The Albany Chorale preparing for new season
The Albany Chorale opens its season Thursday with ‘Faure Requiem’
By Jim Hendricks
ALBANY — The Albany Chorale will have four guest performers join the vocal group when it opens its 2016-17 season with “Faure Requiem” Thursday evening at Porterfield United Methodist Church.
Joining the Chorale, which has doubled its membership in one season, will be two members of the Albany Symphony Orchestra — Music Director and Conductor Claire Fox Hillard on violin and ASO principle harpist Mary Beth Eubanks — Porterfield organist Jon Durkovic, and soloist Brandon Keaton, music director of First United Methodist Church of Albany. The Chorale’s regular accompanist, Meri Beth Hillard, will be the pianist.
“It’s going to be beautiful, three pieces by French composure (Gabriel) Faure,” Steve McCoy, president of the Chorale, said before a rehearsal last week.
Faure (1845-1924) influenced many 20th century composers. A pianist and organist as well as a teacher, his earlier works are some of his better known, though some of his more highly regarded pieces with complex harmonics and melodies came later. His music has been described as a bridge from the Romantics to the Modernism of the early 20th century.
Marc Boensel, in his second year as director of the Albany Chorale, said the music will feature “soaring melodies” with “lush, beautiful harmonics.” The concert will conclude with a piece by John Rutter.
Rutter “is the editor of the larger work, Requiem,” Boensel said. “As a nod to him, we’re including one of his pieces.”
Boensel noted that the music is “more contemporary” than might be expected. Choral concerts often include music of masters such as Franz Schubert (1797-1828), Joseph Haydn (1732-1809), Johann Sebastian Bach (1865-1750).
“This is music that’s about 100 years old,” Boensel said. “We’re not that far away.”
When it was noted that during the interview that rock ‘n’ roll dates to the 1950s, he quipped, “This piece was written not that far from Chubby Checker.”
Thursday’s opening performance will be the first time in a decade that the Chorale has performed at Porterfield, which recently made changes to its sanctuary that have improved the acoustics. Boensel, who is music director at the church, and McCoy, who sings in the choir, say the church sanctuary has gone from a difficult place for vocalists to perform to one of the area’s best venues.
“It allows the sound to go out much better than it has before,” McCoy said. “There’s a big difference.”
Boensel added, “Acoustically, now it’s one of the best in the area.”
Thirty vocalists will perform in Thursday’s concert. With 34 Chorale members on the roll this season, Boensel said, “We’re now double where the Chorale was on its last concert in (spring) 2015.”
“From 16 to 34,” McCoy noted, “that’s a big deal.”
The organization also is on more sound financial footing, though McCoy and Boensel added the Chorale still needs the support of ticket sales and donations.
“We certainly want the community to continue to be supportive,” Boensel said.
McCoy also noted that the Chorale is joining with other arts groups in a text club initiative by the Albany Area Arts Council. By signing up for the council’s text club, recipients receive up to four texts a week with information on upcoming cultural events involving the Arts Council, Albany Civil Rights Institute, Albany Museum of Art, Albany Symphony, the Chorale, Theatre Albany and the Thronateeska Heritage Center.
“They’re not doing it for just one of seven groups in the community,” McCoy said. “We think it’s going to be a real good deal.”
“It’s thinking about all the arts in Albany as a team,” Boensel said. “We’re not competing against each other. It’s working together to promote all the arts in this area.”
Information on the text club can be found at the Arts Council’s website, www.albanyartscouncil.org.
Tickets for Thursday’s performance are $15 for adults, $10 for students and free for children under 10. They’re available from Chorale members, Parker Music, the office at Porterfield Methodist and at the door on the evening of the concert. Porterfield is located at 2200 Dawson Road in Albany.
Related Articles
‘Sounds Like a Mutiny.’ Secret Recording Exposes Claims of Toxic Leadership After a Marine’s Suicide
This week’s War Horse story follows the systemic failures before and after the death of Cpl. Drew Mobley who was the third in two years at Marine Corps Base Quantico to die by suicide.
Southwest Georgia artists recognized at packed opening of exhibition
The annual juried exhibition, one of the region’s largest showcases of visual art, features approximately 46 artists and nearly 90 works spanning painting, sculpture, ceramics, photography and mixed media.
Powerful performances drive Theatre Albany’s ‘The Color Purple’
From the street, strands of purple ribbon wind around the white columns of the historic theater, hinting at the story waiting beyond its doors. Inside the foyer, a carefully curated slideshow flickers across a large screen, cycling through the faces of the cast. Some are seasoned performers. Others are stepping onto a stage for the very first time. Teachers stand alongside former students. Parents perform beside their children. People who worship in different churches, work different jobs and come from different corners of Southwest Georgia gather beneath the same lights to tell the same story.
