FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
GMChorale Media Contact: Sarah Hager Johnston
Media Inquiries: gmcmedia@gmchorale.org
General Inquiries: info@gmchorale.org
Media Phone: 860-676-2228
Website: www.gmchorale.org
Twitter: https://twitter.com/gmchorale @gmchorale
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gmchorale/
Mailing Address: GMChorale, P.O. Box 527, Middletown, CT 06457
GMChorale Presents Rarely-Heard Early Baroque Oratorio “Jephte” on April 29 in Middletown
Though Carissimi’s heartbreakingly-beautiful “Jephte” is widely acknowledged as the model for Bach’s and Handel’s better-known oratorios, it is rarely performed.
MIDDLETOWN, CONN. (April 10, 2018) — Continuing a long tradition of performing choral masterworks for the greater Middletown community, the GMChorale, led by Artistic Director Joseph D’Eugenio, will present Jephte, the exquisite but rarely-heard oratorio by early Baroque composer Giacomo Carissimi (1605-1674), on Sunday, April 29, 2018, at 4:00PM, at the MHS Performing Arts Center in Middletown. The program will also include a selection of favorite Renaissance madrigals and the sparkling Te Deum by Franz Joseph Haydn. The concert is the final program in the GMChorale’s “Resounding Voices” 2017-2018 season.
The Middletown High School Advanced Choir, under the direction of Stephanie Zak, will join the 80 singers of the GMChorale in singing the madrigals and the Haydn Te Deum.
“Carissimi’s Jephte, composed at the very beginning of what we now call the ‘Baroque’ period in music, was one of the first oratorios to use format familiar to us now in works such as Handel’s Messiah,” said Joseph D’Eugenio, the ensemble’s Artistic Director. “The story is told by a narrator in sung recitatives, interspersed with dramatic arias and choruses that expand on the story or offer points of reflection.”
The oratorio Jephte is based on the story of Jephte and his daughter, as told in the Biblical book of Judges. Jephte, as he goes off to war, rashly promises God that should he be victorious in battle, he will sacrifice the first living thing he sees upon his return home. As his daughter greets him with song and dance to celebrate his victory, the oratorio unfolds with music of rejoicing, despair, grief, and, ultimately, reconciliation.
The role of Jephte will be sung by tenor Terrence B. Fay, and soprano Kristine Pekar will sing the role of Jephte’s daughter.
The oratorio will be accompanied by a continuo ensemble of Baroque-style instruments. Much like a modern jazz ensemble, a continuo ensemble supports the soloists and chorus with an improvised accompaniment that follows the composed melodies and harmonies.
Haydn’s Te Deum, commissioned by the Viennese Empress Marie-Therèse in 1790, is a joyous song of praise in the form of a small symphony for choir; its three movements adapted from the classical fast-slow-fast symphony form of which Haydn was the undisputed master.
A pre-concert talk by Neely Bruce, John Spencer Camp Professor of Music at Wesleyan University, will begin at 3:15 for all ticket-holders. Dr. Bruce will talk about Carissimi’s Jepthe and its place in music history, and will also offer comments about the madrigals and Haydn’s Te Deum.
Following the concert, members of the audience will be invited to get a closer look at the instruments and talk with the players.
Tickets are on sale now at www.gmchorale.org and will also be available at the door.
EVENT DETAILS:
What: Choral concert by the GMChorale and professional orchestra, led by Artistic Director Joseph D’Eugenio.
Program: Jepthe by Giacomo Carissimi, Te Deum by Franz Joseph Haydn, and a selection of Renaissance madrigals.
When: Sunday, April 29, 2018, 4:00 PM. The pre-concert talk by Dr. Neely Bruce begins at 3:15PM.
Where: MHS Performing Arts Center, 200 La Rosa Lane, Middletown, CT
Accessible: Yes
Tickets: $15-$35. Discounted rates are available for groups of 10 or more.
Reserve Tickets at: www.gmchorale.org. Tickets are also available at the door on the day of the concert.
More Info: www.gmchorale.org or gmcmedia@gmchorale.org
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Interviews: For more information, or to schedule an interview with Artistic Director Joseph D’Eugenio, please contact Sarah Hager Johnston, GMChorale Marketing Coordinator, at gmcmedia@gmchorale.org or 860-676-2228.
The GMChorale – Established as the Greater Middletown Chorale, the GMChorale has become one of New England’s finest and most engaging choruses since its founding in 1977. As it completes its 41st season, the GMChorale is celebrated for its innovative symphonic choral presentations, and often performs with the New Haven Symphony Orchestra, the Hartford Symphony Orchestra, and other professional ensembles. Under the inspired leadership of Joseph D’Eugenio, now in his twentieth season as the ensemble’s Artistic Director, the 80-voice Chorale performs a wide range of choral repertoire, from beloved masterworks to newly commissioned pieces. GMChorale crowned its two European concert tours as the only choir providing music for the Sunday noon mass at Venice’s extraordinary Basilica San Marco. Alchemy, the GMChorale’s new semi-professional vocal chamber ensemble, established and directed by Joseph D’Eugenio, has already seen great success with concerts of early to contemporary music, both a cappella and accompanied, in a variety of settings. Under Maestro D’Eugenio’s leadership, the GMChorale has commissioned and premiered new choral works by leading composers including Gwyneth Walker, Eugenie Rocherolle, Peter Niedmann, Colin Britt, Ellen Gilson Voth, Lee McQuillan, and Henry Mollicone. In 2011, the GMChorale commissioned Connecticut Grammy nominee and composer, Sarah Meneely-Kyder, to create Letter from Italy, 1944 with the libretto by her sister, poet Nancy Meneely. In 2013, the GMChorale premiered the new oratorio in Middletown, Connecticut. The Chorale commissioned Karyl Evans to create a documentary of the oratorio’s historic background and creative process that was narrated by Meryl Streep. The stunning result, Letter from Italy, 1944: a New American Oratorio, earned an Emmy for its director in 2016. In May 2017, the GMChorale collaborated with The Hartford Chorale to perform Letter from Italy, 1944 with the Hartford Symphony Orchestra at the Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts in Hartford. Joseph D’Eugenio directed the semi-staged production, its professional soloists, the 200 singers of the combined Chorales, and the Hartford Symphony Orchestra in a memorable performance.
Joseph D’Eugenio – Joseph D’Eugenio is currently in his 20th year as GMChorale’s Artistic Director. Under his baton, the GMChorale celebrated its 40th anniversary season in 2016-2017 with concerts featuring Duruflé’s Requiem, Handel’s Messiah with the New Haven Symphony Orchestra, the Hartford premiere of Sarah Meneely-Kyder’s oratorio Letter from Italy, 1944 with the Hartford Chorale and Hartford Symphony Orchestra, and the premiere season of Alchemy, the new semi-professional vocal chamber ensemble of the GMChorale. For more than two decades as conductor and clinician, D’Eugenio has led choruses and orchestras in preparation and performances of the great choral masterworks with orchestra. In 2009, D’Eugenio was named Conductor of the Year by the Connecticut Chapter of the American Choral Directors Association. As guest conductor, D’Eugenio has led many workshops and festivals, including the CONCORA (Connecticut Choral Artists) Summer Festival in 2015. D’Eugenio has instructed choral groups at various schools, colleges, and universities, including Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut. An accomplished pianist and organist, he has been Director of Music at First Congregational Church, Cheshire, Connecticut since 2003, where he oversees the church’s music program. An accompanist of the first rank and in demand by concert artists, D’Eugenio frequently accompanies song recitals and professional choral organizations, including CONCORA and VOCE. With undergraduate and graduate degrees in music from The Hartt School and the Universities of Hartford and Connecticut, he maintains a busy private piano studio.
Kristine Pekar is an active performer as a soloist and on the theatrical stage. Solo work includes Soir sur la plaine (Boulanger) with the Greater Middletown Chorale; Petite Messe Solennelle (Rossini) with Cappella Cantorum; and Laud to the Nativity (Respighi) with Con Brio. Her stage roles have ranged from the title role in The Merry Widow (Lehar) to the Narrator in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. Ms. Pekar is Director of Choral Music at Lyme-Old Lyme High School, where she conducts four choirs and teaches music theory, music history, and musical theater performance. Kristine holds degrees in voice performance from Ithaca College and in music education from Central Connecticut State University, where she also completed her Masters in Music Education.
Terrence B. Fay – Lauded as a “musical polymath” by the New London Day, Terrence B. Fay is enjoying a burgeoning career as a tenor soloist. He has been a soloist most recently with the Eastern Connecticut and New Haven Symphony Orchestras, as well as Capella Cantorum, the Greater Middletown Chorale, and Con Brio Choral Society. He also made his operatic debut in 2017 as Spoletta in Connecticut Lyric Opera’s production of Puccini’s Tosca. Mr. Fay is an active choral vocalist as well. He has sung with the choirs of Christ Church, New Haven; St. John the Evangelist, Stamford; and with the Grammy-award winning choir, Gaudeamus, while also performing frequently with MidAmerica Productions in New York City under the direction of John Rutter, among others. In 2011, he performed as a member of the Collegiate Chorale at the Verbier Festival in Switzerland in performances with Bryn Terfel and Barbara Frittoli, and the Bard Festival with the American Symphony Orchestra. He is currently a member of the Schola Cantorum of St. Mary Roman Catholic Church, Norwalk, CT, and of the choir of St. John Roman Catholic Church in Darien, CT. A large part of Mr. Fay’s musical career is spent as a trombonist. He is currently principal trombonist of the Eastern Connecticut Symphony Orchestra and Opera Theater of Connecticut, and assistant principal trombonist of the New Haven Symphony Orchestra. He has also performed with Orchestra New England, the Rhode Island Philharmonic, and the Ridgefield, Wallingford, Waterbury, Norwalk, and Greater Bridgeport Symphonies, among others. Mr. Fay is an avid educator as well, teaching everything from voice and brass private instruction to music theory, history, composition, and brass methods, while also enjoying coaching small vocal and brass ensembles. He is currently on the faculties of the Neighborhood Music School, Choate Rosemary Hall, Southern Connecticut State University, and the Universities of Bridgeport and New Haven.
GMCHORALE CONTACTS
GMChorale Media Contact: Sarah Hager Johnston
Media Inquiries: gmcmedia@gmchorale.org
General Inquiries: info@gmchorale.org
Media Phone: 860-676-2228
Website: www.gmchorale.org
Twitter: https://twitter.com/gmchorale @gmchorale
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gmchorale/
Mailing Address: GMChorale, P.O. Box 527, Middletown, CT 06457
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Artistic Director Joseph D'Eugenio
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The Greater Middletown Chorale in concert
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The GMChorale is partially funded by generous grants from the following: the Community Foundation of Middlesex County; the Middletown Commission On The Arts; The Marjorie Jolidon Fund of the Greater Hartford Chapter, American Guild of Organists; and Connecticut’s Department of Economic and Community Development, Connecticut Office of the Arts which receives support from the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency.
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