VocalEssence

VocalEssence
  • Who We Are
    • About VocalEssence
    • Performing Ensembles
    • Staff
    • Collaborators
    • Board of Directors
      • VocalEssence ¡Cantaré! Advisory Council
      • VocalEssence WITNESS Advisory Council
    • Advancing Inclusion, Access, and Equity
  • What We Do
    • Why Sing?
    • Concerts and Events
    • Celebrating Black Excellence
    • Musical Moments with Philip Brunelle
    • Learning and Engagement Programs
    • Contests and Awards
    • Commissioning and Recording
    • Accessibility
  • Stories & Results
    • #vesotashareshope
    • COVID-19 Updates
    • GPS & Friends
    • Inclusion Access and Equity
    • Musical Moments
    • Performing Ensembles
    • Schools & Education
    • Take 5 with GPS
    • Together We Sing
  • Get Involved
    • Donate
      • Bridge to the Future Campaign
    • Engage a Choir
    • Sing with Us
    • Join the Board
    • Volunteer
    • Work at VocalEssence
  • Login
  • On Demand
  • Buy Tickets
  • Donate
Search
More...

Vintage Voices Spring 2018

April 26, 2018

Share

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Pinterest
  • email

VocalEssence connects senior citizens with the social and mental health benefits of group singing through its Vintage Voices program. VocalEssence Vintage Voices meets seniors on their own turf, providing choral instruction at senior centers and residences. This spring, the program is sponsoring choirs at three different locations: Trillium Woods in Plymouth, Sabathani Senior Center in Minneapolis, and the Hallie Q. Brown Community Center in St. Paul.

Singers at each site are learning a variety of music, including several contemporary works by living composers, along with some arrangements of spirituals, folksongs, and classic standards. In late May and early June, each choir will share their artistry in an onsite performance.

The Trillium Woods Chorale is working on challenging new music by contemporary composers, including Minneapolis-based composer Timothy Takach. After months of rehearsals, the singers are less nervous about learning notes and rhythms, and investing more energy into artistic and musical interpretation. One piece is particularly special to the singers—“Turning, Turning” was composed by the choir’s own Dorothy Pryor. The 85-year-old’s new work celebrates the many changes that happen in life, and the importance of making new friends along the way as seasons come and go. Dorothy and her husband Austin, who sings tenor, will perform as featured soloists. The Trillium Woods Chorale will perform at 3 pm on Tuesday, May 8, in the Auditorium at Trillium Woods in Plymouth.

The Sabathani Vintage Voices are hard at work preparing for the premiere of a new work, composed especially for them by Minneapolis-based composer Michael Maiorana. This piece, called “Rain Music,” sets a text by the African American poet Joseph S. Cotter, Jr.. It evokes the imagery of spring rains falling down to the dusty earth, sounding like an ancient drum, giving rise to new life. The Sabathani program will also feature several choral music settings of Langston Hughes poems by composers Andre Thomas and Rollo Dillworth, celebrating the centennial of the Harlem Renaissance. Some of the singers will recite spoken word texts by other important Harlem Renaissance writers and poets. The Sabathani Vintage Voices choir performs at 6 pm on Thursday, May 24, in the Auditorium at Sabathani Community Center, Minneapolis.

This is our first year partnering with Hallie Q. Brown, where our work is supported by a Minnesota State Arts Board grant. The singers in our newly-formed choir are finding inspiration in the centennial celebration of the Harlem Renaissance. They are preparing several arrangements of spirituals and settings of Langston Hughes texts. The choir is coming together with a lot of enthusiasm, and we look forward to fostering a continued relationship with the seniors at this site. The Hallie Q. Brown choir will perform at 4 pm on Monday, June 11, in the Canteen at the Hallie. Q. Brown Community Center, St. Paul.

Posted in: Performing Ensembles

Recent Stories

  • VocalEssence Singers Of This Age Perform at WCCO Holiday Tree Lighting December 22, 2022
  • VocalEssence Holiday Programming 2022 December 15, 2022
  • Thank you for your support at the VocalEssence 2022 Gala! November 4, 2022
  • VOCALESSENCE SINGERS OF THIS AGE JOINED TWIN CITIES CHOIRS FOR RECONCILE  November 4, 2022
  • VocalEssence Announces New Mission, Vision, and Values Statements November 4, 2022

Musical Moments

  • #inspiration
  • 2020
  • Argentinan Composers
  • Australian Composers
  • Basque Composers
  • Black Composers
  • Bradley Greenwald
  • British Composers
  • Canadian Composers
  • choir
  • Clara Osowski
  • Composers from Minnesota
  • Composers of the 17th 18th and 19th Centuries
  • Composers of the Early-Mid 20th Century
  • Composers of the Late 20th-21st Century
  • composing
  • concerts
  • Czech Composers
  • Dan Dressen
  • Dutch Composers
  • Early-mid 20th Century
  • Eastern European Composers
  • French Composers
  • German and Austrian Composers
  • Hungarian Composers
  • Italian Composers
  • Late 20th-21st Century
  • Latin American Composers
  • Maria Jette
  • Mexican composers
  • planning
  • Portuguese Composers
  • repertoire
  • Russian Composers
  • Scandinavian Composers
  • Scottish Composers
  • South American Composers
  • Spanish Composers
  • Swiss Composers
  • United States Composers
  • Women Composers
  • About Us
    • About VocalEssence
    • Press Room
    • Annual Report
    • Financial Information
    • Staff
    • Board of Directors
    • VocalEssence COVID Protocols
  • Get Involved
    • Donate
    • Sing with Us
    • Volunteer
    • Work at VocalEssence
  • Connect
    • Email Sign Up
    • Contact Us/Location
    • Chorus Connection
    • VocalEssence Board Login
  • VocalEssence
  • 1900 Nicollet Avenue, Minneapolis, MN 55403
  • Phone: 612-547-1451
  • Fax: 612-547-1484
  • info@vocalessence.org
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Instagram
  • Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2023 VocalEssence. All rights reserved.

https://www.vocalessence.org/vintage-voices-spring-2018

This website uses cookies for necessary functions and to enhance your browsing experience.

Accept & Continue