Sunday January 19, 2025 – 7:30 pm
All Saints’ Anglican Cathedral
10035 103 St NW, Edmonton, AB T5J 0X5
Tickets: General admission $30 advance, $35 at door; Students with ID $15
Available online or at door https://chronosvocalensemble.com/awakening-concert/
Chronos Vocal Ensemble presents “awakening” – a concert for the new year – on Sunday January 19 2025 at 7:30 in All Saints’ Anglican Cathedral. A collaborative performance with pianist extraordinaire Roger Admiral, the program is the second in a concert season exploring time – the past, present, and future. Awakening is focused on the future, as we celebrate a new year with hope for what’s to come.
This concert features two major works by two of choral music’s preeminent contemporary composers — The Passing of the Year by English composer Jonathan Dove, and Mid-Winter Songs by American Morten Lauridsen — both full of resonances between the seasons of the year and the seasons of life.
Mid-Winter Songs sets five diverse poems by Robert Graves, each with a common ‘winter’ motif encompassing themes of dying and rejuvenation, light and darkness. Full of contrast, this work offers the exceptional choral beauty those familiar with Lauridsen’s writing expect, however, in this instance the chorus is cast in an equal partnership with the piano. “Expect compelling contrasts of mood, dense and spicy harmony, and a touch of the profound,” says Chronos director Jordan Van Biert.
The Passing of the Year presents seven texts by a range of poets in a cycle that outlines the seasons of the year, from the yearning opening “O Earth, O Earth, return!”, through the spring, summer, and winter. This magnificent work closes with a grand and joyous setting of Tennyson’s “Ring out, wild bells”, bringing performers and audience full circle: Ring out the old; ring in the new!
The Passing of the Year has been an important major work in the development of Chronos Vocal Ensemble; the choir first performed the work in 2017, together with the Lauridsen work, in concert with Roger Admiral. More recently, the ensemble gave a performance with two pianos and percussion. Excerpts were also featured in Chronos’s 10th Anniversary performance in January 2024. “I’m excited that we’ve been able to bring Roger back to perform both of these fantastic and uplifting works with us again, as we start a new year,” says Van Biert.
Pianist Roger Admiral is a fixture in Edmonton’s contemporary music scene, performing solo and chamber music repertoire spanning the 18th through the 21st century. Known for his dedication to contemporary music, Roger has commissioned and premiered many new compositions.