Previous Press - Press Quotes 2001-2002 Season

Slavery Documents

"The [Slavery Documents] performances - by Hoose, the orchestra and its solo players, the solo singers, and the Cantata Singers, augmented by many African-American singers - were soul-stirring. . . . The whole event, preceded by extensive outreach and educational programs that helped bring a large and diverse audience into Symphony Hall, was a credit to the Cantata Singers. "

" They do not separate their artistic convictions from their social convictions; they are voices of conscience."
- Richard Dyer, The Boston Globe, March 18, 2002 (more...)

"One of the most ambitious ventures by a Boston group is Slavery Documents . . . This was a strange, powerful work. . . The Cantata Singers chorus and stellar orchestra were overwhelming. Hoose shaped the disparate elements into a powerful uniformity of intention, underlining the relentless irony of the relentless juxtapositions."

"T.J. Anderson's Slavery Documents 2 . . . acknowledges diverse musical influences (Baroque forms, African drumming) . . . this pairing [of compositions] attracted one of the most racially diverse audiences I've ever seen at Symphony Hall, and there's no denying the cumulative power of the truths and the still terrible consequences of racism these two composers confront us with."
- Lloyd Schwartz, The Boston Phoenix, March 22, 2002 (more...)

"One of the most important cultural events of the year brought to the fore the music of two former Boston composers - one African-American, T.J. Anderson; one Korean-American, Donald Y. Sur...Sur's 70-minute work does not skirt the horrors of slavery...[Anderson' Slavery Documents 2] presents aspects of 'the truth'... and underlines the sustaining power of Negro spirituals."

"[Hoose's] chorus of 80 and orchestra of 75 performed nothing short of magnificently."
- Caldwell Titcomb, Bay State Banner, April 18, 2002 (more...)

Beethoven's Missa Solemnis

"It was a privilege to hear this work again in our present time . . . and in a performance as masterly and humane as the one David Hoose and the Cantata Singers & Ensemble gave . . . [the chorus] sang with awesome security, balance, and emotional commitment."
- Richard Dyer, The Boston Globe

"It's hard to imagine a more exciting version-exploding with power, breathtaking in its momentum, but also veering into a realm of spiritual privacy and suspended quietude . . ."
- Lloyd Schwartz, The Boston Phoenix

". . . the Cantata Singers make beautiful noise. . . . Hoose's leadership [was] vigorous and exact . . .The Cantata Singers make it a piece that you won't forget."
- Keith Powers, The Boston Herald

And in Lloyd Schwartz's year-end review in the Boston Phoenix, he once again affirmed the Cantata Singers as a highlight of the year in the category of 'Best Choral Work':

" . . . David Hooses' powerful performance of Beethoven's Missa Solemnis with the Cantata Singers was one of the years' highlights. It had to be."

"The Cantata Singers, under the direction of David Hoose always present artistically challenging programs in performances of the highest caliber."
—Richard Dyer, The Boston Globe

"a world-class organization" that fills a significant need in Boston
—comment made by reviewers on the Massachusetts Cultural Council's Endowment Grant Program panel