JUBILEE: THANK YOU!

Jubilee: A concert of joy through the voices of America's black composers
Saturday, March 8, 2025, 4pm
St. Bede’s Episcopal Church
550 W San Mateo, Santa Fe

 
 

The Chorale sends a huge “THANK YOU” to our sell-out audience for Jubilee! It was a joy for us to bring the powerful voices of America's black composers to such an enthusiastic and appreciative audience!

Thanks as always to George and Debbie, and to soloists Alex Esquibel, Jerel Brazeau, Nate Salazar, and especially O’Shaun Estrada, whose tenor solo in Chariot Jubilee was spellbinding!

The Chariot Jubilee, by R. Nathanial Dett is thought to be the first-ever symphonic work based solely on African-American spirituals and folklore. Originally written and performed with orchestra in 1919, the work was forgotten for nearly 80 years before a new performing edition for either orchestra or piano accompaniment brought this exuberant work back to life.

To learn more about Dett and the other composers and arrangers for this concert, click on their names here: R. Nathanial Dett, William Dawson, Udine S Moore, Moses Hogan, Sidney Guillaume, Mark Hayes.

As George wrote in his Program Notes: “This is music born out of hardship; this is music born out of America’s original sin; this is music that sustains the goodness of humanity through the tragedy in the world. And throughout it all there is joy. What a lesson we may learn.”

Next Up: Reformation

 
 

Reformation: Music from the Reformation traditions by J.S. Bach, William Byrd and others

Out of cultural upheaval can come some of the most sublime artistic expressions. The Protestant Reformation was a 16th-century religious, political, and cultural movement that challenged the authority of the Roman Catholic Church and led to the creation of Protestantism. This concert explores the Reformation’s influence on the composers of the times as reflected in two masterworks, one from each side of the divide. Englishman William Byrd worked for Protestant Queen Elizabeth I but secretly favored his Catholic upbringing. His Mass for Four Voices is an example of the Latin church music he composed for private devotions. The great German composer J. S. Bach fully embraced his Protestant spirituality by creating works in the vernacular using new texts and hymn tunes as illustrated in his grand motet Jesus, meine Freude. The Reformation’s wide musical influence extended to music of the Counter-Reformation, which will be illustrated by compositions of Victoria and Palestrina.

Saturday, May 17, 2025, 4pm
St. Bede’s Episcopal Church
550 W San Mateo, Santa Fe

 

2024-2025 Hastings Smith Memorial Scholarship
Applications Now Available

The Hastings Smith Memorial scholarship is a yearly scholarship honoring one of the Chorale’s founders. The award is intended to assist a graduating senior dedicated to vocal singing in his or her college pursuits. The applicant does not have to plan to major in music, but a strong past achievement and future interest must be demonstrated. Applications are now available and are due by April 25, 2025. Scholarship winners will be announced at the Chorale’s May 17, 2025 concert Reformation.

Click here for additional information and to download the Scholarship Application.

School Choral Teacher Workshop
June 10, 2024

As part of our commitment to support young choral students and teachers in northern New Mexico, the Chorale held a conducting workshop for school choral teachers on June 10.  Three young music teachers/conductors had the opportunity to study and conduct the Chorale under the instruction of Music Director George Case. Not only will the teachers benefit from their conducting workshop experience, their many students will benefit, too. The Chorale also benefited from the experience of having to pay close attention to different directors and their different styles, as well as learning from George’s engagement with them. A great time was had by all!

The Chorale is grateful for your continued generous support. Ticket sales cover less than one-third of our costs and your support is essential for the outreach programs in our schools and community and in bringing great singing to you!

Singer Sidebars, Virtual Concerts, and Musical Works in Progress enabled us to stay in touch with our audiences while we could not perform in person. The entire archive is available here.

 
 
 

Watch https://www.facebook.com/sdcchorale/ for periodic links and pointers to music and music stories that have moved us during challenging times. Be safe and listen to good music!

 

The mission of the Sangre de Cristo Chorale is to entertain, educate, unite, and inspire singers and audiences by performing quality choral music.