Westminster Premieres Luminosity in Philadelphia on April 11
Westminster Choir College of Rider University will present an evening of choral music entitled “Luminosity - Music of Inspiration through Visions of Light” at the Philadelphia Cathedral on Friday, April 11 at 8 p.m. Download concert poster. Listen to podcasts with composers James Whitbourn and Jaakko Mäntyjärvi.
The program will include two world premieres: O Magnum Mysterium by Jaakko Mäntyjärvi and the work for which the concert is named – Luminosity by James Whitbourn, a theatrical work for choirs, organ, percussion, viola and dancers. The choirs will also perform Morten Lauridsen’s Sure on This Shining Night, “Ubi Caritas” from Durufle’s Quatre Motets sur des Themes Gregoriens, and Kyrie from Martin’s Mass for Double Choir.
Performers will be the Westminster Williamson Voices and women of Westminster Schola Cantorum, conducted by James Jordan. They will be joined by Daniel Stewart, viola; the Blair Academy Singers, directed by William Hammer; and the ArcheDream Mask Theater, directed by Alan Bell.
James Whitbourn is a versatile composer of film, television and concert works. He studied music at Oxford University and began his career as a program creator for the BBC, winning many awards, including a Royal Television Society Craft Award and a Sony Gold. His range of style moves from the lush symphonic scoring heard in BBC landmark series such as Son of God to the sonorities of his choral album, which combine choir with saxophone and world instruments. He composed the BBC’s title music for the funeral of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, and was commissioned with Poet Laureate Andrew Motion to write a new work for the broadcast of a Westminster Abbey service for the victims of 9/11 - subsequently performed in New York on the first anniversary of the attacks. He also composed the title music for the BBC Events coverage of the 60th anniversary of D-Day as well as many other programs and series.
Composed of students at Westminster Choir College of Rider University, the Westminster Williamson Voices is a select ensemble of 35 singers whose mission combines choral performance with educational outreach, artistic collaborations and partnering with other art forms. Emphasizing world music and the music of our time, it is named for Westminster’s founder, John Finley Williamson, who believed that choral music performed at the highest level should be accessible to all so that it might communicate the human essence that is at the heart of choral singing. The repertoire and performances of the ensemble cover a broad spectrum, with special emphasis upon music commissioned for the choir. Artistic collaborations with other art forms-- dance, theater and the visual arts--are at the core of the performances of this ensemble.
Westminster Schola Cantorum is composed of students in their second year of study at Westminster. The Blair Academy Singers is composed of students at Blair Academy in Blairstown, N.J.
Based in Philadelphia, ArcheDream is an archetypical mask theater that uses ritual, movement and myth to present allegorical dramas. Its costumes are illuminated with ultra-violet light, which accentuates the supernatural aspect and reveals the dreamscape as the action unfolds. Watch ArcheDream on YouTube.
James Jordan is recognized as one of the nation’s pre-eminent conductors, writers and innovators in choral music. He has been called a “visionary” by The Choral Journal. His career and publications have been devoted to innovative educational changes in the choral art. A master teacher, Dr. Jordan’s pioneering writing and research concerning the use of Laban Movement Analysis for the teaching of conducting and movement to children has dramatically changed teaching in both of these disciplines. A member of the conducting faculty at Westminster Choir College of Rider University, James Jordan is one of the nation’s most prolific writers on the subjects of the philosophy of music making and choral teaching.
Philadelphia Cathedral is located at 3723 Chestnut Street in Philadelphia. Tickets are $15 for adults and $10 for seniors and students. For tickets call the Westminster box office at 609 921-2663 or purchase them at the door. For updates, visit Westminster’s Web site at www.rider.edu/arts.
