On March 13th the Rochester Oratorio Society and Houghton College Choir performed at the Hochstein Performance Hall in the city of Rochester. It was a predominately vocal concert with an accompanying pianist. The main performance of the evening was the Rochester Oratorio Society’s rendition of Johannes Brahms’ “Ein deutsches Requiem,” in which vocal soloists Elena O’Connor and Benjamin Bloomfield took the front stage, and Linda Boianova joined Kevin Nitsch as a second pair of hands behind the piano. The concert began with an incredibly brief introduction from the president of the Rochester Oratorio Society, after which the society performed a piece that is not listed on the program. After hearing the raw talent the choir displayed in their first performance the crowd praised them, and at this time a representative from the city’s mayor office took the stage and presented the society with a proclamation. The proclamation was on behalf of the city offices and expressed thanks for their 70 years of musical performances and education. Afterwards the society performed Norman Dello Joio’s “A Jubilant Song,” which served as a transition for the Houghton College Choir to take the seats of the men’s choral section. The college choir was approximately a third the size of the society choir, but still managed to perform with a lot of talent. The Houghton College Choir performed Kenneth Jennings’ “The Lord is the Everlasting God” and Larry Farrow’s “Give Me Jesus.” After a quick intermission the Rochester Oratorio Society took to the stage to perform Brahm’s Requiem, which is typically performed with an orchestra, but in their rendition a two person piano served as a replacement. Brahm’s Requiem is in German, making it difficult to understan... ... middle of paper ... ...ts had. I particularly enjoyed Benjamin Bloomfield as baritone soloist; he had such tremendous intensity and power to his voice, and his abilities are something the likes of which I have never heard in person before. I did enjoy Brahm’s Requiem, but would’ve preferred if more of the concert consisted of English pieces, as the language barrier prevented me from understanding exactly what the composer’s intentions were. As a college student, I did not like the price of the concert, costing 20 dollars when purchased online. This concert has introduced me to a new form of live musical entertainment, and I now plan on attending similar performances in the future. I would recommend this concert and any other performance by the Rochester Oratorio Society to anyone interested in experiencing something new. Overall this concert was certainly worth every penny and then some.
On November 16th, 2013, I attended a concert choir, fall choral concert. This event took place on the Wheaton College Campus, in the Edman Chapel at 7:30 pm. The chapel was well-lit, with long pews for the audience to be seated. The concert began with the audience looking up into a balcony, where the ensemble stood in neat rows. They watched the conductor, who stood on a stage in front of the audience, waiting for their cue.
I have been to many different concerts throughout my life but this year I experienced two exceptionally unique ___ that I had never seen before. The first one was a spectacular chamber recital that took place at the Chicago Symphony Orchestra performed by pianist Yefim Bronfman and violist-violinist Pinchas Zukerman. The program included Schubert's Violin Sonatina No. 2 in A Minor, Beethoven's Violin Sonata No. 7 in C Minor, and Brahms’ Viola Sonata No. 1 in F Minor. The second was a performance by the notable quartet “Anonymous 4” presented by the Universality of Chicago at the Rockefeller Memorial Chapel. The program included a series of medieval French motets from the 13th Century French polyphony, taken from the Montpellier Codex. The two performances were extremely different in nature and but at the same time very similar in what they were trying to achieve. For instance, while the first concert consisted entirely of an instrumental performance, the other was exclusively vocal. However, both were able to bring to life great examples of iconic artists from our past. I left both c...
...xcited to have this experience. Part of the drama of the concert at first is felt when the musicians come in and sit down and begin tuning up their instruments. I would not be able to comment on the performance of the orchestra. During the performance, I seen the audience were moving with the music, but I felt like that everyone seems knows more music than what I learned throughout this semester. After I went home and did some of the research on these music I finally understand why these people like to attend the orchestra concerto, it was because that every piece of music has a history behind it. The Los Angeles audience seemed to me to be people who know music and who will listen to something new in a respectful way. All the same, when the more familiar sounds of the last piece were heard, I could feel a little sense of relaxation and fun coming into the room.
The music of George Frideric Handel has been celebrated throughout time, especially his oratorio work. Handel’s oratorios are considered to be some of the best in existence. However, much discussion and reverence is given to his Messiah, while the others are not as commonly subject to this praise. Therefore, I will investigate the origin and creation of the oratorio, Esther by Handel, with focus on his music for the scene. I will argue that Handel expresses the drama and emotion of this biblical story through the musical elements he employs, particularily
Sitting in a clinic in Nepal, I picked up the only newspaper that was in English and stared at the section dedicated to the Grammy Awards. There by the headline was Sam Smith, standing with a grin, cradling his four Grammys. I turned to my friend and stated, “I want to win a Grammy.” As I sat there, hearing myself vocalize a hidden dream, I waited, expecting some sort of encouraging spiel on how I could accomplish anything I wanted if I worked hard enough. Instead, she tilted her head as she said with a smile, “Well, you’ll have to sing in front of your friends first.” She was right. In order for me to be on that stage, thanking my mother for her endless encouragement, I would need to set aside all those drive blocking reasons I couldn’t be a musician. It is scary, realizing my dream and knowing that it will not be easy. When I think about singing, composing, spreading my message, sharing my voice, I am filled with excitement and anxiety.
I attended a collaboration of the Kansas City Symphony and the Independence Messiah Choir. Together they performed George Frideric Handel’s Messiah. The performance was an oratorio, which is a musical piece that is typically lengthy, tells a story, is based on Biblical or religious events, and is performed through voice and orchestra. I was a perceptive listener during the performance, as I was not just only basking in the delightful sound, while having associations for the music, but I was also constantly seeking understanding, and working through reasonings and answers about it, while creating a deeper appreciation for it. Messiah was played in three parts: The Advent of Messiah, The Passion of the Christ, and Resurrection.
During the Christmas season the choir tours around the county to sing at nursing homes, and churches. Singing at nursing homes was always my favorite. We would walk through the hallways singing Christmas carols, and the patients would wait at their doorways with the biggest smiles on their faces. They would talk to us saying how much they appreciate us visiting them, and some of them would even sing along. Seeing them smile, and singing carols together gave me a warm, happy feeling inside. This experience opened my eyes to how great an impact music has on people. Through out the school year my choir director, Mrs. Linda Tieman, invites school alumni to come and speak to the choir about their college experiences. One alumni's presentation really stood out to me. Her name was Miss Jessica Lucas, and she present to us her experience at Ohio University and her major Music Therapy. This was the first time I had heard about music therapy. Hearing about how music is used to impact peoples' wellness brought back memories of marching band, and the nursing homes. Miss Lucas's presentation inspired me to further my knowledge of music therapy.
My experience at the baylor "Siren's Song" A Cappella Choir concert was definitely an interesting one. I had very mixed feeling about the concert. During this concert, I experienced had a range of emotions from boredom to real interest and respect. In total, the choir sang 9 songs and each one was different than the last. Only about four of the songs were in english, and the others were in german, spanish, and hebrew. Unfortunately, probably due to my untrained ear, I had to strain to really understand the songs that were in english, let alone German. Although every once in awhile I would hear words such as “Blumen”.
On Wednesday, May 23rd, I attended the College Choir concert in the Reamer Campus Center. The choir performed a variety of songs, ranging from pieces in Latin to traditional American folksongs. Two of the pieces featured solos, and one even featured percussion instruments. Mrs. Elinore Farnum provided piano accompaniment for each of the songs, and performed beautifully. I was extremely impressed by the talented choir members and their ability to sing such a varied range of songs.
How many of your parents actually know anything about the music you listen to? Most of the music of today just kind of fades in and then back out, which is just not the case with The Messiah. For more than 250 years, this great and most popular of oratorios has survived and endured numerous revisions and reorchestrations in performances ranging from "cast of thousands" to today's emphasis on "authentic" performances, a practice employing period instruments and small all-male choral ensembles(Wilson).
The opening part of the show was a Trio Sonata in G major, played with the following instruments: a flute, oboe, and piano. These instruments had a harmonious tune which would play out in an upbeat, rhythmic tempo. The performers would play pieces from Georg Philipp Telemann, who is known for his innovative composition style (“Georg Philipp Telemann”). http://www.naxos.com/person/Georg_Philipp_Telemann/23879.htm. Next, the performers would play out a Sonata in II in D Major, consisting of a violin and piano. This part of the ...
In conclusion, the concert was really interesting and I enjoyed myself. In my opinion the two pieces that I really like in this concert, are Sounden Horn and Polonaise from Engine Onegin, the shift between the melodic lines and the element of beauty is what made me like it. In the future I would recommend it to my friends and I will not mind to go with them at all. This kind of music is the best to me by far.
The pianist and concert conductor, Christian Zacharias opened the Los Angeles Philharmonic Classical Music concert with a fascinating performance that left the audience in party mood and in happy f...
I slowly open the big wooden door, not knowing what was about to happen. My first day of show choir, I have a mixture of excitement and nerves bubbling in my stomach. I walk into the room and a wave of chatter hits me. My nerves rise as I look around at all the girls that already know each other. I start to doubt my ability to make friends when I feel like such an outsider. Flash forward three years it the first day of show choir my senior year. Now I’m one of the people talking and catching up with everyone. Some of my best friends are in from this program, I can’t believe I ever felt like an outsider in what now is my second family. Show choir has had a large impact in my life teaching me confidence, leadership, and responsibility. At the start of my first year of show choir I was hesitant to perform in
Choral speech is a key part of our devised piece. We use it to tell the audience