In this Musical Moment, VocalEssence artistic director and founder Philip Brunelle shares insider information and beautiful music by the composer Frank Martin. This episode features Mezzo-Soprano Clara Osowski. Frank Martin 1890-1974 The German composer, educator, and pianist, Frank Martin, is best known for his religious choral works including his oratorio, In Terra Pax and his… Read More →
In this Musical Moment, VocalEssence artistic director and founder Philip Brunelle shares insider information and beautiful music by the composer Alan Bullard. Alan Bullard b.1947 Alan Bullard is a British composer known for his religious choral works featuring gorgeous melodies and rich harmonic textures. Bullard grew up in London and studied with Geoffrey Flowers and… Read More →
In this Musical Moment, VocalEssence artistic director and founder Philip Brunelle shares insider information and beautiful music by the composer Alvin Singleton. Alvin Singleton b.1940 Alvin Singleton is an African-American composer and educator known for his prolific compositions for orchestra, theatre, and chamber ensembles. Singleton was born in Brooklyn, New York and attended New York… Read More →
In this Musical Moment, VocalEssence artistic director and founder Philip Brunelle shares insider information and beautiful music by the composer Carl Rütti. Carl Rütti b. 1949 Carl Rütti is one of the most notable Swiss pianists, organists, and choral composers of this era. Living in Zug, Switzerland, after taking his high school education at the… Read More →
In this Musical Moment, VocalEssence artistic director and founder Philip Brunelle shares insider information and beautiful music by the composer Chris DeBlasio.This episode features Soprano Maria Jette. Chris DeBlasio 1959-1993 The American composer Chris DeBlasio was a pioneer composer in musical theatre, art songs, and sacred music. He studied theatre arts at New York University… Read More →
In this Musical Moment, VocalEssence artistic director and founder Philip Brunelle shares insider information and beautiful music by the composer Wilhelm Stenhammar. Wilhelm Stenhammar 1871-1927 Wilhelm Stenhammar was a Swedish pianist, self-taught composer, and conductor whose pioneering compositions evolved over three musical periods. He grew up in a home where the arts were strongly encouraged:… Read More →
In this Musical Moment, VocalEssence artistic director and founder Philip Brunelle shares insider information and beautiful music by the composer Andrew Carter. Andrew Carter b. 1939 Andrew Carter is an English composer, conductor, and arranger whose choral works, many of which are published by Oxford University Press. Born into a Leicestershire family of tower and… Read More →
In this Musical Moment, VocalEssence artistic director and founder Philip Brunelle shares insider information and beautiful music by the composer Robert Wetzler. Robert Wetzler b. 1932 Robert Wetzler is an American composer, organist, and choirmaster based in Minneapolis, MN, well-known for his sacred choral works. Wetzler earned his Bachelor of Arts from Thiel College and… Read More →
In this Musical Moment, VocalEssence artistic director and founder Philip Brunelle shares insider information and beautiful music by the composer Lena McLin. Lena McLin b. 1928 Lena McLin, known as the woman who launched a thousand careers, is an African American musician, music teacher, author, pastor, and composer. McLin earned a Bachelor’s degree in music,… Read More →
In this Musical Moment, VocalEssence artistic director and founder Philip Brunelle shares insider information and beautiful music by the composer Howard Hanson. Howard Hanson 1896-1981 The American composer, conductor and teacher, Howard Hanson, promoted contemporary American music and was, in his compositions, a principal representative of the Romantic tradition. He studied at Luther College, with… Read More →
In this Musical Moment, VocalEssence artistic director and founder Philip Brunelle shares insider information and beautiful music by the composer Leoš Janáček. This episode features Soprano Maria Jette. Leoš Janáček 1854-1928 Leoš Janáček was a Czech composer, conductor, organist, folk song collector, and teacher known for his unique compositional style influenced by Moravian folk music.… Read More →
In this Musical Moment, VocalEssence artistic director and founder Philip Brunelle shares insider information and beautiful music by the composer Peter Cornelius. This episode features Mezzo-Soprano Clara Osowski. Peter Cornelius 1824-1874 Peter Cornelius’s versatility as a composer, writer, and translator makes him one of the most distinguished German composers of the 19th-century. Born into a… Read More →
In this Musical Moment, VocalEssence artistic director and founder Philip Brunelle shares insider information and beautiful music by the composer Sir John Stainer. John Stainer 1840-1901 Sir John Stainer was an English organist, church composer, and a pioneering early musicologist. As a boy, Stainer sang in the choir of St. Paul’s Cathedral and was appointed… Read More →
In this Musical Moment, VocalEssence artistic director and founder Philip Brunelle shares insider information and beautiful music by the composer Hugo Distler. Hugo Distler 1908-1942 Born in Nuremberg, Germany, Hugo Distler is known mostly for his sacred choral music. He began his studies at the Leipzig Conservatory in the conducting class, with piano as his… Read More →
In this Musical Moment, VocalEssence artistic director and founder Philip Brunelle shares insider information and beautiful music by the composer Cecilia McDowall. Cecilia McDowall b.1951 Born in London in 1951, Cecilia McDowall’s writing combines rhythmic vitality with expressive lyricism. She has won many awards, been short-listed eight times for the British Composer Awards, and in… Read More →
