza, Florence and The choir began and ended their Cappella. Capodimonte, some in venues where tour with invitations received during The final leg of the tour again in- famous composers had once flourished. previous volved an “The students were able to visual- tours in invitation to ize concretely the music they had been Germany perform with studying,” says Dr Cobbs. “The Roman and Russia. a local or- ruins, the palaces, the churches (even one The first chestra and where Vivaldi performed), Mozart’s birth- stop was in chorus, this place, the whole atmosphere,” he says, Bad Tölz, time in Mos- “these all made the music real for them, where the cow, where something tangible, beyond the black- students they were and-white page”. He is convinced that as stayed with met by local a result of this tour, “they developed a local choir organizers whole new perspective”. members and whisked This was Dr Cobbs’ second trip in and per- away for two years with ACFEA. The first was with formed rehearsals the Everett Symphony, a professional their open- and sightsee- orchestra which completed a very suc- ing concert. Duquesne choir in the Moscow conservatory ing. The cessful tour of Vienna and its environs in In the group’s final 1996. This orchestra is already planning next phase of the tour, the ensemble concerts in the Moscow Conservatory its 1999 tour to Italy with ACFEA, includ- participated in the Marktoberdorf Cham- and the Palace of Culture were tour high- ing performances in Venice, Florence and ber Choir Competition. Again, the stu- lights, as was the chance to get together Rome. dents were assigned homestays in the for one final group photograph in Red town and surrounding villages. This was Square. the choir’s second chance to compete Upon his return home, Dr Allred here, and their perseverance was re- said “Our best tour yet! Thanks for a warded by winning first prize overall. In superb job.” continued from ‘VOICES IN THE CITY’ addition, Dr Allred was awarded the conducting prize. The tour was going Hartford Chorale, the San Francisco Cho- well! ral Society and the University of Califor- Next was the Czech Republic, nia, Berkeley, Alumni Chorus joined with where they performed in the Jindrichuv “I think you have begun a good trend with North American choirs in the BBC National Chorus of Wales for a Hradec and Telc castles and took a sight- performance of Brahms’ Requiem, with seeing excursion to Prague. From there it South Africa. For my own part, it was my best tour, from all vantage the English Symphony Orchestra con- was off to Jaromerice where they at- ducted by Simon Halsey. The Hartford tended the opening of the Festival of points.” Bruce More, Conductor Chorale, directed by Henley Denmead, Baroque Opera and participated in a also gave a recital in Birmingham Cathe- mass at the Basilica of St Margaret. Later, University of Victoria Chamber Singers dral, and the University of California in that same Basilica, they performed as Alumni Chorus, directed by William part of the Mica Summer Festival, travel- Ganz, took part in a master class with The ing next to Olomouc to sing to an audi- King’s Singers, who themselves gave a ence of 1,200 in the Church of Our Lady concert in Symphony Hall. of Snows for the Olomouc Spring Festival. Following its great success this year, One of the focal points around ‘Voices in the City’ will happen again in “This was the BEST tour we which the itinerary had been planned 1998, and plans are already under way have had with ACFEA thus far! Thank was the 46th International Eucharistic for two performances of Verdi’s Requiem you for arranging such prestigious Congress in Wroclaw. The choir had sung to be conducted by Richard Hickox in venues for us.” here in 1993 and was invited back to Symphony Hall and at the Llangollen Nancy Gage, Chorus Manager perform a concert with the Wroclaw International Musical Eisteddfod. Philharmonic Orchestra as part of the Cleveland Orchestra Chorus congress. With Dr Allred conducting, the 2 CHILDREN The Alaska The great highlight of the trip was complete with laser effects, lit the WEAVE A Children’s Choir in Germany’s Erfurt and Eisenach, two Domplatz while the choir sang Alaskan from Anchorage important towns in the history of JS Bach. native chant and other American folk MUSICAL WEB decided to send This July, Erfurt hosted an international music. The whole event received major IN EUROPE back a digital festival for the 500th anniversary of its coverage from the media, including radio postcard from town bell, ‘The Gloriosa’, the largest free- and television. their tour of Central Europe. One of the swinging bell in the world. The Alaska On the tour’s last day, the choir tour leaders took photographs with a Children’s Choir performed as an hon- visited Eisenach, birthplace of JS Bach and digital camera, enabling the images to be home to the Bachmuseum, downloaded to their web site in Alaska. where the choir enjoyed a pri- The tour had much to record. In vate tour. The museum curator Vienna, the choir sang by a subterranean demonstrated Bach’s music on lake, in acoustics more live than in many keyboard instruments used by churches.

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