March 29, 2024
Annapolis, US 43 F

Annapolis Chorale announces 2018-2019 season

Anticipating grand occasions, very special guests and a piece commissioned just for the Annapolis Chorale, Live Arts Maryland announces a season of concerts that includes Bach, Broadway, classics, new music and holiday favorites.  With his flair for making concerts very personal and fun, Music Director J. Ernest Green has planned a season of music that will make audiences very happy.

The season includes several concerts at Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts, beginning with the season opening Pops Gala on Saturday, September 29 at 8 p.m., which will feature music from Broadway and the wonderful American Songbook.   On November 10 at 8 p.m. The Annapolis Chorale and Annapolis Chamber Orchestra will present “Remembering the Armistice” to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the treaty that ended World War I.  This concert includes music interspersed with poems written by noted poets of World War I.  The Annapolis Chorale will perform Leonard Bernstein’s “Chichester Psalms,” Peteris Vasks’ “Dona nobis pacem” and Arvo Pärt’s “Da Pacem Domine.” The Annapolis Chamber Orchestra will be featured on Samuel Barber’s “Knoxville: Summer of 1915” and “Adagio for Strings.”

The holiday season in Annapolis isn’t complete without the Annapolis Chorale’s A Celebration of Christmas concert, one of the longest running holiday events in the region and one that usually sells out.  Featuring the Chorale, the Annapolis Chamber Orchestra, very special guests and a carol sing-along with Mr. Green, this concert, on Friday, December 7, at 8 p.m., is a joyous blend of everyone’s favorite songs, like “White Christmas” and “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year.”  Two weeks later, on Saturday, December 22, at 8 p.m., comes another area holiday tradition, the Chorale’s “Messiah” performance at St. Anne’s Church.  Unlike other performances of this work, under the direction of Mr. Green and sung by the Annapolis Chorale’s Chamber Chorus and guest soloists accompanied by the Annapolis Chamber Orchestra, this concert is at the same time intensely personal and very grand.  This performance will feature Part 1 of “Messiah” with selections from Parts 2 and 3 along with carols and music for the season.

Live Arts Maryland welcomes 2019 with lots more music!  Nothing beats the mid-winter blues like a lively Broadway show.   Live Arts Maryland fills that gap with “Broadway in Annapolis:  Kiss Me, Kate” on Friday and Saturday, February 15 and 16 at 8 p.m.  Humor, big personalities and great music are all hallmarks of this show with music and lyrics by Cole Porter.   As always, the focus is the music so expect Mr. Green, the Annapolis Chorale, Annapolis Chamber Orchestra and talented casts of singer/actors – including both local and Broadway performers – to give America’s favorite art form energy, vitality and spark.

On March 16 at 8 p.m. at St. Anne’s Church, the Chorale’s Chamber Chorus and Annapolis Chamber Orchestra tackle one of the most riveting and influential works in all of Western music, J.S. Bach’s “St. John Passion.”  Mr. Green and company will make the most of the historic church’s space and acoustics for this performance.  The “St. John Passion” will be part of a mini Bach festival in collaboration with the Bach+ series also presented by Live Arts Maryland.

After the cold winter months, the season finale at Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts on Saturday, April 6, at 8 p.m. celebrates “Light and Spring.”  Mr. Green and the Annapolis Chorale welcome special guest, flutist Mimi Stillman, for a program that celebrates spring with works by Vivaldi and Frederick Delius.  The Chorale will perform the regional premiere of composer Dan Forrest’s “LUX” and a brand new work commissioned for the Annapolis Chorale by composer Kathy Wonson Eddy.

Welcoming and encouraging young musicians is always part of an Annapolis Chorale season.  Mr. Green and Live Arts Maryland invite students to use the Student Rush free ticket program to attend many of the season’s concerts free.  Most performances conclude with an on-stage Q&A session with the performers, the perfect time for curious students to ask questions.  To receive a free Student Rush ticket, students should visit the box office (at Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts) or the door (at St. Anne’s Church) a half-hour before curtain.  Students 18 and older must present a valid ID.  It’s a great opportunity for young music fans!

Subscriptions for the 2018-2019 season area available now and feature discounted pricing.  They are available by visiting www.liveartsmaryland.org, where visitors will find downloadable subscription forms and a link to subscribe online.  Single tickets for all concerts go on sale August. 17.

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