News & Reviews 2009-2010
Harbison, Schütz, Duruflé
The Boston Phoenix
Miss Music Nerd
ArtsFuse.com
Interview with David Hoose
Listen to part II of Michael Miller's interview with David Hoose on the Berkshire Review
David Hoose talks with the Berkshire Review on the 2009-10 Season
Cantata Singers welcomes Jeffry George, Executive Director
BOSTON, MA ─ December 14th, 2009 ─ Cantata Singers is pleased to announce that Jeffry George, former Managing Director of Theatre Aspen in Aspen, Colorado, has been appointed to the position of Executive Director.
George replaces former Executive Director, Lisa Stiller, who served the organization for nine years.
“I am delighted to welcome Jeffry George to the Cantata Singers as we ready for our 50th anniversary in 2013,” said Majie Zeller, Board Chair. “Cantata Singers is poised to capitalize on continued critical and audience acclaim for Music Director David Hoose’s composer-focused seasons, now in our third year. Jeffry brings not only the strong management skills to move us forward, but also a passion for music and the performing arts that speaks to the organization’s commitment to innovative programming and educational outreach. We are especially pleased that he joins us just prior to our second concert of the Heinrich Schütz season on January 15th.”
Mr. George comes to the Cantata Singers from years of non-profit management in theatrical production. Of note is his recent success as Managing Director of the Wellfleet Harbor Actors Theatre in Wellfleet, MA. During his tenure at W.H.A.T. he and Artistic Director, Jeff Zinn opened the new state-of-the-art Julie Harris stage growing the company into a three venue operation offering theatrical, musical, and performance art productions.
He is looking forward to returning to his roots in music. Jeffry started training in music at an early age first as a trumpet player and then as a vocalist having studied at the University of Wisconsin, Oshkosh, Interlochen and Ithaca College School of music.
“My most rewarding moments as a musician were as a member of chorus and madrigal,” said George. “It was during this time that I was introduced to the vast musical offerings that the Boston community has by touring here during my years at Ithaca.”
Previously he has held management positions at Kansas City Starlight, Kansas City, MO; Caldwell Theatre Company, Boca Raton, FL; Wellfleet Harbor Actors Theater, Wellfleet, MA; and Theatre Aspen, Aspen, CO. He has been active in numerous cultural and arts organizations nationally and regionally. He has served on the Board of the Provincetown Theater Company, the Provincetown Cultural Council and was a member of the Provincetown Business Guild.
News & Reviews: Press Quotes 2008-2009
Bach | Britten | Vores
“The Cantata Singers had a splendid finale to their season-long exploration of Benjamin Britten… the marvelous kids from the Neighborhood House Charter School sang settings they themselves had composed [and] Andy Vores incorporated these setting into his orchestrally inventive and vividly commissioned cantata, Natural Selection.”
Lloyd Schwartz, The Boston Phoenix, June 10, 2009
“Two strands of the Cantata Singers’ activities met in Friday’s concert… Benjamin Britten… [and the ensemble’s] commitment to educational outreach. The confluence of the two made for an unusual but rewarding evening.
“Opening the program was a rare performance of The Company of Heaven…the solos for soprano and tenor were exquisitely sung by Karyl Ryczek and William Hite, two singers with richly hued voices.
“The second half began with the latest product of the Classroom Cantatas program…they were charming yet surprisingly substantial pieces, vigorously sung by the Neighborhood House Charter School students [student composers] and the Boston Children’s Chorus.
“Vores’s gripping piece teems with bustle and activity, and its musical language runs from open tonality to a dusky, dissonant syntax.
“Bach’s cantata Nun ist das Heil und die Kraft… to a celebratory close, as did the sight of musicians of all ages crowding onto the Jordan Hall stage for a final bow.”
David Weininger, The Boston Globe, May 11, 2009
Beethoven Mass in C, Britten and Finzi
“both the Credo’s driving momentum and the Agnus Dei’s unusual harmonies were nicely elicited by the orchestra and chorus… Both the Britten and the Finzi works… showed the best of what this group can achieve.”
David Weininger, The Boston Globe, March 17, 2009
“The performance [of Beethoven's Mass in C] was tenderly fervent, celebratory, solemn without heaviness. The excellent quartet of vocal soloists included tenor Stephen Williams, baritone Dana Whiteside, soprano Karyl Ryczek, and, in particularly fine fettle, mezzo-soprano Lynn Torgove. Bruce Creditor played a gently consoling clarinet solo in the Agnus Dei, and that led to the hushed woodwind close.”
Lloyd Schwartz, The Boston Phoenix, March 19, 2009
“Lynn Torgove and Dana Whiteside, really had the power to cut through the orchestral playing and create their own profiles… soprano Karyl Ryczek's voice glowed with a ripe, delicate bloom… and tenor Stephen Williams offered a light, agile tone and thoughtful phrasing. Meanwhile the chorus sang with vigor; Hoose brought real feeling to the joyful outbursts of the Gloria, and kept an intelligent sense of command throughout the complicated and demanding Credo.
“[Finzi’s Lo, the Full, Final Sacrifice] is simply gently heartbreaking, and the Cantata Singers did its deep feeling full justice.”
Thomas Garvey, The Hub Review, March 16, 2009
“The singing and the played was joyous and light, with the singers dancing through the virtuoso sections… with unanimity and lightning speed. The solo quartet [was] exceptionally well balanced.”
David Griesinger, The Boston Musical Intelligencer, March 16, 2009
Benjamin Britten's Noye’s Fludde
“With the Cantata Singers and Ensemble joined by performers from PALS Children's Chorus, Community Music Center of Boston, Massachusetts Youth Wind Ensemble, and Boston University, Saturday's sold-out performance had just the feel of the vibrant, joyful community pageant that Britten clearly envisioned. David Hoose, Alysoun Kegel, and Suzanne McAllister were the conductors. Baritone Brian Church was a fine Noye (Noah), his concentration and commitment setting just the right tone. Mezzo-soprano Majie Zeller performed with relish as his gossiping wife, who ignores entreaties to board the ark until it's nearly too late.
“... Saturday's production by Lynn Torgove was charmingly homespun and low tech... Whether dancing, singing, or playing in the orchestra, the kids of all ages were extremely well-prepared and keenly focused on their various tasks... Britten's opera is a wonder in the way it gets an entire community involved in the creation of a work with real artistic integrity and yet at the same time, so it seemed on Saturday, boundless amounts of fun.”
By Jeremy Eichler, The Boston Globe, February 10, 2009
All-Britten Concert
“Having so fruitfully focused their previous season on Kurt Weill, the Cantata Singers have embarked on a new year-long exploration of the life and music of another 20th century composer: Benjamin Britten. It would be hard to overstate the virtues of this probing approach to programming. Rather than being bounced aimlessly from one concert to the next, the audience is guided on a sustained musical and intellectual journey…The chorus has even gone to the trouble of assembling a richly informed 144-page Britten reader containing not only the notes for individual concerts but also essays, tributes, and a wealth of biographic details. It’s one of the best things I’ve seen produced by any chorus in a long time.”
“…David Hoose led the chorus, ensemble, and guest soloists in beautifully delivered, richly satisfying performances of six Britten works.
“… Lachrymae… a piece remarkably tailored to the darkly honeyed tone world of the viola, as was demonstrated on Friday night by Roger Tapping in his deeply felt and uncommonly eloquent performance. Hoose's small string orchestra painted in subtle half-tints and the work's final bars seemed to glow with a quiet inner light.
“…in the composer's much-loved Serenade… the young tenor Michael Slattery gave a responsive, affecting performance and James Sommerville stepped in masterfully to replace the originally scheduled horn soloist Michael Thompson. Hoose and his strings were attuned to this music's subtle blend of candor and reserve.
“… the chorus… performed with dexterity and an impeccably blended sound… conjuring just the right veiled quality. Mezzo-soprano Janna Baty was the vocally rich and dramatically forceful soloist in Phaedra.
“… the evening ended with wit and optimism courtesy of Rejoice in the Lamb… The orchestra and chorus, with several able soloists drawn from within its ranks, did this music deft justice, capping a delightful evening.”
Jeremy Eichler, The Boston Globe, January 20, 2009
“[James] Sommerville… gave a spectacular performance. The Serenade begins and ends with a mysterious call on a valveless natural horn; I don't think I'll ever hear it so flawlessly or expressively played. The outstanding young tenor Michael Slattery [understood] the poems and conveyed not only meaning but nuance. As did conductor David Hoose and his splendid orchestra. A magnificent performance of a very great work.
“Mezzo-soprano Janna Baty… gave a stirring rendition of… the dramatic cantata Phaedra. Hoose and the orchestra matched Baty in precision and intensity.”
Lloyd Schwartz, The BostonPhoenix, January 20, 2009
Year-End Classical Picks 2008
“The Cantata Singers’ year-long tribute to Kurt Weill… [including] delightful events such as Lynn Torgove’s wittily semi-staged Weill Cabaret. David Hoose paired Weill with Brahms Ein deutsches Requiem and Fussell’s soaring HighBridge.”
Lloyd Schwartz, The Boston Phoenix, December 22, 2008
Fauré Requiem and Britten Cantata misericordium
“[The concert], obviously planned months ago, seemed [a] timely anodyne for our months of political and economic anxieties. David Hoose’s Cantata Singers, after last year’s brilliant season devoted to Kurt Weill, are now focusing on another 20th-century master, Benjamin Britten… Britten’s 1963 Cantata misericordium… was superb in every respect, and made one feel good about a new possibility for human generosity.”
Lloyd Schwartz, The Boston Phoenix, November 11, 2008
News & Reviews: Press Quotes 2007-2008
Kurt Weill’s The Lindbergh Flight
“The performance . . . marked the opening of the Cantata Singers’ new season, admirably focused on the music of Weill. . . . David Hoose led a surely paced and sharply drawn account, his combined forces sounding strong and well-prepared. As Lindbergh, William Hite sang with a sweet-toned tenor
. . . David Kravitz excelled in the smaller baritone solos . . . “
Jeremy Eichler, The Boston Globe September 26, 2007
“It’s a gem. The music is inventive and memorable, both ironic and haunting. . . . The Cantata Singers chorus and orchestra were in top form. And so were the soloists . . . Hoose built the piece to an inexorable climax. The venue itself contributed to the excitement. This special fundraising benefit took place in a hangar a the non-profit Collings Foundation Aviation Museum in Stow.”
Lloyd Schwartz, The Boston Phoenix September 26, 2007
Year-end Classical Picks 2007:
Cantata Singers, David Hoose, conductor. Weill’s The Lindbergh Flight
Jeremy Eichler, The Boston Globe
“David Hoose and the Cantata Singers launched their year-long exploration of lesser-known Weill with a cantata completed two years after Charles Lindbergh’s milestone Atlantic crossing, Der Lindberghflug . . . with the superb performers facing an amazing array of historic flying machines.”
Lloyd Schwartz, The Boston Phoenix
Lior Navok’s Slavery Documents 3: And the Trains Kept Coming . . . and Weill’s The Prophets
“The performance . . . was passionate and, thanks to conductor Hoose, unstoppable. . . . [Weill’s The Prophets] performance – the experience – was stunning.”
Lloyd Schwartz, The Boston Phoenix January 23, 2008
Brahms Requiem and Weill Violin Concerto
“Hoose and the superb violinist Jennifer Koh fashioned a reading [of the violin concerto] that
was musically fiery while remaining emotionally cool and confident. . . . [the Brahms Requiem was] a magnificent, dignified performance, Hoose shaping the form with flexible breadth. . . . The chorus was in superb form, its precision and discipline generating considerable emotional power.”
Matthew Guerrieri, The Boston Globe, March 17, 2008
“The Brahms . . . was deeply moving . . . baritone Dana Whiteside was exemplary . . . Chorus and orchestra were radiant.”
Lloyd Schwartz, The Boston Phoenix March 19, 2008
Kurt Weill Cabaret – Cantata Singers Chamber Series
“A splendid group of singers . . . sailed through [Lynn] Torgove’s imaginative staging. . . . there was a classic Cantata Singers emphasis on more obscure works . . . that made me ache for full performances. . . . Several people afterward asked me whether I knew was this Weill cabaret going to done again. I hope so. I’d go.”
Lloyd Schwartz, The Boston Phoenix April 15, 2008
Charles Fussell’s High Bridge and Weill’s Second Symphony
“High Bridge has the same muscular intensity and finely wrought imagery of [Hart] Crane’s verse, which it illuminates from often unexpected angles. . . . High Bridge is a marvelous and a major achievement. It ought to be heard again, and hopefully in a performance as expert as Friday’s. Both chorus and orchestra gave a sense of total commitment in very demanding music. David Hoose led everyone magnificently.”
David Weininger, The Boston Globe May 13, 2008
“I can’t imagine a performance more committed or powerful.”
Lloyd Schwartz, The Boston Phoenix June 3, 2008