In this Musical Moment, VocalEssence artistic director and founder Philip Brunelle shares insider information and beautiful music by the composer Arthur Foote. Arthur Foote 1853-1937 Arthur Foote, was an American church musician, influential music teacher, and a leading member of a group of composers known as the “Boston Six.” Foote was especially known for chamber… Read More →
VocalEssence has several opportunities to listen and watch over the holidays. Here are the ways you can enjoy VocalEssence programming: 2021 VocalEssence Digital Concerts These concerts can be accessed anytime, anywhere! Bach’s Christmas Oratorio Welcome Christmas Broadcasts YourClassical MPR is airing each of the four Bach Cantatas on the following dates and times. Tune in… Read More →
VocalEssence is in search of volunteers to help with the logistics for our holiday concerts. When we’re at churches around the community, our volunteers are the heart and soul of making the event go smoothly when our audience arrives. With the pandemic, we’re in need of many hands to help make the work easier and… Read More →
This fall, VocalEssence welcomed seven new members to our board of directors. We are thrilled to introduce you to our new directors! Cassie Garnett, Senior Director of Human Resources at Ecolab. Garnett drives strategic talent initiatives for the global function of more than 1,200 employees in areas of development, diversity, organizational design and employee relations.… Read More →
Watch as Philip Brunelle and and G. Phillip Shoultz, III, share their artistic vision for the VocalEssence 2021-2022 season opener, Hope Lives Here. Get your tickets to Hope Lives Here today! LEARN MORE AND BUY TICKETS
Watch as Philip Brunelle and Lise Houlton, Artistic Director of Minnesota Dance Theatre, discuss the partnership between Minnesota Dance Theatre and VocalEssence. Philip asks what it is like to dance to live singing, to which Lise responds, “Sublime.” Lise and Philip talk about how the dancers create a physical representation of Leonard Bernstein’s “Chichester Psalms,”… Read More →
Watch as Philip Brunelle gives you a sneak peek into “We Are the Saints”, a new commission by Gabriel Kahane that will be featured on the VocalEssence 2021-2022 season opener, Hope Lives Here. The piece is in three movements, approximately ten minutes in length and will be sung by the VocalEssence Ensemble Singers. The first… Read More →
Current members of VocalEssence Singers Of This Age (including a few graduating seniors) spent a week together building community, learning, and creating. The Choosing Love Creators Camp kick-started the year and was focused on creative collaboration. The first portion of the week was comprised of 15 hours of workshops led by guest artists including: Joe… Read More →
Philip Brunelle: August has been a busy month of planning for Artistic Director and Founder Philip Brunelle. He has been working on finalizing repertoire for the season, ordering orchestral music, confirming concert dates and details, and (of course) continuing to do fundraising! This month also included attending a Board member’s wedding, finishing the edits for… Read More →
VocalEssence was fortunate to have two fantastic interns this summer: Aaron Schondorf and Blake Wieseler. Each and every voice that contributes to, or participates in our mission is an essential part of our community. We are thrilled to share the projects these two have worked on during their time at VocalEssence. Aaron Schondorf, a Carleton… Read More →
In this Musical Moment, VocalEssence artistic director and founder Philip Brunelle shares insider information and beautiful music by the composer Geoffrey Bush. Geoffrey Bush 1920-1998 Geoffrey Bush was a British composer, teacher, and music scholar who produced a wide range of compositions across different genres, including many songs and works for choirs. He began piano… Read More →
In this Musical Moment, VocalEssence artistic director and founder Philip Brunelle shares insider information and beautiful music by the composer Giovanni da Palestrina. Giovanni da Palestrina 1525-1596 Giovanni da Palestrina was an Italian Renaissance composer of sacred music and the best-known 16th-century representative of the Roman School of musical composition. Documents suggest that he first… Read More →
In this Musical Moment, VocalEssence artistic director and founder Philip Brunelle shares insider information and beautiful music by the composer Jorge Córdoba. Jorge Córdoba b. 1953 Jorge Córdoba Valencia was born on December 15, 1953, in Mexico City. As a young adult he had very diverse experiences in music. He informally studied popular music including… Read More →
In this Musical Moment, VocalEssence artistic director and founder Philip Brunelle shares insider information and beautiful music by the composer Robert Sund. Robert Sund b. 1942 Robert Sund is a distinguished Swedish composer and conductor. He was for many years artistic director and conductor of the mixed choir Allmanna Sången and the male choir Orphei… Read More →
In this Musical Moment, VocalEssence artistic director and founder Philip Brunelle shares insider information and beautiful music by the composer Leo Sowerby. Leo Sowerby 1895-1968 Leo Sowerby was an American composer and church musician often called the “Dean of American church music” in the early to mid 20th century. He studied composition with Arthur Olaf… Read More →
