The Well-Tempered Ear

Music education: The Madison Youth Choirs explore the theme of “Legacy” in three concerts this Saturday and Sunday in the Capitol Theater of the Overture Center

May 8, 2019
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By Jacob Stockinger

The Ear has received the following announcement to post from the Madison Youth Choirs about their upcoming concerts this weekend:

This spring, Madison Youth Choirs singers are exploring the meaning of “Legacy,” studying works that have endured throughout history, folk traditions that have been passed on, and musical connections that we maintain with those who have come before us. Along the way, we’re discovering how our own choices and examples are leaving a lasting impact on future generations.

In our upcoming concert series in the Capitol Theater of the Overture Center, 201 State Street, on this Saturday, May 11, and Sunday, May 12, we’ll present a variety of works. They  include Benjamin Britten’s “The Golden Vanity,” Palestrina’s beloved “Sicut Cervus,” Sweet Honey in the Rock’s “Wanting Memories,” the final chorus of Handel’s oratorio Samson, American and Scottish folk songs, and Zoe Mulford’s powerful modern folk piece, “The President Sang Amazing Grace.”

The concert will also pay tribute to our alumni, with selections featured on the very first Madison Boychoir album, and past Cantabile singers invited to join us on stage for “Sisters, Now Our Meeting is Over.”

At the Saturday concert, MYC will present the 2019 Carrel Pray Music Educator of the Year award to Diana Popowycz (below), co-founder of Suzuki Strings of Madison.

DETAILS ABOUT “LEGACY” MYC’S SPRING CONCERT SERIES

Saturday
7:30 p.m. Purcell, Britten, Holst and Ragazzi (boychoirs)

Sunday
3:30 p.m. Choraliers, Con Gioia, Capriccio, Cantilena and Cantabile (girlchoirs)

7:30 p.m. Cantilena, Cantabile and Ragazzi (high school ensembles)

THREE WAYS TO PURCHASE TICKETS:

  1. In person at the Overture Center Box Office (lowest cost)
  2. Online (https://www.overture.org/events/legacy)
  3. By phone (608-258-4141)

Tickets are $15 for adults and $7.50 for students. Children under 7 are free, but a ticket is still required and can be requested at the Overture Center Box Office. Seating is General Admission.

This concert is supported by the Pleasant T. Rowland Foundation, American Girl’s Fund for Children, BMO Harris Bank, the Green Bay Packers Foundation, the Kenneth A. Lattman Foundation and Dane Arts with additional funds from the Endres Mfg. Company Foundation, The Evjue Foundation, charitable arm of The Capital Times, and the W. Jerome Frautschi Foundation. This project is also made possible by a grant from the Wisconsin Arts Board with additional funds from the State of Wisconsin and the National Endowment for the Arts.

ABOUT MADISON YOUTH CHOIRS (MYC):

Recognized as an innovator in youth choral music education, Madison Youth Choirs (MYC) welcomes singers of all ability levels, annually serving more than 1,000 young people, ages 7-18, through a wide variety of choral programs in our community. Cultivating a comprehensive music education philosophy that inspires self-confidence, responsibility, and a spirit of inquiry leading students to become “expert noticers,” MYC creates accessible, meaningful opportunities for youth to thrive in the arts and beyond.

REPERTOIRE

SATURDAY

For the 7:30 p.m. Concert (featuring MYC Boychoirs)

Britten

“The Golden Vanity,” by Benjamin Britten (to our knowledge, this will be the first time the work has ever been performed in Madison)

Purcell

“Simple Gifts” by Joseph Brackett, arr. Aaron Copland

“Tallis Canon” by Thomas Tallis

“Sound the Trumpet” from Come Ye Sons of Art by Henry Purcell

Britten   

“Ich jauchze, ich lache” by Johann Sebastian Bach

Holst

“Hallelujah, Amen” from Judas Maccabeus by George Frideric Handel

“Sed diabolus” by Hildegard von Bingen

“Bar’bry Allen” Traditional ballad, arr. Joshua Shank

“Ella’s Song” by Bernice Johnson Reagon

Ragazzi

“Let Your Voice Be Heard” by Abraham Adzenyah

“Sicut Cervus” by Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina

“Agincourt Carol,” Anonymous, ca. 15th century

Ragazzi & Holst

“The President Sang Amazing Grace” by Zoe Mulford, arr. Randal Swiggum

Holst

“Shosholoza,” Traditional song from Zimbabwe

Combined Boychoirs

“Will Ye No Come Back Again?” Traditional Scottish, arr. Randal Swiggum

Legacy Choirs

“Day is Done” by Peter Yarrow, arr. Randal Swiggum

SUNDAY

For the 3:30 p.m. Concert (featuring MYC Girlchoirs)

Choraliers

“Music Alone Shall Live,” Traditional German canon

“Ut Queant Laxis,” Plainsong chant, text attributed to Paolo Diacono

“This Little Light of Mine” by Harry Dixon Loes, arr. Ken Berg

“A Great Big Sea,” Newfoundland folk song, arr. Lori-Anne Dolloff

Con Gioia

“Seligkeit” by Franz Schubert

“Blue Skies” by Irving Berlin, arr. Roger Emerson

“When I am Laid in Earth” from Dido and Aeneas by Henry Purcell

“Pokare Kare Ana” by Paraire Tomoana

“Ah, comme c’est chose belle” Anonymous, 14th century

“Hope” by Marjan Helms, poem by Emily Dickinson

Capriccio

“Non Nobis Domine,” attributed to William Byrd

“Ich Folge Dir Gleichfalls” from St. John Passion by Johann Sebastian Bach

“Dirait-on” by Morten Lauridsen

Cantilena

“Aure Volanti” by Francesca Caccini

“Ella’s Song” by Bernice Johnson Reagon

Cantabile

“Come All You Fair and Pretty Ladies” Traditional Ozark song, adapted by Mike Ross

“Wanting Memories” by Ysaye M. Barnwell

Legacy Choir

“Music in My Mother’s House” by Stuart Stotts

For the 7:30 p.m. concert (featuring High School Ensembles)

Cantilena

“Aure Volanti” by Francesca Caccini

“Una Sañosa Porfía by Juan del Encina

“Ella’s Song” by Bernice Johnson Reagon

“O Virtus Sapientiae” by Hildegard von Bingen

Ragazzi

“Sicut Cervus” by Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina

“Agincourt Carol,” Anonymous, ca. 15th century

“Let Your Voice Be Heard” by Abraham Adzenyah

“The President Sang Amazing Grace” by Zoe Mulford, arr. Randal Swiggum

Cantabile

“In a Neighborhood in Los Angeles” by Roger Bourland

“Sed Diabolus” by Hildegard von Bingen

“Come All You Fair and Pretty Ladies” Traditional Ozark song, adapted by Mike Ross

“Wanting Memories” by Ysaye M. Barnwell

Combined Choirs

“Let Their Celestial Concerts All Unite” by George Frideric Handel

 Cantabile and Alumnae

“Sisters, Now Our Meeting is Over,” Traditional Quaker meeting song


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Classical music: The Token Creek Festival will “harvest” gardens of music from next Saturday through Sept. 2

August 20, 2018
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By Jacob Stockinger

The summer season for classical music in Madison has gotten busier and busier. But the summer still ends on the same high note — the Token Creek Chamber Music Festival that is co-directed by John Harbison and Rose Mary Harbison.

Here is the announcement about this year’s festival, the 29th, that begins this coming weekend:

“The late-summer garden inspires the 2018 season theme of “Harvest” at this year’s Token Creek Chamber Music Festival.

“Both garden and festival share much in common:  risk, patience, experimentation, disappointment, and finally amazement that a piece —whether a piece of ground or a piece of music — is capable of such nourishment, abundance and variety.

“In the musicians’ garden, with its unpredictability and surprise, there is always the hope of reducing the variables — but they persist, and the richness of choice, the endlessness of the resources we inherit drive us to continue to create.

“One of the advantages of our season title is that it implies a summing up, a reaping of things planted, but of a kind that can occur each year,” writes co-artistic director and composer John Harbison (below). “Each planting retains certain elements and adjusts others with the hope of increased productivity. But so many of the adjustments made in hope of improvement do not work, but create new problems, require new approaches.  What a fine analogy for the making of art.”

Here are this year’s Concert Programs. Please note something new this year: All weekend concerts start at 4 p.m.

Program I: ROOTS – Music of Bach and Primosch. On Saturday, Aug. 25, at 4 p.m. and Sunday, Aug. 26, at 4 p.m.

“Continuing our ongoing exploration of the music of Johann Sebastian Bach (below top) in cantatas and instrumental works, and its reflection in the music of James Primosch (below bottom), one of the few composers in our time able to grasp both the possibilities and responsibilities available in sacred music in a tradition inherited from Bach.”

Program II: NEW GROWTH – The Kepler Quartet (below, with composer Ben Johnston, and playing Johnston’s String Quartet No. 7 in the YouTube video at the bottom) on Wednesday, Aug. 29, at 7:30 p.m.

“A recital of beautifully alluring micro-tonal music “in between the notes.” The attractive and intelligible musical surface, and our experience hearing it, belies the at-times complex compositional methods.

“We are impressed by the pure pleasure of hearing tones combining differently but convincingly. The recital will be augmented with a demonstration and discussion by the Keplers.

Works are by Ben Johnston, Stefano Scodanibbio (below top), Henry Cowell (below middle) and Harry Partch (below bottom).”

Program III: CORNUCOPIA – Saturday, Sept. 1, at 4 p.m. and Sunday, Sept. 2, at 4 p.m.

“Schumann’s beloved and timeless song cycle “Dichterliebe” (A Poet’s Love) with tenor Frank Kelley (below) and his impassioned, enigmatic and exuberant Piano Trio in D minor anchor this program.

“The program also includes the Violin Sonata in G Major, K. 301, by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Piano Sonata in E Major by Franz Joseph Haydn sonatas and the world premiere of John Harbison’s new song cycle, “In Early Evening,” to poems by Louise Gluck.”

The ARTISTS are Mark Bridges, cello; Laura Burns, violin; Ryne Cherry, baritone; Ross Gilliland, bass; John Harbison, portative organ and piano; Rose Mary Harbison, violin; Frank Kelley, tenor; The Kepler Quartet; Karl Lavine, cello; Sharan Leventhal, violin; Jennifer Paulson, viola; James Primosch, piano; Brek Renzelman, viola; Eric Segnitz, violin;  Janice Weber, piano; and Sarah Yanovitch, soprano.

Performances take place in the Festival Barn (below top and bottom), on Highway 19 near the hamlet of Token Creek (10 minutes north of Madison, near Sun Prairie). 

The charming and rustic venue — indoors and air-conditioned, with modern comforts — is invitingly small; early reservations are recommended, and casual dress is suggested. Ample parking is available.

Tickets are $12-$32, and can be purchased at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/token-creek-festival-2018-harvest-tickets-47217166817

For more information about the performers and specific works on programs, call (608) 241-2525 or go to www.tokencreekfestival.org

ABOUT THE FESTIVAL

The Token Creek Festival has been called “ferociously interesting and important, an ideal musical experience, a treasure nestled in the heart of Wisconsin cornfields.” (Photo below is by Jess Anderson.)

“Now in its 29th season, this late-summer series near Madison is known for its artistic excellence, diverse and imaginative programming; a deep engagement with the audience; and a surprising, enchanting and intimate performance venue in a  comfortable refurbished barn.”


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Music education: Madison Youth Choirs perform their Spring Concert series “Seriously Funny” this Sunday

May 10, 2018
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By Jacob Stockinger

The Ear has received the following announcement to post:

“This spring, the Madison Youth Choirs singers (below) are exploring the unexpected ways that elements of humor, from irony and incongruity to improvisation and timing, are reflected in a wide variety of classical and contemporary musical compositions.

“We’re learning that music, like humor, is a kind of language, operating with its own sense of logic, patterns, and conventions that composers can twist to surprise us and take our musical journey to new places.

“As we study the complexity of humor as a mode of creative expression, we are discovering the power of satire, wit, and misdirection to help us reexamine our assumptions, musical and otherwise.

“In our culminating concert series, our singers will present works including “No, di voi non vo’ fidarmi” by George Frideric Handel; Timothy Takach’s “I Will Howl” by Timothy Takach; the “Fugue for Tinhorns” from Guys and Dolls; and the second movement of Chichester Psalms by Leonard Bernstein.”

The MYC Spring Concerts, “Seriously Funny: Musical Humor, Wit, and Whimsy” will take place this Sunday afternoon and evening, May 13, at the First Congregational United Church of Christ, 1609 University Ave., across from Camp Randall Stadium.

Performance are: 1:30 p.m. for Girlchoirs; 4 p.m. for Boychoirs; and 7 p.m. for High School Ensembles.

Tickets will be available at the door: $10 for general admission; $5 for students 7-18; and free for children under 7. A separate ticket is required for each performance.

This concert is supported by American Girl’s Fund for Children, BMO Harris Bank, Dane Arts with additional funds from the Endres Mfg. Company Foundation, The Evjue Foundation, Inc., charitable arm of The Capital Times, the W. Jerome Frautschi Foundation, and the Pleasant T. Rowland Foundation. This project is also supported by the Wisconsin Arts Board with funds from the state of Wisconsin and the National Endowment for the Arts.

About the Madison Youth Choirs (MYC):

Recognized as an innovator in youth choral music education, Madison Youth Choirs (MYC) welcomes singers of all ability levels, annually serving more than 1,000 young people, ages 7-18, through a wide variety of choral programs in our community.

Cultivating a comprehensive music education philosophy that inspires self-confidence, personal responsibility, and a spirit of inquiry leading students to become “expert noticers,” MYC creates accessible, meaningful opportunities for youth to thrive in the arts and beyond.

For further information, go to www.madisonyouthchoirs.org or call (608) 238-7464.

Here is the Repertoire List for MYC 2018 Spring Concert Series, “Seriously Funny: Musical Humor, Wit and Whimsy”

1:30 P.M. CONCERT (FEATURING MYC GIRLCHOIRS)

Choraliers

“Bee! I’m expecting you!” by Emma Lou Diemer

“A Menagerie of Songs” by Carolyn Jennings

Con Gioia

“When V and I” by Henry Purcell

“The Fate of Gilbert Gim” by Margaret Drynan

“The Cabbage-Tree Hat,” traditional Australian folk song

Capriccio (below)

“Papageno-Papagena Duet” (from The Magic Flute) by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

“Ich jauchze, ich lache” (from BWV 15) by Johann Sebastian Bach

“J’entends le Moulin,” French folk song, arr. Donald Patriquin

Combined Choirs

“Funiculi, Funicula” by Luigi Denza

4 P.M. CONCERT (FEATURING MYC BOYCHOIRS)

Combined Boychoirs

“Sumer is icumen in,” Anonymous, 13th century Middle English piece

Purcell Boychoir 

“When V and I” by Henry Purcell

“Modern Major-General” from The Pirates of Penzance by Gilbert and Sullivan

“Weevily Wheat,” arr. Dan Krunnfusz

Britten Boychoir  (below)

“Gloria Tibi” by Leonard Bernstein

“The Plough Boy,” Traditional, arr. Benjamin Britten

Holst Boychoir

“Il est bel et bon” by Pierre Passereau

“Hopkinton” by William Billings

Ragazzi Boychoir

“I Will Howl” by Timothy Takach

“Rustics and Fishermen,” part V of Choral Dances from Gloriana by Benjamin Britten

“Fugue for Tinhorns” from Guys and Dolls by Frank Loesser

Combined Boychoirs

“Chichester Psalms” II. Adonai ro-i by Leonard Bernstein

7 P.M. CONCERT (FEATURING HIGH SCHOOL ENSEMBLES)

Cantilena

“A Girl’s Garden” from Frosting by Randall Thompson

“Love Learns by Laughing” by Thomas Morley

“Turn, Turn, Then Thine Eyes” from The Fairy Queen by Henry Purcell

“My Funny Valentine” from Babes in Arms by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart

“Etude 1 pour les cinq doigts d’après Monsieur Czerny” by Claude Debussy

Ragazzi

“I Will Howl” by Timothy Takach

“Fugue for Tinhorns” from Guys and Dolls by Frank Loesser

Cantabile

“sam was a man” by Vincent Persichetti, text by e.e. cummings

“No, di voi non vo’ fidarmi” by George Frideric Handel

“Cruel, You Pull Away Too Soon” by Thomas Morley

“This Sky Falls” by Jocelyn Hagen

“Svatba,” Traditional Bulgarian, arr. H.R. Todorov

Cantabile and Ragazzi

Choral Dances from Gloriana by Benjamin Britten

 


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