The Oriana Consort

Auditions for 2012

2012-01-08T14:43:00.002-05:00

We seek 4 tenors and 2 low basses to fill out our ensemble! Sunday evening rehearsals begin on Jan. 8, 2012 in Cambridge for March & April performances of works by Britten, Schütz, Braun, and Rachmaninoff (7 of the 15 movements of his “All-Night Vigil”). Samples of our sound are posted on our Media page.

We invite interested tenors and basses to schedule a half-hour audition on Thurs. Jan. 12 from 6:30 pm, Sat. Jan. 14 from 3:00 pm, Thurs. Jan. 19 from 6:30 pm, Sat. Jan. 21 from 3:00 pm, or another mutually agreeable time to be determined via email. Please email Walter Chapin at director@theorianaconsort.org, and include a summary of your choral singing experience. For the audition you’ll join a quartet of Oriana members to read excerpts from our repertory and to sing a difficult but brief choral part that you’ll prepare 2 days in advance. Please also bring a solo of your choice.

Concerts on December 9 and 11!

2011-12-08T20:52:00.000-05:00

This weekend, Friday December 9 and Sunday December 11, hear the 27 voices of the Oriana Consort, along with a period instrumental ensemble and Oriana's own soloists.

Days grow short and nights lengthen as the year draws to its end — a time to think of peace and joy. Come listen, and let choral music from Christian and Judaic traditions draw you in!

Setting the mood:

Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck: Hodie Christus natus est — a burst of joy from the 16th century
Hugo Weisgall: Yih’yu l’rotzon — this final verse of Psalm 19 is a solemn prayer in the Judaic service
Abbie Betinis: Prayer for Peace — the spirit of Advent in words and music from a gifted young composer

Variations on an Advent chorale, I:

In dulci jubilo — in a variety of settings by Michael Praetorius, Robert Pearsall, and J. S. Bach

Variations on an Advent chorale, II:

Es ist ein Ros entsprungen (Lo, how a Rose) — Praetorius’ original and familiar setting becomes the theme of Hugo Distler’s music as choir and soloists narrate the opening verses of the Christmas story

Variations on an Advent chorale, III:

Puer natus in Bethlehem — A boy is born in Bethlehem — in which Praetorius expands this chorale into a full concertato for choir, soloists, four viols, and continuo

Frank Martin: Mass for Double Chorus — the featured work on our program
Martin’s remarkable choral music, far advanced for 1922, allows the Mass to transcend its liturgical significance and draw the listener into a world of awe, mystery, and communion with universal human themes

Fall 2011 Auditions

2011-09-26T10:52:00.000-04:00

We seek 3 tenors and 2 low basses to fill out our ensemble. Sunday evening rehearsals began on Sep. 11 in Cambridge for December performances of Frank Martin’s Mass for Double Chorus and seasonal music by Praetorius, Distler, Reger, Sweelinck, Weisgall, and Betinis. Samples of our sound are posted on our Media page.

If you could be one of the singers we seek, we invite you to schedule an audition: please email Walter Chapin at director@theorianaconsort.org, including a summary of your choral singing experience. For the audition you’ll join a quartet of Oriana members to read excerpts from our repertory and to sing a difficult but brief choral part that you’ll prepare 2 days in advance. Please also bring a solo of your choice.

Free concert on June 12

2011-05-31T22:12:00.000-04:00

Please join us at 2 pm on June 12th for a Boston Early Music Festival "Fringe" concert. Admission is free!

Announcing our concerts for Spring 2011

2011-04-01T13:30:00.001-04:00

Sunday, April 10, 2010, 5:00 pm

University Lutheran Church
66 Winthrop Street, Cambridge (in Harvard Square)

Friday, April 15, 2010, 8:00 pm

First Lutheran Church of Boston
299 Berkeley Street, Boston (in the Back Bay)

You'll hear choral music from Austria and the USA:

Aaron Copland: In the Beginning
    The composer's inventive choral setting of the creation story from Genesis, with soloist Jennifer Webb

Gustav Mahler: concluding chorus from Symphony No. 2 (the "Resurrection Symphony")
   You'll hear the essence of how Mahler created a musical atmosphere that brought life and energy to poetic ideas (and inspired Copland to do likewise), with soloists Melanie Armstrong and Maurene Comey; Caroline Harvey accompanies

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Missa Brevis KV 194
     The eighteen-year-old genius wrote this delightful brief mass for Salzburg Cathedral. The quartet of solists is Elizabeth Huttner, Laura Betinis, Jake Aaron, and Patrick Nay; a period instrumental ensemble accompanies

Johannes Brahms: Fünf Gesänge (Five Songs, Opus 104)
     While Brahms (a Hamburg native) was living in Vienna, he set these poems of reflection upon one's later years

Hugo Wolf: Sechs geistliche Lieder (Six spiritual songs, set to poetry of Joseph von Eichendorff)
     Not religious, but certainly spiritual! These beautiful songs connect the world of nature with the human spirit

Heinrich Isaac, Ludwig Senfl, and Wolfgang Grefinger: Choral songs from the Renaissance
    In these settings (including "Innsbruck, ich muss dich lassen") you'll hear Austrian choral music at its very birth!

Admission at the door is still only $15; students & seniors, $12. Advance discount tickets ($12.50/$10) from info@theorianaconsort.org or 617-547-1798.

We have some more engagements this spring, including a repeat performance of the above program on Saturday, April 30, at 8 pm, at the First Parish Church, 20 Lexington Road, Concord, MA.

We also will be performing at a concert by the Waltham Philharmonic Orchestra on May 19th: Italian Night at the Opera!

Then, on Sunday June 12th, we will be returning to the Boston Early Music Festival to give a free concert featuring Renaissance and Baroque music.

We hope to see you this spring!

Excerpts from the 3rd Sundays @ 3 concert

2011-01-08T20:41:00.002-05:00

3rd Sundays @ 3 Presents: Oriana Consort

2011-01-08T20:37:00.001-05:00

Here is our Nov. 21, 2010 concert for those of you who missed it!

http://vimeo.com/18448999 from Douglas McRay Daniels on Vimeo.

Auditions for spring 2011

2011-01-03T11:47:00.002-05:00

A unique opportunity to join a wonderful ensemble!

The Oriana Consort, a 31-voice chorale (8s-8a-7t-8b) seeks one 1st soprano and one 2nd tenor. Sunday evening rehearsals in Cambridge begin Jan. 9 for Apr. 10 & 15 performances of Mozart’s Missa Brevis KV 49, Copland’s In the Beginning, Wolf’s Sechs Geistliche Lieder, Brahms’ Fünf Gesänge Op. 104, Mahler’s Der Spielmann (from Das Klagende Lied), and Renaissance works by Isaac and others. If you’re a 1st soprano or 2nd tenor, and a good-to-excellent reader with a clear, well-produced, center-of-the-pitch voice, we invite you to audition for the satisfying experience of singing in an accomplished choral ensemble with a warm sound, eclectic repertory, enthusiastic audiences, & solo opportunities. (Hear us online at www.theorianaconsort.org/media.html.)

To schedule a half-hour evening audition in Cambridge on Thursday Jan. 6 or Thursday Jan. 13, please email Walter Chapin at director@theorianaconsort.org. For the audition you’ll join a quartet of Oriana members to read excerpts from our repertory in increasing order of difficulty, & to sing a difficult but brief choral part to be prepared 2 days in advance (all of which tells us how you learn new music & how you would blend with us). A solo is encouraged but not required.

Spring 2010 concerts!

2010-04-01T21:29:00.003-04:00

Please save the dates!

Sunday, April 11, 3:30 pm
Harvard-Epworth United Methodist Church
1555 Massachusetts Ave.
Cambridge, MA

Saturday, April 17, 8 pm
First Church in Boston
66 Marlborough St.
Boston, MA

Come hear the Oriana Consort’s twenty-nine voices and ten soloists sing these Choral Celebrations from France -- in chants, motets, choral songs, and Requiems:

Gabriel Fauré’s immortal “Requiem”
accompanied by Balint Karosi, organ

another Requiem, centuries older, by the early Renaissance composer Antoine Brumel
composed about 1500—a fascinating blend of Gregorian chant and choral polyphony!

Maurice Duruflé’s “Quatre motets sur des thèmes grégoriens”
Duruflé, in the 20th century, based each motet on a Gregorian chant—just as Brumel did in the 16th!

the “Trois Chansons” of Claude Debussy
three celebrations of life—the only a cappella choral music the composer of “Claire de Lune” ever wrote!

the “Trois Chansons” of Maurice Ravel
three celebrations of life—the only a cappella choral music the composer of “Boléro” ever wrote!

the solemnity of this choral music of Francis Poulenc will draw you in:
-- two penitential motets: “Tristis est anima mea” and “Vinea mea electa”
-- “Seigneur, je vous en prie”, from Poulenc’s settings of prayers of St. Francis of Assisi

Here’s what reviewers have been saying about us recently:

"The consort sang on an exalted level here ... a wonderfully conceived (and enthusiastically received) program, affording many soloists a chance to shine."

"Oriana’s renaissance sound was particularly resonant ..."

"... light, practically vibrato-less voices ... delicate phrasing and balance ... a fascinating collection of seldom-heard music."

Admission at the door: still only $15 — seniors and students $12.00
Call 617-547-1798 for advance discount tickets at $12.50 and $10.00

Auditions for Spring 2010

2010-01-02T19:55:00.002-05:00

The 28-voice Oriana Consort seeks two first tenors, one second tenor, and one baritone. If you are a good-to-excellent reader with a clear, well-produced, center-of-the-pitch voice in one of these ranges, we invite you to audition for the satisfying experience of singing in an experienced ensemble with a warm sound, eclectic repertory, solo opportunties, and enthusiastic audiences. Hear our group by visiting the Audio page.

Sunday evening rehearsals in Cambridge begin January 10, 2010 for April 11 & 17 performances of Fauré’s Requiem (with Balint Karosi as organ accompanist); both Debussy’s and Ravel’s Trois Chansons; and selections from Poulenc’s Quatre motets / pénitence, Duruflé’s Quatre motets / grégoriens, and Antoine Brumel’s Requiem (c. 1500). To schedule a half-hour evening audition in Cambridge ideally on January 4 or 6, please contact director Walter Chapin.

During the audition you’ll join a quartet of Consort members in reading excerpts from our repertory in increasing order of difficulty, and in singing a difficult but brief part to be prepared two days in advance. This tells us how you learn new music and how you would blend with us. We encourage you to bring a solo, but this is not required.

Thank you for attending our winter concerts!

2010-01-01T20:00:00.000-05:00

We were delighted by our enthusiastic audiences in December! Here are some comments we heard:

“A stellar, stellar, stellar, performance --- it was awesome, really --- so professional”.

“Thank you for this memorable evening, a gift to set the whole season in the right perspective. What wonderful programming. I’m coming to hear it again.”

“The concert was outstanding ... Vivaldi was the pièce de resistance ... wonderful voices for the solos ...”

“Thank you for bringing such glorious music into our lives.”

“We just loved the concert ... we were blown away ... a lively and delightful group of singers ...”

“How professional the group was ... what great blend.”

“Eric Whitacre’s stunning Lux aurumque, with haunting suspensions and a deeply melismatic bass, create[d] an aura of profound peace and wonder. The consort sang on an exalted level here ... This was a wonderfully conceived (and enthusiastically received) program, affording many soloists within the consort a chance to shine. What better balm for a cold winter night?” -- Full review by Janice Weber, in The Boston Musical Intelligencer

Announcing The Oriana Consort's winter concerts

2009-11-30T21:27:00.006-05:00

Please save one of these dates:

Sunday, Dec. 6, 2009; 5 pm
University Lutheran Church
66 Winthrop Street
Cambridge, MA

Friday, Dec. 18, 2009; 8 pm
First Lutheran Church of Boston
Berkeley & Marlborough Streets
Boston, MA

Come and hear the Oriana Consort’s 29 voices sing New Songs for Midwinter -- music for choir and soloists drawn from from five centuries of our heritage. Our December 6th concert will be held at new concert location in Cambridge, the University Lutheran Church in Harvard Square.

17th century: You’ll hear the bright optimism that flows from Henry Purcell’s O Sing unto the Lord a new song, accompanied by a string ensemble with an authentic seventeenth-century sound.

18th century: Antonio Vivaldi explores the full range of human emotion in his Gloria in excelsis Deo! Our Baroque-era strings accompany here also, augmented by trumpet and oboe.

16th century: Hear a kaleidoscopic variety of choral colors and textures in Hans Leo Hassler’s Cantate Domino canticum novum and Verbum caro factum est!

20th century: Claude Debussy wrote for choral voices in a way that no other composer ever had. You’ll hear his innovations in his setting of the 15th-century poem Yver, vous n’estes qu’un villain -- Winter, you’re only a villain. This is followed immediately by...

21st century: Abbie Betinis’ Cedit, Hyems, her inventive setting of two poems (a millenium apart in age) that chase winter away and bring on Advent. An eerie flute dances with the choral voices!

21st century: Hear a choir make sounds that seem to be not of this world in Eric Whitacre’s captivating Lux Aurumque -- to be followed by...

20th century: Kenneth Leighton’s setting of the 17th-century poem A Hymn of the Nativity by Richard Crashaw—seldom performed and heard by few.

As always, you will hear your favorite Oriana soloists.

Admission at the door is $15 (Seniors and students $12.00). Call 617-547-1798 for advance discount tickets at $12.50 & $10.00.

New concert location!

2009-11-20T22:24:00.003-05:00

We have a new concert location in Cambridge! Our December 6th concert will be our first performance at the University Lutheran Church in Harvard Square.

See UniLu's "Where we are" page for detailed directions and parking tips.

Upcoming concert: Jen and A Joyful Noyse, "In Joyful Anticipation"

2009-11-16T11:15:00.003-05:00

Jen and a small group of very talented singers will be presenting some rare baroque music for Advent.

In Joyful Anticipation: Music for the Advent season by Pfleger, Durante, and Telemann
Sunday, November 29th, 4:00 PM
Hancock Church, 1912 Mass. Ave., Lexington
$10 donation requested for the Church Music Fund

Auditions for 2009-2010 season

2009-07-25T23:51:00.005-04:00

The Oriana Consort seeks one 2nd alto, two tenors (1st or 2nd), one baritone, & one low bass for our 2009-2010 season. We want to replace two singers who have withdrawn, and add three more.

Sunday evening rehearsals in Cambridge begin Sep. 13 for Nov. & Dec. performances of Vivaldi’s Gloria, Purcell’s O Sing unto the Lord (both with period-instrument ensemble), and a cappella works by Hassler, Debussy, Leighton, Betinis, and Whitacre. If you’re a good-to-excellent reader with a clear, well-produced, center-of-the-pitch voice in one of these ranges, we invite you to audition for the satisfying experience of singing in an accomplished ensemble with a warm sound, eclectic repertory, solo opportunities, and enthusiastic audiences. Visit our website to hear audio samples.

Please contact director Walter Chapin to arrange a half-hour Thursday evening audition in Cambridge on July 30, August 20, or September 10; additional dates can be scheduled if necessary.

During the audition we will ask you to sing with several Consort members reading excerpts from our repertory in increasing order of difficulty, and sing a brief but difficult choral part to be prepared two days in advance. We don’t expect perfection, but we do want to know how you learn a new piece and blend with others. Please bring a solo (though this is not an absolute requirement).

New sound clips added to website

2009-05-28T23:10:00.004-04:00

Our website has been updated! Some new sound clips are available -- listen to hear a preview of our June 13th concert. Walter's program notes are up, too.

Post a comment here or send a note if you find any glitches. Thank you!

2009-05-18T22:13:00.003-04:00

Join Us! On Saturday June 13, at 12:45 pm, the Consort will present a special FREE concert to conclude our 2008-2009 season. This concert is associated with the Boston Early Music Festival and takes place at the First Lutheran Church, 299 Berkeley Street, Boston.

Vocal soloists include consort members Melanie Armstrong, Laura Betinis, James Croft, Gary Gengo, Elizabeth Huttner, and Jennifer Webb. Accompanists include Mai-Lan Broekman, viola da gamba & violone; Hendrik Broekman, chamber organ; Audrey Cienniwa, Baroque ’cello, Laura Gulley & Nicole Casinghino, violin; Elizabeth Westner & Harold Lieberman, viola; Scott Ketcham, recorders. Email info@theorianaconsort.org for more information.

Jen appears with A Joyful Noyse in Lexington, May 17

2009-05-07T11:24:00.002-04:00

Come see Jen perform in Neapolitan Delights: Music from 18th-Century Naples!

Sunday, May 17, 2009
3:00pm - 5:00pm
Hancock United Church of Christ
1912 Mass. Ave, Lexington, MA

Concert reviews available online

2009-04-10T16:49:00.004-04:00

A review by David Griesinger of the March 29 concert was published at The Boston Musical Intelligencer. David praised the group's "delicate phrasing and balance" and called the program a "fascinating collection of seldom-heard music."

Sudeep Agarwala reviewed the April 3 concert in The Tech. He felt the Consort's Renaissance sound was "refreshingly fluid and graceful," the ensemble work demonstrated "incredible talent," and the contemporary pieces showed "exuberance ... with impeccable blend and solid intonation."

Thank you to the reviewers who attended our concerts and took the time to write such thoughtful pieces!

Our final concert of the season!

2009-04-03T13:56:00.006-04:00

We are looking forward to seeing you at our final concert of the season.

Friday April 3, 2009, 8:00 p.m.
First Lutheran Church of Boston
Berkeley and Marlborough Streets, Boston

First Lutheran is a wonderful space for music. We love to perform there -- when you hear us, you'll know why!

Thank you, Hingham!

2009-03-25T20:41:00.013-04:00

We had a lovely afternoon performing at the Old Ship Church in Hingham on Sunday. Thank you so much to all who attended and gave us such a warm reception, and to the Candlelight Concert committee and church staff.

photos courtesy of Sarah Chapin

We look forward to seeing you at our next concert, this Sunday March 29, 2009, at 5:00 p.m., at the Swedenborg Chapel on Kirkland and Quincy Streets, Cambridge. Tickets will be available at the door.

Announcing The Oriana Consort's spring concerts

2009-03-07T23:09:00.006-05:00

Please save one of these dates:

Sunday March 22, 2009, 4:00 p.m.
Old Ship Church (Candlelight Concert Series)
90 Main Street, Hingham

Sunday March 29, 2009, 5:00 p.m.
Swedenborg Chapel
Kirkland and Quincy Streets, Cambridge

Friday April 3, 2009, 8:00 p.m.
First Lutheran Church of Boston
Berkeley and Marlborough Streets, Boston

Come hear the Oriana Consort’s 26 voices sing Miracles of Spring: Choral music for Easter and Passover from the 16th, 17th, 18th, and 20th centuries!

The program includes Easter and Passover music in a variety of styles from four centuries of our musical heritage.

J.S. Bach’s cantata Christ lag in Todesbanden (Christ lay in the bonds of death, 18th century; this and the following work are accompanied by an ensemble of period instruments, played by outstanding instrumentalists of greater Boston’s early music community)
Michel Richard De Lalande’s motet De profundis (From the depths, Psalm 129/130, late 17th century)
Arvo Pärt’s choral songs The Woman with the Alabaster Box (1997) and Which is the Son Of ... (2000)
Peter Philips’ Surgens Jesus Dominus (an a cappella motet in late 16th-century style)
Five songs for Passover by Yehezkel Braun (1982; on texts from the Haggadah)
Frank Ticheli’s There Will Be Rest (1999; on a poem by Sara Teasdale)

And you’ll hear lots of Oriana soloists!

Admission to the Hingham concert is free of charge.

Cambridge & Boston admission is $15 (Seniors and students $12.00).

Call 617-547-1798 for advance discount tickets at $12.50 & $10.00.

Concert featuring Caroline on Friday Mar. 6

2009-03-05T19:33:00.001-05:00

Caroline plays a Kurt Weill piano piece at The Longy School of Music’s “March Musical Madness”, described as follows on Longy’s website:

Friday, March 6th, 7:30pm, The Charles Hotel, Harvard Square
Longy at the Regattabar: “March Musical Madness”
Tickets $20 --- www.regattabarjazz.com --- 617-395-7757

Come to this popular jazz club for a wildly eclectic evening of “March Musical Madness” -- featuring Longy alumni with “crazy” performance schedules worldwide, conservatory students about to “dive off the deep end” into their music careers, and spectacular Preparatory students who at a young age are already “mad for music.”

Featuring works by Ronn Fontana, Bela Bartok, Tony Solitro, Frank Bridge, Umberto Giordano, Pietro Mascagni, Salverio Mercadante, Kurt Weill and George Gershwin.

Allegra Martin's interview with Walter Chapin

2009-03-04T21:18:00.002-05:00

Allegra Martin interviewed our very own Walter Chapin on her blog, A choral musician's blog. The interview includes lots of interesting tidbits about Walter and the history of the Oriana Consort. Thank you Allegra!

Elisabeth's recital, March 13

2009-03-02T10:38:00.002-05:00

Former member Elisabeth Hon Hunt is singing in her final recital at MIT!

MIT Advanced Music Performance Recital

Elisabeth Hon Hunt, soprano
Pei-Shan Lee, piano
Daryush Mehta, clarinet

Richard Strauss: Großmächtige Prinzessin from "Ariadne auf Naxos"
Claude Debussy: Sept poèmes de Banville
Franz Schubert: Der Hirt auf dem Felsen

Friday, March 13, 2009
5:00 PM
Killian Hall
MIT

Free admission

Map: http://whereis.mit.edu/map-jpg?selection=14&Buildings=go

Join our group on Facebook

2009-03-01T15:27:00.000-05:00

Facebook provides tools to help us easily promote events to our friends. Join our Facebook group at http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=49522756390 and invite your friends to our spring concerts!

Kathy, Kate, Jen sing with Joyful Noyse on March 7

2009-03-01T15:25:00.000-05:00

On March 7th, at 7:30 PM, the Sanctuary of Hancock Church, 1912 Mass. Ave., Lexington, will be filled with the warm glow of candlelight and the emotive music of Marc-Antoine Charpentier as A Joyful Noyse presents a program of meditative music appropriate for the Lenten season. There is no admission charge.

Kathy L., Kate, and Jen will take part.

The program will include Charpentier’s liturgical suite Pour un reposoir (H. 508), with plainchant interpolations, Alma redemptoris Mater (H. 21 & H. 44), Prelude, Kyrie and Agnus Dei from Messe des Morts (H. 10), Pie Jesu from Messe des Morts (H. 7), Litanies de la Vierge (H. 85), selections from Concert in D minor (H. 545) and Stabat Mater (H. 15).

Hancock Church is right at Monument Square on Mass Ave. The acoustics are terrific. It's a really special concert with some of our favorite period instrumentalists to boot!

Welcome to our blog

2009-03-01T14:06:00.001-05:00

Welcome to The Oriana Consort's blog. We intend to use this space for general announcements, information about upcoming concerts, and publicity of member's other musical pursuits.

Enjoy!