Around the World in Forty Years
Date/Time
Saturday, April 1, 2017
7:00 pm
Location
Mechanics Hall
The Master Singers commemorate their fortieth anniversary with a rich array of music from across the world, including favorite works from past decades as well as two world premieres and other music of our age. Several outstanding guest conductors and performing groups, including the Salisbury Singers, the Worcester Children’s Chorus, the WPI Orchestra and the Shrewsbury Ringers, join the Master Singers with pianist Olga Rogach for this gala event in a program which celebrates friendships and numerous ties between the Master Singers and the greater Worcester Cultural community. Works include the premiere of “An Ode to the Portrait of Clara Barton” composed by Malcolm Halliday (in a bow to Mechanics Hall and the Worcester Women’s History Project), the first performance of Steve Barnicle’s setting of Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Bells”, and works by the Norwegian Ola Gjeilo, the Argentinean Alberto Favero and the Russian Rimsky-Korsakov. The major work on the program will be Canadian Ruth Watson Henderson’s epic work “Voices of Earth” scored for two adult choruses, children’s chorus, two pianos and percussion directed by Salisbury Singers Director Michelle Graveline. Artistic Director Malcolm Halliday, retiring after a long and fruitful association with the Master Singers, will be piano soloist in the concluding work, Beethoven’s Choral Fantasie, with the WPI Orchestra directed by Douglas Weeks.