The secret has been out for a few weeks now, and if you haven’t heard about it yet, the Phoenix Chorale will be recording a NEW album this spring featuring music by composer Ola Gjeilo! Pause for applause. Our“$60k in 30 Days” campaign to raise money for the recording kicked off on March 19th and ends this Sunday at MIDNIGHT on April 17th. Our goal is to raise $60,000 in 30 days, which is twice the amount we aimed to earn in last year’s “$30k in 30 Days” campaign. Thanks to the help of our friends, fans and families, we are ¾ of the way there!
One of the fun parts about my job as an intern is being able to help out with all different kinds of projects for the Phoenix Chorale. I especially enjoy helping out with our video shoots. However, on the morning of the video shoot, I was in such a hurry to get to work I had skipped my usual egg sandwich and OJ for breakfast. Word to the wise – always eat breakfast! We were only about fifteen minutes into the interview before I began feeling a bit dizzy. After a quick refuel from the office kitchen, I was up and ready to go.
The video shoot took up most of the morning, which was nice because I had a chance to break away from my computer. KBAQ 89.5 FM’s Katrina Becker was also here to do an interview with Artistic Director, Charles Bruffy and Ola Gjeilo. Talk about a busy day! I am quite excited about this new recording and was lucky to be on the scene of the interview with Ola and Charles. From what I can tell, this is going to be a very special album.
Check out the finished project here:
ALSO – It’s not too late to donate to your favorite Phoenix Chorale singer, staff, or board member, or of course your favorite Intern, Tori B! Click the link below to donate now.
Stay tuned for more updates on our highly anticipated new recording coming this summer!
What do you get when you mix 28 voices with a medley of percussion instruments? A Phoenix Chorale concert, of course! The Phoenix Chorale is going out with a BANG with their final concert series of the season, “The Rhythm of Life.” An exploration of musical cultures from various corners of the world, these concerts combine percussion and choral music through pieces from Finland, America, Korea, West Africa and Estonia. Sonja Branch, our featured performer, will be using an array of percussion instruments including the marimba, djembe, claves, shakere, shaman drum, and a traditional Korean kkyangari drum, just to name a few. Some of the singers will also be using instruments to accompany the repertoire.
One of the cool pieces on the program is called “Clapping Music” by Steve Reich. Artistic Director Charles Bruffy and Sonja will create rhythm with their hands, beginning in unison, and then Sonja will change her rhythm ever so slightly by moving one eighth note to the left every few measures until they are back in unison. As complicated as it sounds, here’s a video to help you visualize it. Imagine the three people on the left as Charles clapping, and the three people on the right as Sonja clapping. Pretty crazy, huh!
The rhythm in “Clapping Music” then segues right into Leonard Bernstein’s French Choruses from “The Lark.” Another interesting piece is Veljo Tormis’s “Curse Upon Iron” [Raua needmine]. This bone shaking, drum beating song is a little more intense than the choral music you may be used to. With an aggressive combination of striking the drum and singer’s voices chanting, you will feel the strong emotion of the music hit you. Listen to the State Choir Latvija singing it here:
This is only my second Phoenix Chorale concert series, and after being blown away after my first concert, “Chant & Beyond,” I am very excited to hear “The Rhythm of Life” this April. My choral background goes about as far as singing in 8th grade choir, but the sound of the Phoenix Chorale has absolutely caught my interest. I am especially looking forward to this concert because I think the percussion will add a host of rhythmic sensation! While the choral scene is still relatively new to me, I do come from a strong dance background and can’t wait to hear the musical pairing of voice and instruments come together–don’t be surprised to see me movin’ in my seat! Also, I think it will be cool to see the rhythm take life through the movement of the the percussion being played.
Speaking of instruments, I am very excited to see what they all look and sound like. I’ve heard that Sonja is an excellent percussionist and she has spent a wealth of time studying music in Africa. Sonja Branch and the Phoenix Chorale will bring you a concert so authentic, you’ll feel as if you’ve taken a two hour musical journey around the globe.
We hope to see you there to accompany us in our final concert series of the season. Get your tickets here, and experience “The Rhythm of Life”!
The Phoenix Chorale is hosting the first-ever FREE festival of classical music in downtown Phoenix this Friday night, March 4 during the First Friday Artwalk!
The Classical Revolution Phoestival begins at 6:30 pm and takes place inside Trinity Episcopal Cathedral on four stages. Hosted by the Phoenix Chorale and Trinity Episcopal Cathedral and presented by Classical Revolution Phoenix, the Classical Revolution Phoestival features a variety of chamber ensembles including:
Erik W. Goldstrom performs on the Great Cathedral Organ at Trinity Cathedral – 8:00pm in the Cathedral
Take a listen to Paradisa!:
CLASSICAL REVOLUTION PHOESTIVAL March 4, 2011 – 6:30-9:30 PM Trinity Episcopal Cathedral (100 W. Roosevelt St., Phoenix)
To see the entire Phoestival schedule, click the image above.
Check out images of some of the performers by clicking here. The Classical Revolution Phoestival is made possible with the support of the Phoenix Chorale, Trinity Episcopal Cathedral, Arizona Opera, KBAQ 89.5 FM, ASU Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts, and Classical Revolution PHX.
It was only my second day on the job, working as the new Marketing & PR intern at the Phoenix Chorale, and the agenda for the day was to shoot a video for our upcoming “Chant & Beyond” concerts. Not knowing exactly what to expect, my stomach bubbled with excitement. Would we be going to a studio? Would there be dozens of people hustling and bustling around with cameras and lights yelling Action!? I was much relieved when we arrived on the scene to Saints Simon and Jude Cathedral, a much less intimidating location for a new intern on the job.
The Cathedral was quiet and still, aside from the orange and yellow light radiating from a stained glass wall on one side of the room. It was the perfect setting as the backdrop for the shoot. Matthew Scott, a bass singer in the Phoenix Chorale and the interview subject in the video, was the first to greet us and show us around. Matthew, Bass and Traditional Cantor for the Catholic Cathedral of Phoenix, an expert in the type of music that will be sung at “Chant & Beyond” and has been singing this type of music since he was a young boy.
Check out the finished product!
Hope to see you at our upcoming concert! Get your tickets here.
Mr. Tritle’s January 16, 2011 show, Painting the whole Picture: Handel at His Best, features the Phoenix Chorale and Kansas City Chorale’s performance of Jaakko Mäntyjärvi’s Canticum Calamitatis Maritimae (at 19:29) from our Chandos recording Eternal Rest. Be sure to bookmark “The Choral Mix” page and keep up on this great new weekly show all about choral music!
27.3 million viewers saw Monday night’s BCS Tostitos Championship Game. Not only was this the “…largest [audience] in cable television history…” but we can safely say that’s the biggest audience we’ve performed for – ever!
There were sightings of Oregon Duck football players, ESPN sportscasters and even Arizona Cardinals’ coach Ken Wisenhunt. Check out photos from the night here.
And watch the video of the Phoenix Chorale performing “God Bless America:”
Charles Bruffy is “In the Kitchen with Bonnie” tasting a winter meal from Café Tempo in Overland Park, Kansas.
Prepared by executive chef Tim Johnson, the signature winter dish features grilled stuffed bison with sage mozzarella cheese, zinfandel potatoes and a blackberry port sauce… which sounds pretty amazing to me! I keep repeating “sage mozzarella cheese” over and over in my head.
