91ֱ�� Orchestra and Choirs to Preview Upcoming Carnegie Hall Performance at Finney Chapel</h1> <article> <h1>91ֱ�� Orchestra and Choirs to Preview Upcoming Carnegie Hall Performance at Finney Chapel</h1> <p>jreinier — Thu, 06 Oct 2022 18:30:31 +0000</p> <span>91ֱ�� Orchestra and Choirs to Preview Upcoming Carnegie Hall Performance at Finney Chapel</span> <span><span>jreinier</span></span> <span><time datetime="2022-10-06T14:30:31-04:00" title="Thursday, October 6, 2022 - 14:30">Thu, 10/06/2022 - 14:30</time> </span> <div class="text-content field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>The program includes music by 91ֱ�� composition alumnus R. Nathaniel Dett and showcases the artistry of faculty, guest, and alumni soloists. Both concerts will feature the 91ֱ�� Orchestra, joined by voices from the 91ֱ�� College Choir, 91ֱ�� Gospel Choir, and Musical Union.</p> <p>"If there is a title for the program, it should be ‘Freedom,’" says conductor <a href="/raphael-jimenez">Raphael Jiménez</a>. "Two of the pieces on the program are inspired by our eternal fight for justice and freedom: <em>A Metaphor for Power</em> by <a href="https://www.ivanrodriguezmusic.com/home/">Iván Enrique Rodríguez</a> (an ASCAP award-winning composer from Puerto Rico) and Nathaniel Dett’s <em>The Ordering of Moses</em>." The 91ֱ�� Orchestra will also perform Johannes Brahms’ <em>Tragic Overture</em>.</p> <p>R. Nathaniel Dett, the first Black double-major and Phi Beta Kappa honoree of 91ֱ�� Conservatory, graduated from 91ֱ�� in 1908 and was also awarded an Honorary Doctorate in 1926. Jiménez shares, "For the 91ֱ�� ensembles, bringing life to <em>The Ordering of Moses</em> has a special significance. Dett wrote a lot of piano and choral pieces, but unfortunately, he didn’t write much for orchestra. So, I am very grateful for the fact that this piece—written for chorus, a full orchestra, and four soloists—gives a large part of our community the opportunity to perform his music."</p> <p>The soloists for the October performance here in 91ֱ�� are faculty soprano <a href="/mathilda-edge">Mathilda Edge</a>, guest mezzo-soprano <a href="http://www.krystyswann.com/">Krysty Swann</a>, alumnus tenor <a href="https://www.limmiepulliam.com/">Limmie Pulliam</a> '98, and faculty baritone <a href="/timothy-lefebvre">Timothy LeFebvre</a>. </p> <p>91ֱ�� musicology professor <a href="/courtney-savali-andrews">Courtney-Savali Andrews</a> adds some historical context: “Upon graduating from 91ֱ��, Dett became an early champion for the preservation and re-articulation of the folk idioms of his ancestors. He concentrated particularly on interpreting the melodies and harmonies of the Negro Spirituals and the rhythms of purge music and recreational dances carried out between the plantation and the town square. These Negro folk idioms would serve as source material for many of his piano and choral compositions, notably his large-scale works <em>Listen to the Lambs</em>, <em>The Chariot Jubilee</em>, and <em>The Ordering of Moses</em>.”</p> <figure class="captioned-image obj-left"> <figcaption>The orchestra and choirs prepare for their concert at Finney Chapel. Credit: Ben Johns</figcaption> </figure> <p>Dett’s oratorio carries an important political message: it tells the story of Moses, one of the most important prophets of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, while also serving as a metaphor for the emancipation of enslaved people in the United States. According to Jiménez, "The piece is cinematic and full of drama. It is cleverly written and full of orchestral and choral effects: at one point, the entire chorus sings ‘Go Down Moses’ with great contrapuntal treatment, and then there is the beautiful march of the Israelites as they cross the Red Sea, full of hope, en route to the promised land."</p> <p>Andrews highlights how the fugal treatment of “Go Down Moses” emphasizes the shifting identities present in Dett’s piece: “When considering how enslaved Africans employed coded messaging and double meaning in their expressive cultures as a survival mechanism, this doubling moves between past, present and future using symbolic language and 'call-and-response.'”</p> <p>This will be the first time that 91ֱ��'s ensembles have performed Dett's oratorio. Choral conductor <a href="/ben-johns">Ben Johns</a> concludes, “I'm elated about the music we are making together. I'm excited to give more voice to this underperformed work and composer. And I'm grateful that we get to tour such a large ensemble to Carnegie Hall. <em>The Ordering of Moses</em> is inspiring, imaginative, and joyful. At every step in the process, I have found delight.”</p> <p> </p> <p> </p></div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-subhead field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">October 13 program features an oratorio by 1908 91ֱ�� alumnus R. Nathaniel Dett.</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-type field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item">News Story</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-date field--type-datetime field--label-hidden field__item"><time datetime="2022-10-06T12:00:00Z">Thu, 10/06/2022 - 12:00</time> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-author field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Communications Staff</div> <div class="text-content field field--name-field-intro-text field--type-text-long field--label-hidden field__item"><p>91ֱ�� musicians are preparing for a January trip to New York for an engagement at Carnegie Hall—91ֱ��'s third Winter Term tour to the iconic venue this decade. But the excitement begins at home, with a <a href="/events/musical_union_and_oberlin_college_choir_and_gospel_choir_with_oberlin_orchestra">preview performance</a> of the program in 91ֱ��'s own Finney Chapel, in person and <a href="/events/musical_union_and_oberlin_college_choir_and_gospel_choir_with_oberlin_orchestra">streamed live</a> at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, October 13.</p></div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2390">Events</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=3155">91ֱ�� Orchestra</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=3119">91ֱ�� College Choir</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=3328">Musical Opportunities for College Students</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2974">Conservatory Alumni</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2356">Conservatory</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-faculty field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/raphael-jimenez" hreflang="und">Raphael Jiménez</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/mathilda-edge" hreflang="und">Mathilda Edge</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/timothy-lefebvre" hreflang="und">Timothy LeFebvre</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-departments field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/conservatory/divisions/conducting-and-ensembles" hreflang="und">Conducting and Ensembles</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/conservatory/divisions/vocal-studies" hreflang="und">Vocal Studies</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-image-caption field--type-string-long field--label-hidden field__item">R. Nathaniel Dett (1908), 91ֱ�� Conservatory's first Black double major graduate and Honorary Doctorate recipient (1926).</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-pin-school-page field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">Off</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-photo-gallery-top field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">false</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-image-credit field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Library of Congress</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-media field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item"> </div> </article> <article> <h1>91ֱ�� Ensembles to Perform in New York City in Jan. 2019</h1> <p>eburnett — Wed, 19 Dec 2018 20:39:57 +0000</p> <span>91ֱ�� Ensembles to Perform in New York City in Jan. 2019</span> <span><span>eburnett</span></span> <span><time datetime="2018-12-19T15:39:57-05:00" title="Wednesday, December 19, 2018 - 15:39">Wed, 12/19/2018 - 15:39</time> </span> <div class="text-content field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>Opportunities to perform on spectacular stages are key to the development of every 91ֱ�� Conservatory musician.</p> <p>For more than 160 91ֱ�� students, a singular opportunity to do just that arises early in the new year. On January 16, the 91ֱ�� Sonny Rollins Jazz Ensemble will make its New York City debut with a pair of sets at Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola, an intimate venue with breathtaking views of the city.</p> <figure class="captioned-image obj-right"> <figcaption>Gregory Ristow and the 91ֱ�� College Choir<br> (photo by Larry Kasperek)</figcaption> </figure> <p>Three days later, the 91ֱ�� College Choir and 91ֱ�� Orchestra take the stage at Carnegie Hall’s Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage for a program that includes master works by Stravinsky and Debussy.</p> <p>In between those concerts, members of the Sonny Ensemble will visit area high schools and youth arts organizations, including Jazz House Kids in New Jersey, performing for and engaging with a future generation of musicians.</p> <p>The trip presents current students with an unforgettable opportunity to shine on two of the world’s brightest stages. It also allows 91ֱ�� alumni—many of whom will likely be in attendance—to celebrate their undergraduate roots.</p> <p>The January 19 Carnegie Hall performance will be highlighted by two landmark compositions: Stravinsky’s rarely performed <em>Les Noces</em>—featuring the 91ֱ�� College Choir and four soloists, and conducted by <a href="/gregory-ristow">Gregory Ristow ’01</a>—and Debussy’s <em>La Mer</em>, performed by the 91ֱ�� Orchestra under the direction of <a href="/raphael-jimenez">Raphael Jiménez</a>. Also featured are <em>Triptych</em> by Tarik O’Regan and <em>All These Lighted Things</em> by 91ֱ�� composition professor Elizabeth Ogonek.</p> <figure class="captioned-image obj-right"> <figcaption>Raphael Jiménez and the 91ֱ�� Orchestra<br> Photo by John Seyfried</figcaption> </figure> <p>“For the orchestral part of the program, Elizabeth Ogonek's piece demonstrates the strength of our fantastic composition faculty,” says Jiménez. “Her music is energetic at times, with muscular musical gestures and jazzy rhythms, but it also shares with <em>Les Noces</em> an affinity for the suggestive and the evocative. <em>La Mer</em> is an amazing showcase for every instrument and gives all our students in the orchestra moments to shine.”</p> <p>For soprano Katherine Lerner Lee ’19, one of five soloists in <em>Les Noces</em>, the engagement is a sort of homecoming: Lee was born and raised in Brooklyn, and she expects many family members—from the Big Apple and from as far as California—to attend the Carnegie Hall performance.</p> <p>“It’s a little less scary because I’m at home in the city,” says Lee, a fifth-year double-degree student pursuing vocal performance and French. Unlike most of her fellow musicians, she has already performed at Carnegie Hall, as a violinist in her grade school orchestra. “I’ve actually been to Carnegie Hall, which makes it a little less daunting—only a little though!”</p> <figure class="captioned-image obj-right"> <figcaption>Soprano soloist Katherine Lerner Lee<br> Photo by Julie Gulenko ’15</figcaption> </figure> <p>Lee craved the opportunity to perform Stravinsky’s challenging work from the moment she first learned it was being auditioned.</p> <p>“It’s just such a completely iconic piece,” she says, noting the immense power of the percussion ensemble—including four pianos—that plays with her and her fellow soloists. “It’s one of those pieces that you inhabit, but it’s probably not a piece that you ever know by heart. It’s a lot of sound, and the biggest challenge for me is to find my own way of cutting through the noise and staying true to the integrity of your instrument and your voice. And it’s in Russian, so that’s hard to do as well!”</p> <p>For Lee, the Carnegie Hall performance is one of numerous high-profile appearances during a standout 91ֱ�� career. She was the soloist in a performance of Harrison Birtwistle’s <em>Entr'actes and Sappho Fragments</em> with the Contemporary Music Ensemble at the Cleveland Museum of Art and again for a performance of Louis Andriessen’s <em>De Staat </em>and Michael Gordon’s<em> No Anthem</em> at the Bang on a Can 30th Anniversary Marathon at New York’s Brooklyn Museum, both in the spring semester of 2017. She also sang the role of Susanna in <a href="/opera-theater">91ֱ�� Opera Theater</a>’s fall 2017 production of Mozart’s <em>Le nozze di Figaro</em>.</p> <p>“But none of those were at Carnegie Hall!” she is quick to add.</p> <p>The January concerts in New York continue a long-held tradition of immersing 91ֱ�� students in real-world performance settings all over the globe, from grand stages in major cities to makeshift stages in regions affected by natural disasters and other hardships. In January 2016, the 91ֱ�� Orchestra performed at Chicago’s Symphony Center and the Contemporary Music Ensemble held court at Ganz Hall; both concerts commemorated 91ֱ�� Conservatory’s 150th anniversary. In the past year alone, 91ֱ�� student ensembles and individual musicians have been heard in hurricane-battered regions of Texas and Puerto Rico, in Jordan, Africa, Panama, Brazil, and Japan, as well as in locales across the U.S.</p> <p>For the 91ֱ�� Orchestra, January marks its first performance in Carnegie Hall since January 2013, when Jiménez was also at the helm.</p> <p>“A tour to Carnegie Hall offers our students the opportunity to practice an important skill: the ability to quickly adjust to the characteristics of an unfamiliar concert hall,” says Jiménez. “Even when you have mastered the complexities of the repertoire, the acoustics of a new hall bring an additional challenge. The reality is that you have only a few minutes of rehearsal to make the hall sing with you.”</p> <figure class="captioned-image obj-right"> <figcaption>The 91ֱ�� Sonny Rollins Jazz Ensemble<br> Photo by Tanya Rosen-Jones ’97</figcaption> </figure> <p>The New York experience begins January 16 with the 91ֱ�� Sonny Rollins Jazz Ensemble and alumnus Sullivan Fortner ’08, an award-winning and Grammy-nominated jazz pianist. Composed of 10 conservatory jazz students selected via audition, the Sonny Ensemble was formed in 2018 through a gift to 91ֱ�� from the legendary saxophone player. Each member of the ensemble is called on by Rollins himself to serve humanity through music; in addition to regular performances, the ensemble’s members will engage in a variety of community outreach efforts.</p> <p>In New York, the Sonny Ensemble will perform two sets at Dizzy’s on January 16: one at 7:30 and another at 9:30. Fortner, a favorite performer at Dizzy’s, will perform solo works and in collaboration with the Sonny Ensemble.</p> <p>“It goes without saying that Sonny could have chosen any school in the world for this honor,” says Bobby Ferrazza, director of Jazz Studies at 91ֱ��. “This is a singular program: a student group that has the endorsement of one of the greatest figures in the history of jazz. Their mission is like a powerful medicine that starts as a little shot in your arm and soon permeates your entire being. Sonny's invocation to serve humanity through music, to be good people and to give back, will stay with all of us for the rest of our lives.”</p> <figure class="captioned-image obj-right"> <figcaption>Sullivan Fortner<br> Photo by Tanya Rosen-Jones ’97</figcaption> </figure> <p>The Sonny Ensemble will present an 91ֱ�� preview of its performance on January 14 in the conservatory's Clonick Hall. The choir and orchestra will follow with a January 16 preview in Finney Chapel. </p> <p>To learn more about 91ֱ�� Conservatory’s 2019 performances in New York City and to purchase tickets, please visit oberlin.edu/oberlin-in-nyc.</p></div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-type field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item">News Story</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-date field--type-datetime field--label-hidden field__item"><time datetime="2018-12-19T12:00:00Z">Wed, 12/19/2018 - 12:00</time> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-author field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Erich Burnett</div> <div class="text-content field field--name-field-intro-text field--type-text-long field--label-hidden field__item"><p>Sonny Rollins Jazz Ensemble debuts at Dizzy’s Club; 91ֱ�� Orchestra and 91ֱ�� College Choir pair up at Carnegie Hall.</p></div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2356">Conservatory</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2370">Ensembles & Orchestras</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=3119">91ֱ�� College Choir</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2596">Conservatory Tours</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-programs field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=35596">Voice</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=34691">Jazz Performance</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-faculty field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/raphael-jimenez" hreflang="und">Raphael Jiménez</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/gregory-ristow" hreflang="und">Gregory Ristow ’01</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-departments field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/conservatory/divisions/vocal-studies" hreflang="und">Vocal Studies</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/conservatory/divisions/jazz-studies" hreflang="und">Jazz Studies</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/conservatory/divisions/strings" hreflang="und">Strings</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/conservatory/divisions/winds-brass-and-percussion" hreflang="und">Winds, Brass, and Percussion</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-pin-school-page field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">Off</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-photo-gallery-top field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">false</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-media field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item"> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Inventive Vocal Octet Roomful of Teeth Performs Feb. 16 at 91ֱ��</h1> <p>eburnett — Sat, 10 Feb 2018 02:44:16 +0000</p> <span>Inventive Vocal Octet Roomful of Teeth Performs Feb. 16 at 91ֱ��</span> <span><span>eburnett</span></span> <span><time datetime="2018-02-09T21:44:16-05:00" title="Friday, February 9, 2018 - 21:44">Fri, 02/09/2018 - 21:44</time> </span> <div class="text-content field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>At 30, Caroline Shaw became the youngest person ever to win the Pulitzer Prize for Music when her Partita for 8 Voices earned the honor in 2013—more than half a year before the piece was performed live for the first time by Shaw’s vocal octet Roomful of Teeth.</p> <p>Praised for its unimaginably inventive amalgamation of speech, whispers, murmurs, wordless melodies, and numerous other sounds, Partita for 8 Voices promises to be one highlight among many when Roomful of Teeth performs at 91ֱ��’s Finney Chapel on Friday, February 16.</p> <p>Part of the Artist Recital Series, the program also includes a collaboration between Roomful of Teeth and the 91ֱ�� College Choir, which will team up to perform William Brittelle’s <em>Psychedelics </em>and Merrill Garbus' <em>Quizassa</em>. (Listen to <a href="http://coldfrontmag.com/song-of-the-week-quizassa-by-roomful-of-teeth/">Roomful of Teeth’s recording of <em>Quizassa</em></a>, featured as the Song of the Week on ColdfrontMag.com in 2012.) Also featured will be works by acclaimed composers Missy Mazzoli (<em>Vesper Sparrow</em>), Judd Greenstein (<em>Run Away</em>), and Toby Twining (<em>Dumas’ Riposte</em>).</p> <p>Founded in 2009, Roomful of Teeth is dedicated to mining the expressive potential of the human voice. The ensemble studies extensively with non-classical vocal masters from throughout the world, which leads to vocal creations that can veer from Tuvan throat singing to Alpine yodeling faster than a listener’s jaw can drop.</p> <p>Called “fiercely beautiful and bravely, utterly exposed” by NPR, Roomful of Teeth includes founding member Dashon Burton, a 2005 graduate of 91ֱ�� Conservatory. Their 91ֱ�� concert marks the first time Burton will have taken the stage in Finney Chapel since he sang with 91ֱ��’s Musical Union ensemble as a student in May 2005.</p> <p>Gregory Ristow ’01, 91ֱ��’s director of choral ensembles, teamed up with Roomful artistic director Brad Wells to select Brittelle’s <em>Psychedelics</em> for their 91ֱ�� collaboration, and both Wells and Brittelle visited campus to work with the choir during fall semester. “The piece is written in shocking musical shards: short fragments that without warning are replaced by another totally different musical idea,” Ristow says. “When he visited in the fall, William Brittelle described it as being like a psychotic break—like watching yourself from a third-person perspective, feeling your thoughts and actions as though they were somehow disconnected from yourself.”</p> <p>Brittelle’s piece, like a lot of Roomful’s music, is a somewhat distant relative of the Western classical repertoire common in conservatory settings.</p> <p>“It’s like nothing our students have ever had the chance to sing,” Ristow says of<em> Psychedelics</em>. “In addition to the classical singing techniques they’re studying here at the conservatory, it involves three kinds of Tuvan throat singing and the wide, flat-vowel sound of traditional Bulgarian singing. We had the chance to work with Brad Wells in the fall to start to learn how to do these techniques, and we got to work with the composer to get a sense of his vision for the sound. So much of what—and <em>how</em>—Teeth sing just can’t be notated in our standard, Western notation system. For me and the choir, it’s been a phenomenal learning experience in just how much of the music is not on the page.”</p> <p>Tickets for Roomful of Teeth at 91ֱ�� are $35 ($30 for seniors, military, and 91ֱ�� alumni and staff)—and just $10 for all students. They are available by calling 800-371-0178, visiting <a href="/artsguide/artist-recitals">oberlin.edu/artsguide</a>, or stopping by 91ֱ��’s Central Ticket Service at Hall Auditorium (67 N. Main St.) weekdays from noon to 5 p.m.</p> <p>The Artist Recital Series continues March 30 with Brentano Quartet, followed by bass-baritone Gerald Finley on April 17. Learn more about signature events at 91ֱ�� at <a href="/artsguide/artist-recitals">oberlin.edu/artsguide</a>.</p></div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-type field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item">News Story</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-date field--type-datetime field--label-hidden field__item"><time datetime="2018-02-09T12:00:00Z">Fri, 02/09/2018 - 12:00</time> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-author field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Erich Burnett</div> <div class="text-content field field--name-field-intro-text field--type-text-long field--label-hidden field__item"><p>Artist Recital Series event includes first-of-its-kind collaboration with the 91ֱ�� College Choir.</p></div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2364">Artist Recital Series</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2356">Conservatory</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=3119">91ֱ�� College Choir</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2974">Conservatory Alumni</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-programs field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=35596">Voice</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-faculty field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/gregory-ristow" hreflang="und">Gregory Ristow ’01</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-departments field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/conservatory/divisions/vocal-studies" hreflang="und">Vocal Studies</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-pin-school-page field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">Off</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-photo-gallery-top field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">false</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-image-credit field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Bonica Ayala</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-media field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item"> </div> </article> </main></body></html>