Concert: Sunday, August 4, 2002 8:00 p.m., Orchestra Hall, Minneapolis, Minnesota

Chamber Choir of the Moscow State

University of Pretoria Concert Choir

 

Chamber Choir of the Moscow State Chajkovsky Conservatory
Listen
From Russian Federation
Professor Boris Tevlin, Conductor
[Announcer: Scott M. Romane, Board Member, WCS6 Board of Directors]

Sonnet no. 64 Dominick Argento (b. 1927)
Commissioned for the Sixth World Symposium on Choral Music

Concerto for choir in four parts Alfred Schnittke
from "The Book of Mournful chants" (1934-1998)
Part 1 Oh, Lord of the Universe
Part 2 Every line of these songs is full of dark grief and sorrow
Part 3 To all who would perceive the essence of these sorrowful words
Part 4 This work, which I began with hope

The Execution of Pugachev Rodion Shchedrin (b. 1932)

Chamber Choir of the Moscow State Conservatory
The Chamber Choir of the Moscow State Conservatory was founded in 1994 to perform both Russian and foreign music of the 20th century. The choir has presented numerous international and Russian premieres. Among its wide-ranging repertoire are masterpieces of Russian sacred music and choral arrangements of folk songs. The chorus was awarded the Grand Prix and two gold medals at the International Chorus Competition at Riva del Garda, as well as the first prize and gold medal at the First Brahms International Chorus Competition in Vernigerod.

Boris Tevlin, the choir's founder, graduated from Moscow State Conservatory and has taught there since 1959. Currently he is professor and head of the school's choir conducting department. He possesses many international badges of rank and has won numerous awards. For 40 years, he led the famous Russian Amateurs Chorus and the Moscow Chorus of Youth and Students. He founded the Mixed Chorus of Russian Conductors/Choirmasters and the Russian-American Chorus, and has authored a number of musicological and educational research papers, articles, reviews, and teaching manuals.

Dominick Argento, Sixth World Symposium Commissioned Composer
Considered by many to be America's leading composer of lyric opera, Dominick Argento earned a bachelor's and master's degree from the Peabody Conservatory and his Ph.D. from the Eastman School of Music. Following Fulbright and Guggenheim Fellowships in Italy, Argento joined the music faculty of the University of Minnesota, where he taught until 1997. Although his instrumental works have received consistent praise, the majority of his music is vocal, whether in operatic, choral or solo context. Among many awards, Argento received the 1975 Pulitzer Prize for Music for his song cycle From the Diary of Virginia Woolf. He was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Letters in 1979, and in 1997 became Composer Laureate to the Minnesota Orchestra. He has composed choral works for the Plymouth Music Series VocalEssence Ensemble Singers and the Dale Warland Singers, among many others.

University of Pretoria Concert Choir
Listen
From South Africa
Johann van der Sandt, Conductor
Willemien Schoombee, Accompanist
[Announcer: Jack Hoeschler, Board Member, WCS6 Board of Directors]

Himne (sung in Latin) Roelof Temmingh (b. 1946)

Two Psalm Settings
Psalm 103 (sung in Afrikaans) Niel van der Watt (b. 1962)
Psalm 23 (sung in Afrikaans) Chris Lamprecht (b. 1927)

A sexta autem hora Hendrik Hofmeyr (b. 1957)

Blessed Be that Maid Marie Arnold van Wyk (1916-1983)

Two Compositions about the Bushmen (SAN) people of Southern Africa
Horizons Pieter Louis van Dijk (b. 1953)
Prayer to the Young Moon and Rebirth Douglas Reid (b. 1937)

Two settings of the poetry of Boerneef (sung in Afrikaans)
Lokkiester Roelof Temmingh
Jou Handmusiek is te Baldarig Pieter De Villiers (b. 1924)

South African Folk Music
Tant Hessie se Witperd Afrikaans folk melody Arr.: Jonas Tamulainis

A Selection of Traditional African Folk Music Traditional

University of Pretoria Concert Choir
The University of Pretoria Choir is a 52-member, multi-racial choir with a rich choral history. Established in 1968, its mission is to make a contribution to the cultural enrichment of students and the community through choral singing with the highest possible artistic standards and a code of conduct with strict requirements. The choir is well known internationally and has won several prizes, including first prize for mixed choirs at the International Roodepoort Eisteddfod and the Tallinn International Choir Competition in Estonia. The group also won first prize for mixed choirs and was the overall winner of the International Choir Competition for Advent and Christmas Music in Prague, and took first prize at the 38th International Choir Competition in Spittal.

For the past three years, Johann van der Sandt has served as conductor of the University of Pretoria Choir, winning two first-place and one second-place at international choral competitions. He developed and introduced a multi-choir model on the campus, ensuring that all tastes and genres of choral singing are performed. He is also conductor of the Singkronies Chamber Choir, which records the work of South African composers and has been nominated for two South African Music Awards in the category of Best Choral Performance. He is also a composer, well known for his choral arrangements, performed by national and international choirs.