Here’s the repertoire for these concerts:

With A Lily in Your Hand - Eric Whitacre

This Marriage – Eric Whitacre

Village Wedding – Sir John Tavener

Lullaby from “The Garden of Paradise” - Shawn Crouch

A Child’s Prayer – James MacMillan (Cassandra Ewer, soprano / Danya Tiller, soprano)

MLK – words and music by U2, arr. Bob Chilcott (Andrew De Valk, tenor)

Song for Athene – Sir John Tavener

Dark Night of the Soul - Ola Gjeilo (World premiere; Ola Gjeilo, piano / Alison Chaney, soprano / Michelle Mitchell, violin / Laura Speck, violin / Allyson Wuenschel, viola / Clara Lee, cello)

Noche oscura del alma – Carlos Surinach

Nocturnes – Morten Lauridsen (Joshua Hillmann, piano)

And don’t forget!  Check out the KBAQ 89.5 FM Pre-Concert Talk — only at Trinity Cathedral on February 27 — which starts at 6:30 p.m. and takes place in Atwood Hall.

Buy tickets here.

Here’s the repertoire for these concerts:

To Morning - Gabriel Jackson

i thank You God for this most amazing day – Eric Whitacre

A boy and a girl – Eric Whitacre

Tal vez tenemos tiempo – Tarik O’Regan

Cecilia Virgo – Gabriel Jackson

Secrets & Prayers – Ola Gjeilo

Madrigali: Six “Fire Songs” on Italian Renaissance Poems – Morten Lauridsen

Leonardo Dreams of his Flying Machine – Eric Whitacre

And don’t forget!  Check out the KBAQ 89.5 FM Pre-Concert Talk — only at Trinity Cathedral on October 24 — which starts at 6:30 p.m. and takes place in Atwood Hall.

Buy tickets here.

Scavenger Hunt participants looking over their answers with Stacy Bertinelli of KBAQ.

So, the First Ever First Friday Scavenger Hunt was a big success!  We had a lot of fun putting this event together and watching it unfold.  Everyone was talking about it in the weeks leading up to last Friday and I couldn’t believe how many people had heard about it.  It was our opening event of the season and we gave away lots of cool door prizes, got to hang out with our friends at KBAQ, and made lots of new friends — including some zombies.  I had heard about the Zombie Lurch a couple of days before so I was prepared (and a little scared because I DO NOT like zombies).  Luckily for me, they were nice zombies.

Scavenger Hunt answer boards

In the end, the Scavenger Hunt proved to be pretty difficult.  I’m sure many of you are dying to know the answers, so here they are (we promise to make it a little easier next year!):  Scavenger Hunt Answers.

The Grand Prize Winner is Kristi Maekawa.  Kristi’s Grand Prize Package included: 2 Season Tickets to the Phoenix Chorale, a one-night stay at The Clarendon Hotel, gift certificates to MADE Art Boutique, dinner at Cheuvront’s, a KBAQ CD Box Set, and a Phoenix Chorale CD Box Set.

(l to r) Zombie, Jon Town, Zombie, Zombie, Sterling Beeaff, Jenna De Valk

Door prizes included KBAQ t-shirts, hats, CDs, Phoenix Chorale CDs and concert tickets, a gift certificate to Portland’s Restaurant, and free coffee from Fair Trade Cafe.  Everyone that attended the event received a free MP3 download of “Phoenix,” a new work premiered by the Chorale earlier this year and written by our Composer-in-Residence Ola Gjeilo.  Thanks goes to all of our sponsors for helping make this event happen.

Special thanks to our friends at KBAQ – Sterling Beeaff, Katrina Becker, Jon Town, and Stacy Bertinelli – for their help in putting this event together.

To see more photos from the First Ever First Friday Scavenger Hunt, click here.

It’s going to be pretty cool. You can test your knowledge of the downtown Phoenix art scene all month long – and enter to win cool prizes! We’ve teamed up with our favorite radio station, KBAQ 89.5 FM, and we’re challenging you to identify 18 images of things you’d see on the First Friday Art Walk.

The contest begins today, First Friday, September 4 at the Roosevelt Tavern (816 N. 3rd St., Phoenix) at 5 pm. Stacy Bertinelli from KBAQ will be on hand with entry forms so you can get started. Or you can download and print your own entry form, see the photo clues and contest rules here.

The contest ends on First Friday, October 2 at our Free Open Rehearsal inside Trinity Cathedral (100 W. Roosevelt, Phoenix). Come by the rehearsal and drop off your entry form – and stick around for the rehearsal, meet the peeps at KBAQ, and enter to win cool door prizes.

The Scavenger Hunt Grand Prize Winner will be announced on KBAQ 89.5 FM on Monday, October 5 at 8 am.  All results will be posted at www.kbaq.org. Happy hunting!

Phoenix Chorale's 50th Anniversary Gala

Remembering the night of the Phoenix Chorale’s 50th Anniversary Gala, makes me think how wonderful it was to be a part of their history and creating my own memorable experience.

Jen and I arrived at the newly renovated Memorial Hall (inside Steele Indian School Park) and quickly set up our table where guests would check in. I peeked inside the hall and the atmosphere was warm and inviting. As guests started to arrive, I was very impressed by the turnout and luckily met some of them, which was exciting for me because I always look forward to meeting new and exciting people—especially friends of the Chorale.

The Ted Belledin Quartet

After the guests checked in, it was time for cocktail hour, which was a lovely spread of hors d’oeuvres. The hot topic of the reception was how delicious the brie was (I bet that was the cheese I kept going back for). Everyone enjoyed a fine selection of beers from New Belgium Brewing Co., wine donated by Quail Distributors and jazzy tunes performed by the Ted Belledin Quartet. It was a romantic setting, with guests mingling and catching up with old friends.

The Phoenix Chorale

A scrumptious dinner by Seasons Gourmet Catering was laid out for everyone and during dinner, Sterling Beeaff, Music Director for KBAQ (which is the station I am listening to as I type this up) introduced Charles Bruffy and a performance by the Chorale. The Chorale performed…

Cassandra Ewer, Laura Inman, Stephanie Stickford, Sean Carter Campbell and Josh Hillmann

I especially enjoyed hearing “Chili Con Carne,” by a quintet of Chorale singers Cassandra, Josh, Laura, Sean, and Stephanie. They dazzled the audience and it was a perfect transition for the awards portion of the night. Claudia Kennedy, the 50th Anniversary Gala Chair, oversaw the presentation of awards.

The Philanthropy Award was presented to Mr. & Mrs. John Ford and Mr. & Mrs. Paul Perez for their support of the Phoenix Chorale over the years.

Mr. & Mrs. John Ford

Mr. & Mrs. Paul Perez with Charles Bruffy

The Chorale Masters Award was presented to former Phoenix Chorale conductor, Dan Durand and to the founder of the Phoenix Boys Choir, Dr. Harvey K. Smith.

Former Phoenix Chorale conductor Dan Durand

Charles Bruffy, Dr. Harvey K. Smith and Claudia Kennedy

Additional awards included:

The Founders Award was presented to Millicent Wesley, the Phoenix Chorale's first conductor in 1958.

A special surprise Alumni Award was presented to Beth Livingston-Hakes, a former Phoenix Chorale singer who sang with the Chorale for over 30 years.

Phoenix City Councilman Claude Mattox

The awards concluded with Councilman Claude Mattox presenting the City of Phoenix’s award to the Phoenix Chorale as a “Friend of Phoenix.”

The evening’s raffle consisted of a variety of prizes including a sculpture by Barbara Andress. For the silent auction, and on display in the hall was one of two sculptures donated by the Herberger Foundation, by artist

"Earth and Space" by John Henry Waddell

John Henry Waddell, known for his bronze sculptures in motion. Now, I am a sucker for fine art, so I when I saw the sculpture displayed in the hall, it was nice to know there was a variety of the arts featured at the event—both visual and performing.

The evening came to a close with a special piano performance by the Chorale’s Josh Hillmann who performed Capriccio No. 1 from Brahms’ 7 Fantasies Op. 11 along with more cabaret-style singing by members of the Chorale.

All in all, the evening came together beautifully. And as everyone was enjoying the last moments of the event, it appeared to make a lasting impression on the guests, honorees, friends and newcomers to the Phoenix Chorale. Cheers to the next 50 years!

Claudia and Alan Kennedy with family and friends

–Erika Eve Gonzalez, Public Relations Intern

See more photos from the Phoenix Chorale’s 50th Anniversary Gala here.

*All photos by Ryan Delgado.