P.O. Box 390278
Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139-0022
www.cambridgechorus.org
![[Notes from Handel Messiah manuscript]](../pics/CCC/music.gif)
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P.O. Box 390278 Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139-0022 www.cambridgechorus.org |
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| February, 2005 |
The first rehearsal for the Exodus Project, our Spring Concert will take place on Monday, February 21, at 6:30pm at St. Bartholomew's Church. Note that after the first two rehearsals in February we will have the month of March off, and resume again on the first Monday in April. It's important to attend the first two rehearsals to get scores, practice tapes & CDs, and instructions so that you can practice on your own during our March break, and be better prepared when we resume rehearsals again in April.
We have a great team for this project and will have had two production meetings by the time of our first rehearsal. We are fortunate to have the assistance of many of the folks who helped make our earlier production of Dido and Aeneas such a theatrical success. The production team includes:
Choreographers - Midge Brecher and Jennifer Schoonover
Producer - Donna Killoran,
assisted by Mary Keith and Jim Hickey
Costume Design - Henry Shaffer
Stage Sets & Props - Jim Peters
Script - Jane Whitehead
Lighting - E-33, a student led production crew at MIT
We are excited as we move forward with planning and soon begin our rehearsals of Israel in Egypt. William has chosen some beautiful works for the second part of our concert and looks forward to sharing them with us at our first rehearsal.
The Chorus welcomes new singers in most voice parts (especially tenors and basses). New basses, tenors, and sopranos should simply attend the first rehearsal of the spring cycle on Monday, February 21, at 6:30pm and sign-in on the New Singer sheet. Due to the abundance of altos recently singing in the Chorus, new altos interested in singing with us should check first with Chorus President Paul Raila at president@cambridgechorus.org or 617-625-6588.
Exciting news! The Chorus has just commissioned Luis Bacalov to produce a new work for chorus, soloists and orchestra. Bacalov will be known to many of you as the composer of Misa Tango. The Chorus will present the world premiere of this new work in the spring of 2006, in Sanders Theatre at Harvard University. The work is expected to draw its text from the biblical "Psalms of David". The composer is considering the possibility of setting the text in four languages: English, Spanish, Hebrew and Latin. Learn more in the article "Bacalov Commission" which follows later in this newsletter.
Please join us. Except where noted all rehearsals will begin at 6:30pm at St. Bartholomew's Episcopal Church, 239 Harvard Street.
| FIRST REHEARSAL | Monday, Feb. 21, 6:30pm. Come sing! |
| MON. REHEARSALS | February 28, April 4,11,18,25, May 2,9,16, (23 - MIT Kresge Auditorium.) |
| SAT. REHEARSALS | April 23 10am-3pm, Cochran Chapel, Phillips Academy, Andover, MA |
| DRESS REHEARSAL | Thursday May 26, 6:30pm-9:30pm, MIT Kresge Auditorium
NOTE! printed newsletter has incorrect date |
| PERFORMANCE | Saturday May 28 at 7:30pm MIT Kresge Auditorium |
Several Chorus members gathered at the home of Susan Dowds on January 16 for the first meeting of the Bacalov Fund Committee to discuss fundraising strategy for the May 2006 Premiere of the work the Chorus has commissioned from Maestro Luis Bacalov. The group included Chorus music director William Thomas, Bacalov Fund co-chairs Susan Dowds and David Pap, chorus president Paul Raila, Toni Fitch, Lois Josimovich, Rena Leib, and Ken McElheny. Kathy Williams is also a committee member.
The Committee seeks to raise $30,000 to support the commission fee of $10,000 plus additional concert costs including Bacalov's travel to Cambridge for the Premiere. Thanks go to Ken McElheny who, in a dramatic gesture of quiet premeditation, reached into his pocket and presented a previously prepared personal check for $500 to start the fundraising and to challenge the rest of the committee! By the time the meeting concluded, committee members had contributed or pledged a total of $2,000.
Timing for the Fund is important because of the agreement with Bacalov. "We must send $5,000 to him by May 31, 2005, as the first half of the commission," noted chorus president Paul Raila, "and the remaining $5,000 by December 31, 2005." Co-chairs Susan Dowds and David Pap believe the goal of $30,000 can be reached if every member of the Chorus participates, and if those who are able can stretch to give between $500 and $1,000. The Committee will send a mailing to members of the Chorus after the February 21 rehearsal. William is preparing a written description of the project so that the entire Chorus can serve as ambassadors for this exciting opportunity. The Committee is developing grant proposals, a corporate strategy, and plans for another great dinner event at the time of the Premiere (thanks to Rena Leib!) Look for more news from the Bacalov Fund Committee this spring!
Many people have asked for a forum for sharing "announcements" with each other that fall outside the realm of official Chorus business, but are of potential interest to other Chorus members (other musical events, opportunities, jobs, apartments, etc.). Phil Budne has generously offered to coordinate the technical necessities. As an experiment, interested Chorus members will be able to "op-in" and subscribe to a mailing list. The list is a "closed" list and will not be published. Subscribers are permitted to post an announcement and it will be sent to the list of other subscribers. Good email etiquette dictates that postings should be reasonably of interest to Chorus members. This list is not intended as a forum for discussions, so please, no "rants", "flames", or debates (political or otherwise!).
To subscribe to the list, interested members should send a request in the form of a plain-text message (no font styling or HTML fanciness, please) to majordomo@ultimate.com. The request message must consist of exactly (and only) the text "subscribe cccbb" (minus the quotes). If you would prefer to receive a single daily message consisting of a digest (compilation) of all the messages from the preceding day instead of individual messages, send the text "subscribe cccbb-digest" (minus the quotes) instead. If you have difficulty subscribing, please contact phil@ultimate.com
Thanks go to Phil Budne and Larry Philbrick who have prepared additional practice materials that isolate individual voice parts. They are created from MIDI (synthesizer) files, so there are no words, but it is easier to hear your individual voice part. They are available on CD as audio files (playable on your CD player) or online as MIDI data, playable on your computer (if you have appropriate software). Some MIDI software permits slowing the tempo for practice. The MIDI files can be found at http://www.cambridgechorus.org/singers or http://www.ultimate.com/ccc/israel/
I am pleased to announce that we have reached an agreement with Maestro Luis Bacalov to commission and present the world premiere of a new work for chorus, soloists and orchestra, to be based upon the Psalms of David. This new work, whose working title is "Psalm", will be premiered by the Chorus at Sander's Theater on May 21, 2006! (Thank you, Jane Cantor for coordinating with Sanders!).
The board has approved and begun efforts to organize, and raise funds to "give life" to this exciting and ambitious project. Susan Dowds and David Pap have agreed to co-chair the fundraising effort and will be writing to all of us soon outlining opportunities for each of us to contribute toward the successful completion of this project!
Those who participated in our performance of Misa Tango will remember the excitement and rewards of that experience. It is an extraordinary opportunity for us to be engaged in a world premiere of a major work by a tremendous musical talent! Let me share some information about our distinguished composer.
Pianist and composer Luis Bacalov was born in Buenos Aires, where at the age of five he began his music education with Enrique Barenboim and continued with Berta Sujovolsky (a pupil of Arthur Schnabel). He started very early his concert activity in Argentina where he appeared as a soloist in a duo with the violinist Alberto Lissy, and in several chamber music groups. On behalf of Radio and Television of Colombia, he researched popular music all over Latin America and performed and recorded extensively the 19th and 20th century American repertoire for the piano.
From the sixties onward, Bacalov has been an active composer for cinema in Italy, France and the United States. He has worked with many film directors including Lattuada, Damiani, Scola, Petri, Giraldi, Wertmüller, Kurys, Stora, Lefebvre, Borowczyk, Greco, Frazzi brothers, Passolini, Fellini, Radford and Rosi.
Luis Bacalov has received numerous awards for his original film scores. His work for the film Il Postino (directed by Michael Radford) received several awards including an "Oscar" from the Academy of Motion Pictures, Arts and Sciences of Hollywood, a "Globo d'Oro" from the foreign press in Italy, the "Nastro d'Argento" of the Association of Film Critics, the BAFTA prize (British Academy for Film and Television Arts), and the "Prize Nino Rota". He was awarded the "Davide di Donatello" for his soundtrack for the film La Tregua directed by Francesco Rosi. His recent film credits include the score for Assasination Tango starring Robert Duvall.
During 2000, Deutsche Grammaphon released a compact disc featuring Bacalov's Misa Tango, a work for tenor, mezzo-soprano and bandondeon soloists, double choir and symphony orchestra. The performers included tenor Plácido Domingo, mezzo-soprano Ana María Martínez, bandondeon player Héctor Ulises Passarella, and the Coro e Orchestra dell'Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia under the baton of Myun-Whun Chung. Other pieces in the album are Bacalov's Tangosaín for piano and orchestra, and his own arrangements of Astor Piazzola's Adiós Nonino and Libertango with Bacalov as piano soloist. This recording was nominated in the Classical Music category of the 2001 Latin Grammy Awards.
I am so very proud of our chorus. You have generously and repeatedly shared your time, spirit and resources. I feel certain that Susan and David, with your help, will help us make this dream a reality!
June - choral score due
July - duplication of choral parts and preparation of practice materials
Late July/early August - possible workshop with "Psalm"
September - begin rehearsing Psalm