Haydn: Seven LaSt WordS

Haydn: Seven Last Words
Featuring a collaboration between Seraphic Fire and the Spektral Quartet
April 9th - 18th, 2014
Seraphic Fire’s Chicago performance of Haydn: Seven Last Words is made possible
through a generous grant by The Clinton Family Fund, Bruce and Martha Clinton.
Program
Wednesday, April 9, 2014
Thursday, April 10, 2014
Friday, April 11, 2014
Saturday, April 12, 2014
Sunday, April 13, 2014
Wednesday, April 16, 2014
Sunday, April 18, 2014
St. Sophia Greek Orthodox Cathedral, Miami
St. Gregory’s Episcopal Church, Boca Raton
First United Methodist Church, Coral Gables
All Saints Episcopal Church, Fort Lauderdale
All Souls Episcopal Church, Miami Beach
Rockefeller Memorial Chapel, Chicago, IL
Lawrence Memorial Chapel, Appleton, WI
The Seven Last Words of Christ
i. Introduzione
ii. No. 1 Vater, vergib ihnen
iii. No. 2 Fürwahr, ich sag es dir
iv. No. 3 Frau, hier siehe deinen Sohn
v. No. 4 Mein Gott, mein Gott
vi. Introduzione
vii. No. 5 Jesus rufet: Ach, mich dürstet!
viii. No. 6 Es ist vollbracht!
ix. No. 7 Vater, in deine Hände
x. Il Terremoto, Er ist nicht mehr
Franz Joseph Haydn (1732-1809)
Seraphic Fire
Patrick Dupré Quigley, Founder and Artistic Director
Spektral Quartet
Aurelien Fort Pederzoli, violin
Austin Wulliman, violin
Doyle Armbrust, viola
Russell Rolen, cello
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Text and Translations
The Seven Last Words of Christ
Franz Joseph Haydn
No. 1 Vater, vergib ihnen
Vater, vergib ihnen, denn sie wissen nicht,
was sie tun.
Father, forgive them, for they know not what
they do.
Vater im Himmel,
o sieh hernieder vom ewigen Thron!
Vater der Liebe, dein Eingeborner,
er fleht für Sünder, für deine Kinder,
erhöre den Sohn!
Ach, wir sind tief gefallen,
wir sündigten schwer;
doch allen zum Heil, uns allen,
floss deines Sohnes Blut.
Das Blut des Lamms schreit nicht um Rach’;
es tilgt die Sünden.
Vater der Liebe, lass uns Gnade finden,
erhöre den Sohn!
O Vater, o Vater, erhöre den Sohn!
Father from heaven,
Look down from your eternal throne!
Loving Father, your only begotten Son
prays for sinners, for your children,
grant the prayer of your Son!
Alas, we have fallen from grace,
we have grievously sinned,
but for us all and for our salvation
your Son has shed his blood.
The blood of the Lamb does not cry out for
vengeance; it redeems our sins.
Loving Father, let us find grace,
grant the prayer of your Son!
O Father, o Father, hear your Son!
No. 2 Fürwahr, ich sag es dir
Fürwahr, ich sag es dir: Heute wirst du bei mir
im Paradiese sein.
Truly, I say unto you: today you will be with
me in Paradise.
Ganz Erbarmen, Gnad’ und Liebe,
bist du Mittler, Gotteslamm.
Kaum ruft jener reuig auf zu dir:
Wenn du kommest
in dein Reich, ach, so denke mein!
So versprichst du ihm voll Milde:
Heut wirst du bei mir im Paradiese sein.
Herr und Gott! Blick auf uns!
Sieh an deines Kreuzes Fuße
unsre wahre Reu` und Buße!
Sieh, o Vater, unsere Reue!
Gib uns auch zur letzten
Stunde jenen Tost aus deinem Munde:
Heut wirst du bei mir im Paradiese sein.
Full of mercy, grace and love,
you are the mediator, the Lamb of God.
If he but calls to you, full of remorse:
when you enter
into your kingdom, alas, think of me!
To him you did promise, full of pity:
today you shall be with me in Paradise.
Lord God! Look upon us!
See at the foot of your Cross
our true remorse and repentance!
O Father, see our remorse!
Grant us in our final hour
that consolation from your lips:
today you shall be with me in Paradise.
No. 3 Frau, hier siehe deinen Sohn
Frau, hier siehe deinen Sohn, und du, siehe
deine Mutter!
Woman, behold your son, and you, behold your
mother !
Mutter Jesu, die du trostlos, weinend,
seufzend bei dem Kreuze standst
Mother of Jesus, weeping in despair,
standing and sighing by the Cross,
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Text and Translations
und die Qualen seines Leidens in der Stund’ des
bittern Scheidens
siebenfach in dir empfandst.
Kaum mehr fähig, dich zu fassen,
und doch standhaft und gelassen, nimmst als
Sohn den treuen Jünger
und mit ihm auch uns als Kinder an.
Mutter Jesu, o du Zuflucht aller Sünder,
hör das Flehen deiner Kinder.
O du Zuflucht aller Sünder
Steh uns bei im letzten Streit,
Mutter voll der Zärtlichkeit.
O steh uns allen bei!
Wenn wir mit dem Tode ringen
und aus dem beklemmter Herzen
unsre Seufzer zu dir dringen,
lass uns, Mutter, lass uns da nicht unterliegen!
Hilf uns dann den Feind besiegen
und steh uns bei im letzten Streit!
Wenn wir mit dem Tode ringen,
o da zeige dich als Mutter
und empfehl uns deinem Sohn, o Mutter!
and in the hour of bitter parting,
the torments of his suffering
you did feel in sevenfold measure.
Barely conscious in your anguish,
yet ever steadfast and composed,
you did take as your son the faithful disciple
and did take all of us as your children.
Mother of Jesus, refuge of all sinners,
hear the plea of your children.
Refuge of all sinners,
Be with us in our final throes,
Mother full of tenderness.
O be our relief!
When with death we struggle
And the sighs of our fearful hearts
are sent aloft to you,
let us not, Mother, let us not succumb!
Help us to overcome the enemy
and be with us in our final throes!
When at last with death we struggle,
show us that you are our Mother
And intercede for us with your Son.
No. 4 Mein Gott, mein Gott
Mein Gott, mein Gott, warum hast du mich
verlassen?
My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken
me?
Warum hast du mich verlassen?
Wer sieht hier der Gottheit Spur?
Wer? Wer kann fassen dies Geheimnis?
O Gott der Kraft,
o Gott der Macht und Stärke,
wir sind deiner Hände Werke,
und deine Lieb, o Herr, hat uns erlöst.
O Herr, wir danken dir von Herzen. Unserwegen littst du Schmerzen,
Spott, Verlassung, Angst und Pein.
Herr, wer sollte dich nicht lieben
dich mit Sünden noch betrüben?
Wer kann deine Huld verkennen?
Nein, nichts soll uns von dir trennen,
allhier und dort in Ewigkeit.
Why have you forsaken me?
Who can see God’s work in this?
Who can grasp the mystery?
O God of strength and might,
O God of might and power,
We are the works of your hand,
and your love, O Lord, has redeemed us.
O Lord, we thank you from our hearts.
For our sakes you did suffer pain,
Mockery, abandonment, fear and torment.
Who could fail to love you, Lord,
who could sadden you with sin?
Who could deny your grace?
No, nothing will part us from you,
Here and in eternity.
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Text and Translations
No. 5 Jesus rufet: Ach, mich dürstet!
Jesus rufet: Ach, mich dürstet!
Jesus said: Alas, I thirst!
Hemmt nun die Rache, stillt eure Wut!
Menschen, lasset Mitleid euch erweichen,
ruft Erbarmung in das Herz!
Jesus rufet: Ach, mich dürstet!
Ihm reicht man Wein,
den man mit Galle mischet.
So labt man ihn.
Kann Grausamkeit noch weiter gehn?
Nun kann er nicht mehr fassen
den Schmerz, der ihn allmächtig drückt,
den Schmerz, der Wohltun war.
Curb your vengeance, calm your anger!
Men, let pity soften you,
summon mercy to your hearts.
Jesus said: Alas, I thirst!
They give him wine to drink
mingled with gall,
that is how they refresh him.
Can cruelty be harsher?
Now he can no longer endure
the pain, that pushes him to God
the pain, of all his good deeds.
Text and Translations
No. 6 Es ist vollbracht!
Es ist vollbracht!
It is finished.
An das Opferholz geheftet,
hanget Jesus in der Nacht;
und dann ruft er laut:
Es ist vollbracht.
Was uns jenes Holz geschadet,
wird durch dieses gut gemacht.
Weh euch Bösen,
weh euch Blinden, weh euch allen,
die ihr Sünden immer häuft auf Sünden!
Menschen, denket nach!
Werdet ihr Erbarmung finden,
wenn er kommt in
seiner Herrlichkeit und seiner Macht?
Rett uns, Mittler, vom Verderben!
Höre, Gottmensch, unser Schrein!
Lass dein Leiden und dein Sterben
nicht an uns verloren sein.
Lass uns einst den Himmel erben
und mit dir uns ewig freun.
Nailed to the tree of sacrifice,
Jesus hangs throughout the night,
then he loudly cries:
It is finished.
The harm done to us by that tree
is redeemed by this.
Woe to you evil ones,
woe to you who are blind, woe to you all,
who pile sins upon on another!
World, consider what has been done!
Will you find mercy
when he comes in
his majesty and power?
Save us, our mediator, from damnation!
Hear our cries, God-made-man!
Let not your suffering and death
be for nothing because of us.
Let us some day inherit Heaven
and eternally rejoice with you.
No. 7 Vater, in deine Hände
Vater, in deine Hände
empfehle ich meinen Geist.
Father, into your hands
I commend my spirit.
In deine Händ’, o Herr,
empfehl ich meinen Geist.
Nun steigt sein Leiden höher nicht,
nun triumphiert er laut und spricht:
nimm, Vater, meine Seele.
Dir empfehl ich meinen Geist.
Und dann neigt er sein Haupt und stirbt.
Vom ewigen Verderben
hat uns sein Blut errettet;
aus Liebe für uns Menschen,
aus Liebe starb er den Tod der Sünder.
Du gabst uns neues Leben;
was können wir dir geben?
Zu deinen Füßen liegen wir,
o Jesu, tief geruhrt,
Nimm unser Herz alls Opfer an!
Into your hands, O Lord,
I commend my spirit.
Now his sufferings can increase no more,
now he triumphs loudly and says:
Father, take my soul,
to you I commend my spirit.
And then he bows his head and dies,
From everlasting damnation
His blood has redeemed us:
For his love for all mankind,
for his love He died a sinner’s death.
You gave us new life,
What can we give to you?
At your feet, O Jesus,
deeply moved we lie,
accept our hearts in sacrifice!
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Text and Translations
Il Terremoto, Er ist nicht mehr
Er ist nicht mehr.
He has departed.
Er ist nicht mehr!
Der Erde Tiefen schallen wider:
Er ist nicht mehr!
Erzittre, Golgatha, erzittre!
Er starb auf deinen Höhen.
O Sonne, fleuch
und leuchte diesem Tage nicht!
Zerreiße, zerreiße, Land,
worauf die Mörder stehen!
Ihr Gräber, tut euch auf,
ihr Väter, steigt ans Licht!
Das Erdreich, das euch deckt,
ist ganz mit Blut befleckt.
He has departed.
The depths of the earth resound:
He has departed.
Terrible, Golgotha, terrible!
He died upon your summit.
O, sun, be gone
and light this day no more!
Tear, tear, the land
on which the murderers stand.
Graves, open up,
fathers, rise up into the light:
The earth which covers you
is all stained with blood.
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About Seraphic Fire
Entering its second decade, Seraphic Fire is
widely regarded as one of the most important
vocal ensembles in the United States. Led by
Founder and Artistic Director Patrick Dupré
Quigley, Seraphic Fire brings the best ensemble
singers from around the country to perform
repertoire ranging from Gregorian chant to
newly commissioned works. This past year, the
ensemble’s recordings Brahms: Ein Deutsches
Requiem and A Seraphic Fire Christmas were
nominated for two 2012 GRAMMY® awards.
Seraphic Fire was the only choir in North
or South America to be nominated, and the
only classical ensemble in the world to be
nominated for two separate projects.
In addition to a critically-acclaimed chamber
choir, the organization has established Firebird
Chamber Orchestra, which collaborates with
Seraphic Fire on choral-orchestral masterworks
as well as independent concerts of orchestral
repertoire. The orchestra, like the chorus, is
made up of top-tier performers from around the
country.
Seraphic Fire’s artistic accomplishments have
translated to chart-topping album sales. In
the summer of 2010, Seraphic Fire’s recording
of Monteverdi’s Vespers of the Blessed Virgin
(1610) reached the number one position
on the iTunes classical music charts. The
ensemble’s GRAMMY®-nominated recording
of Brahms: Ein Deutsches Requiem debuted at
#7 on Billboard Magazine’s Classical charts,
and Seraphic Fire’s newest Christmas album, of
which NPR’s Morning Edition proclaims “the
singing is just fabulous; this group has a really
excellent blend,” broke into the top ten on the
iTunes Classical charts on day of its release.
Seraphic Fire has just signed a three-year
partnership deal with Naxos of America to
distribute Seraphic Fire Media. Seraphic Fire
is represented worldwide by Columbia Artists
Management, Inc.
Seraphic Fire’s Mission
Seraphic Fire aims to present high-quality performances of under-performed music with
cultural significance. Simultaneously, Seraphic Fire encourages the occupational advancement
of musicians by providing a forum for the development and presentation of their talents, and
promotes community well-being through musical education programs.
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Patrick Dupré Quigley
American conductor Patrick Dupré Quigley is
at the vanguard of a new generation of young
Baroque specialists: completely at ease at the
helm of the modern symphony orchestra
while still able to create the passionate,
distinctive stylings of the Baroque sound. The
Founder and Artistic Director of Seraphic
Fire and the Firebird Chamber Orchestra, he
has been described by the Miami Herald as,
Patrick has been lauded as an adept arts
entrepreneur and a savvy institution builder.
In ten seasons, Patrick has grown Seraphic
Fire & the Firebird Chamber Orchestra into
a vibrant, cutting-edge arts organization—
mounting acclaimed performances of
Baroque mainstays, introducing new work
and exploring under-performed treasures
with equal success.
“A musician with a constellation of qualities
rarely found in a single conductor: an
enthusiastic and audience-friendly personal
style, a scholar’s instinct for rooting out
obscure but worthy music, a scrupulous and
historically informed approach to works that
span a wide range of musical periods, an
ability to bring out the best in his talented
platoon... and a showman’s canny sense of
how to appeal to audiences.”
Patrick is the recipient of the 2004 Robert
Shaw Conducting Fellowship, given annually
by the National Endowment for the Arts and
Chorus America to one conductor between
the ages of 25 and 40 who demonstrates
the potential for a significant professional
career. At 26, Patrick was the youngest
person to receive this award. Most recently,
He was awarded Chorus America’s 2011
Louis Botto Award for Innovative Action and
Entrepreneurial Zeal, recognizing his artistic
Patrick was nominated for two 2012 and institution-building achievements with
GRAMMY® awards for his work with Seraphic Fire. Patrick has been a featured
Seraphic Fire: Best Choral Performance for guest on National Public Radio’s All Things
Brahms: Ein Deutsches Requiem, and Best Considered and is a sought-after speaker and
Small Ensemble Performance for A Seraphic consultant regarding arts entrepreneurship.
Fire Christmas. He was the only conductor
in the world to be nominated for two Patrick received his M.Mus. in conducting
separate projects, and Seraphic Fire was the from the Yale School of Music, his B.A. in
only choir in North and South America to musicology from the University of Notre
receive a nomination. Under his direction, Dame, and is
Seraphic Fire has released eleven recordings a graduate of
on the Seraphic Fire Media label, with two the
Indiana
additional recordings forthcoming this year. U n i v e r s i t y
In the past three years, Seraphic Fire has had Center
on
albums enter the top ten on both the Billboard Philanthropy’s
and iTunes classical charts—including the Fu n d r a i s i n g
ensemble’s 2010 release of Monteverdi’s Vespers School.
of the Blessed Virgin (1610), which reached the
number one position on the iTunes classical
music charts.
2012 saw Patrick making guest appearances
with the San Francisco Symphony’s
Community of Music Makers series,
Cincinnati’s professional Vocal Arts Ensemble,
and two separate appearances with the San
Antonio Symphony. With Seraphic Fire,
Patrick will conduct over 60 performances
across the United States.
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Spektral Quartet
Founded in 2010, the Spektral Quartet is
widely regarded as one of Chicago’s leading
chamber ensembles specializing in new music.
Now in its fourth season, the quartet serves
as ensemble-in-residence at the University of
Chicago and is about to unveil the second of
three full-length albums recorded this year.
Since its inception, the Spektral Quartet
has sought out the discourse between the
masterworks of the traditional canon and
those written this decade, this year, or this
week. Rather than simply pairing Brian
Ferneyhough with Josef Haydn or Thomas
Adès with Béla Bartók, though, the group
offers listeners an even more elastic and
absorbing experience through its Sampler
Pack concert format. For these performances,
a regular fixture of the quartet’s seasons,
shorter works and single movements are
curated in a setlist containing a menagerie
of musical styles, spanning centuries. The
unexpected similarities and enticing contrasts
between two or three composers becomes a
conversation between twelve.
The 2013/14 season finds the group venturing
into another bold endeavor at the intersection
of music and everyday life with Mobile
Miniatures. For it, forty composers from
across the US including David Lang, Augusta
Read Thomas, Nico Muhly and Shulamit Ran
were commissioned to write ringtone-length
pieces for the Spektral Quartet to workshop,
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record and make available to the public for
download to mobile devices.
In addition to its coaching duties at the
University of Chicago, the Spektral Quartet
presents dynamic workshops and masterclasses
at institutions such as Northwestern
University, The University of Wisconsin at
Milwaukee, Illinois State University and
Lawrence University. In 2014, the quartet is
invited to join the Rush Hour Series’ Backof-the-Yards project, which will offer yearlong music education and outreach in one of
Chicago’s most under-served neighborhoods.
The 2013/14 season saw the launch of the
Spektral Quartet’s debut album, Chambers
(Parlour Tapes+). Featuring new works
by Chicago composers Marcos Balter,
Eliza Brown, Chris Fisher-Lochhead, Ben
Hjertmann, Hans Thomalla and Liza White,
Chambers is emblematic of the quartet’s
insatiable appetite for new work and an
affirmation of the quality of composition
emanating from the city today. The ensemble’s
second album, a Latin jazz collaboration with
bandoneon/accordion virtuoso Julien Labro
is slated for release in May 2014 on Azica
Records. In November of 2013, the Spektral
Quartet traveled to Switzerland and France
to perform and record Ernest Chausson’s
Concerto for violin, piano and string quartet,
Op. 21 with violinist Rachel Kolly d’Alba and
pianist Christian Chamorel for the Warner
Classics label.
Musician Biographies
James K. Bass, bass-baritone, is director of choral studies in the
School of Music at the University of South Florida and the artistic
director of the Master Chorale of Tampa Bay. James was selected
by the master conductor of the Amsterdam Baroque Soloists,
Ton Koopman, to be one of only 20 singers for a presentation of
Cantatas by J.S. Bach in Carnegie Hall, and was an auditioned
member of Robert Shaw’s workshop choir at Carnegie. He
has prepared choirs for Sir Colin Davis, Sir David Willcocks,
Jahja Ling, Michael Tilson Thomas, Gerard Schwarz, Giancarlo
Guerrero and Robert Shaw among others. James received the
doctor of musical arts degree from the University of Miami–
Florida, where he was a doctoral fellow.
John Buffett, baritone, has sung with the opera companies of
Utah, Sarasota, Utah Festival Opera, The Boston Early Music
Festival, the Ohio Light Opera and Eastman Opera Theater. On
the concert stage he has performed with the symphonies of Utah,
San Antonio, and Syracuse, the Rochester Philharmonic, Apollo’s
Fire, Ars Lyrica and the Mark Morris Dance Group. Other
career highlights include appearances at the Tanglewood Music
Festival and the Mostly Mozart Festival at Lincoln Center.
Megan Chartrand, soprano, feels equally at home singing early
music, art song, chamber music, and choral repertoire. Her
2013-14 season will bring her première at the Lincoln Center,
singing Dalilah in Handel’s Samson with the American Classical
Orchestra, and back to her home province of Alberta as the
soprano soloist in Haydn’s Missa in Angustiis with Luminous
Voices. This is Megan’s first season singing with Seraphic Fire. An
avid chorister, she has sung numerous concerts with professional
choirs throughout Canada and the United States including Pro
Coro Canada, Scona Chamber Singers and the Yale Schola
Cantorum. Highlights of previous seasons include Handel and
Mozart arias with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra, Handel’s
Crudel Tiranno Amor with the Alberta Baroque Ensemble, Eve in
Haydn’s Die Schöpfung and Bach’s B Minor Mass with Yale Schola
Cantorum.
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Musician Biographies
Amanda Crider, mezzo-soprano, has sung with numerous opera
companies across the US including the Dallas Opera, New York
City Opera, Florida Grand Opera, Glimmerglass Opera, Opera
Boston, Opera Omaha, Des Moines Metro Opera, Anchorage
Opera, Gotham Chamber Opera, and Eugene Opera. She has
also appeared as a soloist with ensembles including Charlotte
Symphony Orchestra, Eugene Symphony, New World Symphony,
Apollo’s Fire, Bach Festival Society of Florida, Charleston
Symphony Orchestra, and the International Contemporary
Ensemble. Amanda has been a prize winner and finalist in
many competitions, including the José Iturbi International Voice
Competition, Jensen Foundation Voice Competition, Joy in
Singing Debut Artist Competition, Connecticut Opera Guild
Competition, Shreveport Opera Singer of the Year Competition,
Palm Beach Opera Vocal Competition, Oratorio Society of
New York Vocal Competition, Center for Contemporary Opera
Competition, and is a recipient of a Richard F. Gold Career
Grant from the Shoshana Foundation.
Mela Dailey, soprano, has command of both her instrument
and the stage: the 2005 National Federation of Music Clubs
Young Artist Winner in Woman’s Voice, 2005 Metropolitan
Opera District Winner and Mid-South Regional Finalist, 2006
International Opera Singer Competition Finalist, 2007 Gerda
Lissner Foundation Competition Career Encouragement Grant
Winner, a Rosenblatt Award winner of the 2006 Connecticut
Opera Guild Young Artist Competition, and 2007 GRAMMY®
Award nominee. Mela (mee-la) has received recognition in a wide
variety of musical genres including opera, oratorio, art song,
musical theater, vocal jazz, gospel, country, and popular music.
Brad Diamond, tenor, is equally adept in the genres of opera,
oratorio and song literature. Brad has presented over 400 solo
vocal performances in works by Cavalli, Monteverdi, Bach,
Handel, Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, Rossini, Berlioz,
Orff, Bartok, Janacek and Britten with symphony orchestras
and opera companies across North America and Europe. He
completed his bachelor of music degree from Westminster Choir
College in Princeton, NJ in 1991. He received his master’s and
doctorate degrees from the University of Cincinnati’s College
Conservatory of Music between 1993 and 2004. Brad currently
holds the position of assistant professor of Voice at the University
of South Florida.
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Musician Biographies
Charles Wesley Evans, baritone, has been applauded by The
New York Times for his “elegant and mellifluous tones” and as
“the peak of the night’s solo work” by the Miami Herald. With a
range of genres spanning from baroque to jazz and R&B, he has
performed with The Trinity Choir of Trinity Wall Street, Clarion
Choir, TENET Ensemble, Conspirare, Berkshire Baroque,
Princeton Pro Musica, San Antonio Symphony Orchestra,
Delaware Valley Philharmonic and the Dryden Ensemble. Charles
earned his bachelor of music from Brewton-Parker College in
Mt. Vernon, Ga., with further study at the Boston Conservatory
and Westminster Choir College of Rider University.
Estelí Gomez, soprano, is quickly gaining recognition as a stylish
interpreter of early and contemporary repertoires. She has been
praised for her “clear, bright voice” (The New York Times) and
“artistry that belies her young years” (Kansas City Metropolis). In
2011, Estelí was awarded first prize in the Canticum Gaudium
International Early Music Vocal Competition in Poznań,
Poland, and returned in 2012 as soprano soloist for Handel’s
Messiah in the 10th International Festival of Boy Choirs. An
avid performer of early and new music, Estelí can be heard on
the JUNO-nominated recording Salsa Baroque with Montrealbased Ensemble Caprice, as well as the self-titled debut album
of new music vocal octet Roomful of Teeth, for which composer
Caroline Shaw was awarded the 2013 Pulitzer Prize. Originally
from Santa Cruz, California, Estelí received her bachelor of arts
with honors in music from Yale College, and master of music
from McGill University, studying with Sanford Sylvan. She
currently travels and performs full-time. (esteligomez.com)
Sara Guttenberg, soprano, sings with professional choirs across
the United States. Notable accomplishments include solos with
the Oregon Bach Festival and a featured ensemble solo on the
Grammy-winning recording of Bolcom’s Songs of Innocence and
of Experience. Sara is on the voice and choral conducting faculty
at Southern Utah University.
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Musician Biographies
Patrick Muehleise, tenor, is rapidly gaining attention in the US
as a versatile performer in both operatic and concert repertoire.
Currently based in Chicago, Patrick collaborates with companies
throughout the country, such as the Santa Fe Desert Chorale,
Spire Chamber Ensemble, Haymarket Opera, Santa Fe Opera,
Chicago Arts Orchestra, and the Tucson Chamber Artists. His
recent engagements include Bach’s St. Matthew Passion, Mozart’s
Mass in C minor and Coronation Mass, Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas,
Handel’s Messiah, Copland’s The Tender Land, and Britten’s Albert
Herring. This season will include performances of David Lang’s
Little Match Girl Passion with Bella Voce Camerata, Wagner’s
Parsifal with the Lyric Opera of Chicago, Bach’s Magnificat,
Haydn’s Creation, and Mozart’s Coronation Mass with Music of
the Baroque.
Dan Moore, baritone, earned his bachelor of music at Temple
University where he studied voice with renowned baritones Dr.
William Stone and bass-baritone Eric Owens. He is currently
pursuing a master of music at Yale University where he is also a
member of the Institute of Sacred Music’s voice program in early
music, oratorio and chamber ensemble, studying under tenor
James Taylor. Other than Seraphic Fire, Dan enjoys singing with
such ensembles as St. Thomas 5th Ave Choir of Men and Boys,
Yale Schola Cantorum, New Haven-based American Baroque
Orchestra, and Spire Chamber Ensemble in Kansas City.
Jessica Petrus, soprano, has been praised for her “impressive
clarity and color”(New York Times) and for her “brilliant, agile
soprano”(San Diego Story). Highlights for her 2013-2014
season include solo and ensemble appearances with the Handel
and Haydn Society, Yale Choral Artists, Tuscon Chamber Artists,
Oratorio Chorale of Maine, The Broken Consort, Staunton Music
Festival, Seraphic Fire, Central Virginia Chamber Music Society,
Cantata Profana, and Skylark Vocal Ensemble. She is a graduate
of the Yale Institute of Sacred Music’s Oratorio, Art Song, and
Chamber Ensemble program and now lives in Cambridge, MA.
www.jessicapetrus.com.
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Musician Biographies
Angela Young Smucker, mezzo-soprano, has received critical
acclaim for her “rich, secure mezzo-soprano” (Chicago Tribune)
and “show-stopping” voice (The St. Paul Pioneer Press). Ms.
Smucker continues to build a reputation for her “discerning
interpretation” (SanDiego.com) of the works of J.S. Bach and
is a recent Virginia Best Adams Master Class Fellow (Carmel
Bach Festival). Highlights of the 2013-14 season include
debut performances with Les Délices, New Comma Baroque,
and Music of the Baroque, a world premiere of a new Robert
Kyr composition paired with Bach’s Christmas Oratorio under
the baton of James Kallembach, and return appearances with
the Haymarket Opera Company, Newberry Consort, Bach
Collegium San Diego, Bella Voce, and Seraphic Fire.
(www.mezzoangela.com)
Steven Soph, tenor, performs as a soloist and chamber musician
throughout the United States. 2013 marked his Cleveland
Symphony solo debut under Ton Koopman in an all-Handel
program in Severance Hall. Recent highlights include: Evangelist
in Bach’s St. John Passion with Chicago Chorale, arias in Bach’s
St. Matthew Passion with Voices of Ascension, NYC, as well as
with the Colorado Bach Ensemble, and Young American Artist
performances with the City Choir of Washington D.C. Steven
performs with Seraphic Fire, Conspirare, Yale Choral Artists,
Musica Sacra, Tuscon Chamber Artists, Cut Circle, Spire, and
Sounding Light. He is a graduate of the University of North
Texas and Yale School of Music.
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Musician Biographies
Virginia Warnken, mezzo-soprano, is hailed by The New York
Times as an “elegant,” “rich-toned alto” with a “riveting presence”.
She is known throughout the American Early Music community
for her heartfelt interpretations of the works of Bach and
Handel. Virginia has been featured as a soloist with GRAMMY®nominated ensembles Seraphic Fire and the Trinity Wall Street
Choir, TENET, Carmel Bach Festival, Green Mountain Project,
Clarion Music Society, Musica Sacra, Oratorio Society of New
York, Yale Schola Cantorum, Juilliard 415, and Vox Vocal
Ensemble, and has worked with conductors such as Masaaki
Suzuki, Nic McGegan, Kent Tritle, Patrick Dupré Quigley,
Steven Fox, Stefan Parkman, Andrew Megill, Julian Wachner,
and more. In the 2013-2014 season, Virginia will make her
Lincoln Center solo debut as Micah in Handel’s Samson with
the American Classical Orchestra, and will also join the highly
distinguished roster of soloists of Philharmonia Baroque in
Vivaldi’s Juditha Triumphans, both led by Nic McGegan. In
recent seasons, she has appeared on the main stage of Carnegie
Hall as the alto soloist in Bach’s B minor Mass, Handel’s Messiah,
and Mozart’s C minor Mass. Virginia is also an advocate of
contemporary music, and has performed and premiered works
by numerous prominent composers including Louis Andriessen,
Caleb Burhans, Merrill Garbus of tUnE-yArDs, Judd
Greenstein, Missy Mazzoli, and Steve Reich. She is a member
of the widely acclaimed groundbreaking vocal octet Roomful
of Teeth, described by WQXR (NYC’s leading classical music
radio station) as being “the future of vocal music,” integrating
western and non-western vocal techniques such as Tuvan throat
singing, Inuit throat singing, yodeling, high Bulgarian belting,
and Korean P’ansori, and collaborating with composers to forge
a new repertoire for the voice using an expanded sound palette.
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