PRAGUE CHORAL FESTIVAL Smetana Hall / Smetanova síň Municipal House / Obecní dům Prague 1 / Praha 1 12. 7. 2016 7.30 pm, 19.30 hod.
Dear Friends, it is a joy to welcome you at Prague Choral Festival 2016, which celebrates its 10th year of existence this year. Coincidently tonight’s performance – among other works - includes Carmina Burana, a beloved work, with which we opened our festival in 2006. Over this past decade we have had the honor to work with some of the finest conductors, chorus masters, singers and instrumentalists from all over the world. Some of the finest Czech orchestras including Czech National Symphony Orchestra and Czech National Opera Orchestra joined us. I would like to take the opportunity to thank all singers who participate at this year’s festival and who arrived to Prague from every corner of Bohemia and Moravia and also from many states of the USA. Especially, I would like to thank all participating choral directors and conductors who have worked very hard to prepare music for tonight’s concert: Ludmila Bajerová, Ryan Board, Helena Kaločová, Joshua Maize, Matthew Mehaffey, Jeremy Mims, Andrew Morgan, Vít Novotný, Jakub Gabriel Rajnoch, Libor Sládek, Zdena Součková, Andrea Svobodová, Olga Ubrová. My gratitude also belongs to all members of the Prague Choral Festival organizational team, which has done terrific job in putting all puzzle pieces together. I am grateful to Lenka Bartoníčková, Kateřina Daňová, Jana Karfusová, Lucie Kratochvílová, Jana Peláková, Dana, Radim, Barbora a Václav Sedmidubských, Tomáš Svoboda a Michaela Šedivá. I also want to express my grattitude to Katka "A" for all graphic design. Enjoy tonight’s performance. We hope to see you again!
Dr. Jiří Kratochvíl, D.A., director 2
Vážení a milí hosté, dovolte mi, abych Vás co nejsrdečněji přivítal na galakoncertě Prague Choral Festivalu, který letos slaví už deset let svého trvání. Shodou okolností zazní dnes večer kromě jiných děl právě Carmina Burana, jíž jsme před deseti lety festival zahájili. Od té doby jste s námi měli možnost slyšet vynikající mezinárodní sbory, sólisty a orchestry. I v letošním ročníku zazní skladby světové sborové literatury v podání špičkových sborů z USA, Čech a Moravy. Věřím, že se máte se na co těšit! Chtěl bych při této příležitosti poděkovat všem, bez nichž by se dnešní festivalový koncert neobešel. Jsou to zpěváci, kteří se sjeli do Prahy z nejrůznějších míst USA a České republiky, a jejich sbormistři Ludmila Bajerová, Ryan Board, Helena Kaločová, Joshua Maize, Matthew Mehaffey, Jeremy Mims, Andrew Morgan, Vít Novotný, Jakub Gabriel Rajnoch, Libor Sládek, Zdena Součková, Andrea Svobodová, Olga Ubrová. Rád bych ocenil i všechny ostatní hudebníky, kteří se dnes večer představí. Mé poděkování patří rovněž festivalovému výboru a dalším, kteří se na přípravě letošního ročníku podíleli. Jsou to: Lenka Bartoníčková, Kateřina Daňová, Jana Karfusová, Lucie Kratochvílová, Jana Peláková, Dana, Radim, Barbora a Václav Sedmidubských, Tomáš Svoboda a Michaela Šedivá. Rovněž velice děkuji Katce "A" za veškerý grafický design. Přeji vám krásné umělecké zážitky!
Dr. Jiří Kratochvíl, D.A., ředitel 3
Smetana Hall / Smetanova síň Municipal House / Obecní dům
Prague 1 / Praha 1 | 12. 7. 2016 | 7.30 pm, 19.30 hod.
• LITANIES
Jehan Alain (1911-1940)
• PRAGUE TE DEUM 1989
Petr Eben (1929-2007)
• POSTLUDIUM
Leoš Janáček (1854-1928)
• NÄNIE
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)
Daniela Kosinová, organ / varhany
Daniela Kosinová, organ / varhany Prague Percussion Players / Pražští perkusionisté Ryan Board, conductor / dirigent
Daniela Kosinová, organ / varhany
Jeremy Mims & Sharon Jensen, piano / klavír Ryan Board, conductor / dirigent
United American Choirs / Spojené americké sbory: Pepperdine University - Ryan Board, director / sbormistr; Clarke University Jeremy Mims, director / sbormistr; Hendrix University - Andrew Morgan, director / sbormistr; University of Minnesota and Oratorio Society of Minnesota - Matthew Mehaffey, director / sbormistr
Intermission / Přestávka 4
• CARMINA BURANA
Carl Orff (1895-1982)
Fortuna Imperatrix Mundi O Fortuna Fortune plango vulnera I. Primo vere Veris leta facies Omnia sol temperat Ecce gratum Uf dem anger Tanz Floret silva Chramer, gip die varwe mir Reie Swaz hie gat umbe Were diu werlt alle min II. In taberna Estuans interius Olim lacus colueram
Ego sum abbas In taberna quando sumus III. Cour d’amours Amor volat undique Dies, nox et omnia Stetit puella Circa mea pectora Si puer cum puellula Veni, veni, venias In trutina Tempus et iocundum Dulcissime Blanziflor et Helena Ave formosissima Fortuna Imperatrix Mundi O Fortuna
Linh Kauffman, soprano / soprán Gary Ruschman, tenor / tenor Philip Zawisza, baritone / baryton Jeremy Mims & Sharon Jensen, piano / klavír Prague Percussion Players / Pražští perkusionisté Matthew Mehaffey, conductor / dirigent
United American and Czech Choirs / Spojené americké a české sbory: Pueri Gaudentes – boys choir / chlapecký sbor; Libor Sládek, director / sbormistr; Pueri Gaudentes – men’s choir / mužský sbor; Libor Sládek, director / sbormistr; Gaudium Praha - Zdena Součková, director / sbormistryně; Besharmonie - Libor Sládek, director / sbormistr; Bohemiachor - Vít Novotný, director / sbormistr; Garrendo - Jakub Gabriel Rajnoch, director / sbormistr; Harmonie - Olga Ubrová and Andrea Svobodová, directors / sbormistryně; Hekal - Helena Kaločová, director / sbormistryně; L’Asenzio - Ludmila Bajerová, director / sbormistryně; Pepperdine University Ryan Board, director / sbormistr; Clarke University - Jeremy Mims, director / sbormistr; Hendrix University - Andrew Morgan, director / sbormistr; University of Minnesota and Oratorio Society of Minnesota - Matthew Mehaffey, director / sbormistr 5
LITANIES (Litanie) Jehan Alain was born into a family of musicians. His father was an organist, composer and organ builder, his
younger brother was an organist and pianist and his younger sister was an organist as well. Alain attended Paris conservatory and studied with André Bloch, Marcel Dupré and Paul Dukas. As a skilled motorcyclist he was assigned as dispatch rider for the French Army. On June 20, 1940 e ncountered a group of German soldiers and engaged in a fight killing 16 German soldiers before being killed himself. He was buried by Germans with honors. A manuscript of Litaniess, a piece now familiar to organists all over the world, gives the date of completion as the 15th of August 1937. Alain confided to his friend Bernard Gavoty: “Prayer is not a complaint but a blast of wind that sweeps all before it. It is also an obsession... “. The obsessive nature of the great theme in the mode of D transposed into E flat is apparent from the start, pounded out to an irregular beat: 3+5+2+4+2. Alain was looking for music with “magical power” and Litaniess are intended to be spellbinding. The composer also includes passages from Fantasmagorie, written a few years earlier in a train with its irregular movement inspiring the rhythmically contrasted second theme. Jehan Alain se narodil v rodině hudebníků. Jeho otec byl varhaník a varhanář, jeho mladší bratr byl varhaník a klavírista a jeho mladší sestra byla rovněž varhanice. Alain studoval na Pařížské konzervatoři, kde jeho učiteli byli André Bloch, Marcel Dupré and Paul Dukas. Jeho krátký život skončil tragicky, když se jako voják francouzské armády ve druhé světové válce střetl na motorce se skupinou německých nepřátel. Poté co jich sám šestnáct zastřelil, byl sám nakonec v přestřelce zabit. Litanies je dnes známa varhaníkům po celém světě a je to nejpopulárnější dílo autora. Skladba je zamýšlena jako naléhavá modlitba, ale zároveň jako posedost, což autor vyjádřil strhujícím tempem a dynamikou stejně jako nepravidelným rytmem a neobvyklými modulačními postupy.
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PRAGUE TE DEUM 1989 Petr Eben is one of the best known Czech composers of the twentieth century. From 1955-1990, Eben
taught at the department of musical science at Charles University after which he became a designated professor of composition at the Academy of Performing Arts. Eben’s compositions have been heard throughout the world, and he composed for some of the finest orchestras and venues. He composed in all genres, but as a devout Catholic, his religious music offers a particularly poignant repertory of expression and ingenuity. He was also a renown pianist and organist having given concerts abroad in Paris (Notre Dame), London (Royal Festival Hall and Westminster Cathedral), as well as at the festivals of Melbourne, and the USA. However Eben’s core activity was composing. It is especially significant that Eben composed the jubilant Prague Te Deum, 1989, immediately following the Czechoslovak “Velvet Revolution” of 1989, which originated in Prague where Eben lived. As he himself put it: “I composed this work from my personal need to thank for the events we have been waiting for so long.” Eben sets the first choral entrance to the notes of the original Te Deum Gregorian chant and uses it as primary material, which is abandoned and then returned to throughout the work. Eben utilizes a fresh musical and rhythmic language in support of this original chant thereby creating a unique juxtaposition of old and new ideas. Originally scored for SATB choir, brass, and percussion, tonight’s performance presents Eben’s alternate version for choir, organ, and percussion. Petra Ebena není třeba českému publiku představovat; bezpochyby patří mezi nejznámější skladatele české provenience 20. století. Pražské Te Deum 1989 koncipoval jako “poděkování za události, na které jsme tak dlouho čekali”. Tak jak je pro Ebena typické, jako hlavní stavební materiál využívá gregoriánského chorálu, který se ozve už v prvních taktech skladby a ke kterému se v průběhu díla vrací . Původní instrumentace díla je pro sbor, žestě a bicí. Dnes večer zazní autorova verze pro sbor, varhany a bicí nástroje.
POSTLUDIUM Next to Smetana and Dvořák, by whom he was also influenced, Janáček is considered the most important Czech composer.
Janáček was a prolific composer, organ player and director of an organ school. He was also a tireless “speech tune” collector, which later defined his unique compositional style. 7
Postludium was written by Leoš Janáček much sooner than Glagolitic Mass, from which it is known. Janáček composed it as a solo intermezzo in a style of passacaglia and named it "Organ solo". This short but extremely difficult composition shows author´s original and highly expressive style. Much later Janáček used it as a seventh part of his mass, one of his most important choral-orchestral works. Virtuózní Postludium ve stylu pasacaglie napsal Leoš Janáček původně jako sólovou skladbu pro varhany s titulem Organ solo. Naprostá výjimečnost této krátké, avšak orignální a vysoce expresivní skladby přiměla později autora, aby ji zařadil do sedmé části své Glagolské mše.
NÄNIE This touching elegy was written by Schiller in 1799, and while it is unclear in whose memory it was written, when Brahms set it to music in 1880-1881, he was memorializing his dear friend and contemporary painter, Anselm Feuerbach (1829-1880).
Brahms brilliantly represents the dramatic imagery of Schiller’s poem. Much of Nänie is set in a slow, lilting, 6 / 4 time signature. Each time one of the characters dies and fulfills his or her fate, Brahms sets the text to a dramatic musical descent in pitch wherein the measure is divided into three beats instead of two (a hemiola). The end of the piece brings us back to a reflection on those who are memorialized with the profound utterance, “Tis glory to be a song of lament on the lips of loved ones.” Skladba Nänie (v latině znamená “nenia” pohřební píseň) Johannese Brahmse nezaznívá na našich pódiích často. Přesto jde o vrcholné sborové dílo autora. Brahms použil jako předlohu báseň Friedricha Schillera se stejnojmenným názvem, ve které autor rozjímá nad nevyhnutelností smrti. Brahms zhudebnil Schillerův text v roce 1881 jako hold svému zemřelému příteli Anselmu Feuerbachovi.
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CARMINA BURANA In the early 19th century, as a condition of the new alliance of Napoleon with Elector Maximilian IV Joseph,
all Bavarian monasteries were secularized and the contents of their vast libraries ceded to the Court Library in Munich. One of the many treasures in these holdings was a collection of some three hundred mostly anonymous poems from the thirteenth century, all on illuminated parchment manuscript. While this collection was bound together, these poems were written by a variety of poets from a wide geographic area over a period of 200 years. In the middle of the 19th century, the court librarian, Johann Andreas Schmeller, published a modern edition of this poetry. German composer Carl Orff, most often known for his work with children’s music education in Germany, came across Schmeller’s modern edition of the Carmina Burana in the early 20th century and assembled 24 of the poems into a libretto. Although recent research offers significant information with regard to the original melodies of these poems, Orff had no knowledge of the original music, so he set to work in writing completely new music for these medieval poems. Orff admired the music of Igor Stravinsky, and as with Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring, one is immediately struck by the driving rhythmic force of Orff’s Carmina Burana. There is a primal and visceral simplicity to much the music which suits the themes of the poetry. The work is constructed in three sections: In the Springtime and On the Green, In the Tavern and The Court of Love. The poetry of these sections present Orff the opportunity to create a vast display of color and drama. At several points in the score, Orff pays tribute the primary musical medium of the Middle Ages by setting the music to chant. Floret silva, where one can hear the horse of the wayward lover riding off into the distance, and In taberna where by the end we discover that everyone from the nurse maid to the priest is in tavern drinking, are quite humorous both in text and in choral and orchestral display. The love songs present us with tender, provocative, and somewhat lascivious texts, and Orff responds in kind, carefully crafting the music to showcase the particular emotional content. Carmina Burana is a grand spectacle filled with breathtaking contrasts. The entire work begins and ends with the forceful and dramatic Imperatrix Mundi: O Fortuna, which has been used in countless films, commercials, video games, and is arguably the most popular piece of classical music written in the twentieth century.
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CARMINA BURANA Carl Orff pocházel z hudby milovné mnichovské rodiny. Od útlého dětství se učil hře na klavír a později i na varhany a violoncello. Absolvoval gymnázium a v roce 1914 zahájil studia na mnichovské Akademii der Tonkunst. V roce 1924 založil v Mnichově společně s Dorotheou Güntherovou školu tance, gymnastiky a hudby, kde si experimentálně ověřoval nové možnosti hudební výchovy dětí. Tak vznikl Orffem prosazený pojem Schulwerk jakožto systematická metoda, v níž jsou žáci pomocí soustavy cvičení podle melodických a rytmických modelů vedeni k vlastní improvizaci. Orff také vydával a upravoval starou hudbu. Dokonale tak poznal základní prvky, které romantická evropská tradice později eliminovala (např. bordun, ostinato, repetici, recitaci, pentatoniku, psalmodický způsob přednesu). Z těchto prvků pak vyrostlo i Orffovo osobitě formulované vlastní dílo, v němž skladatel využívá jednoduchých expresivních melodií a působivé, často rafinovaně komplikované rytmiky. Nejvýznamnějším Orffovým dílem, jež dnes patří také k nejoblíbenějším dílům světové hudební literatury, je jedna z částí triptychu Trionfi - Carmina Burana (další dvě části nesou názvy Catulli Carmina a Trionfo di Afrodite). Vlastní obsah kompozice Carmina Burana, jež byla poprvé provedena v roce 1937 ve Frankfurtu nad Mohanem, tvoří zhudebněné texty středověkých potulných básníků a hudebníků, jež byly objeveny v klášteře Beurum. Původní texty užívají několika jazyků (mj. staroněmčinu, latinu, starofrancouzštinu a italštinu). Formálním členěním představují Carmina Burana kantátu, rozdělenou do několika tematických celků podle obsahu: písně pijácké, milostné, písně o jaru, o štěstí aj. V orchestrální partituře předepisuje skladatel neobvykle velké množství bicích nástrojů. Dnes večer zazní dílo v Orffově úpravě pro bicí nástroje a dva klavíry, tedy v provedení, které ještě více umocní strhující rytmiku díla.
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JEREMY MIMS, piano / klavír Dr. Jeremy Mims is Assistant Professor of Music at Clarke University, where he conducts the choirs and string orchestra and will serve as chair of the music department starting this fall. He is also the Associate Conductor of the Dubuque Chorale and the director of the Chancel Choir at St. Luke’s UMC. Previously he headed the choral and orchestral ensembles at Whitman College in Walla Walla, WA. In addition, Dr. Mims was the conductor of the Walla Walla Symphony Youth Orchestra, Pioneer United Methodist Church Choir, and the Oregon East Symphony Chorale, as well as a guest conductor with the Walla Walla Symphony and Walla Walla Choral Society. His ensembles have performed for various conventions and he is a frequent clinician for area honor choirs. Dr. Mims has served as musical director, chorus master, and accompanist of shows for various professional, collegiate and local theatres and opera companies. A musician of multiple talents and diversity, Jeremy has appeared on national and international concert and opera stages as a conductor, collaborative pianist, violinist, and a tenor chorister. As an active collaborative pianist, Mims has served as accompanist for numerous high school all-region and all-state choirs, as well for professional and university choruses. This is his second time to serve as accompanist at the Prague Choral Festival.
Dr. Mims se vrací na Prague Choral Festival letos již podruhé. Jeremy je profesorem na Clarke University v USA, kde působí jako sbormistr. Od podzimu letošního roku byl jmenován ředitelem hudební katedry. Mims se uplatňuje rovněž jako dirigent, houslista a zpěvák.
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SHARON JENSEN, piano / klavír Sharon Jensen holds music degrees from Calvin College, University of Texas and University of Michigan. As the recipient of a Rotary Fellowship, she studied at the Hochschule fϋr Musik in Vienna, Austria where she received the Artist’s Diploma. She has performed recitals and with orchestras throughout the Midwest of the USA, including the Quad Cities Mozart Festival orchestra. In 2007 she made her solo debut with the Dubuque Symphony. In March 2010 Dr. Jensen made her debut at Carnegie’s Weill Recital Hall and performed there for four consecutive years with flautist Peg Cornils Luke. She has also been heard on NPR’s Live from Landmark Center, Live from the Chazen and Chicago’s Dame Myra Hess Series. Sharon performs regularly in the Tri-State area as a soloist, collaborative musician and as pianist for the Dubuque Chorale. Dr. Jensen was chair of keyboard studies at Augustana College (Rock Island, IL) from 1986-1993 where she was also a member of the Augustana Trio. She is currently Assistant Professor of Music at Clarke University where she teaches piano, music history and keyboard skills. In 2015 she was honored as the Nationally Certified Teacher of the Year from the state of Iowa.
Sharon Jensen se v Praze letos představí poprvé. Vystudovala na Calvin College a University of Texas. Vyučuje hru na klavír a hudební historii na Clarke University ve státě Iowa.
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DANIELA VALTOVÁ KOSINOVÁ, organ / varhany Organist Daniela Valtová Kosinová graduated form the Conservatory of Music in Pardubice and Music Faculty od Academy of Performing Arts in Prague. In 2001 / 2002 she received a scholarship and has studied also at the Hochschule für Music und Theater in Hamburg. She gives concerts in the Czech republic as well as abroad; she is a soloist and also a head of keyboard instruments section of the Prague Symphony Orchestra FOK. As a soloist she appears also with other orchestras and ensembles. Last year she took the solo organ part of L. Janáček´s Glagolitic Mass with the Czech Philharmonic under Jiří Bělohlávek in Musikverein in Vienna. With this superb orchestra and Bělohlávek she also visited the USA in 2014 and has played in famous concert halls, including Carnegie Hall in New York.
Daniela Valtová Kosinová je přední česká varhanice. Koncertuje po celé Evropě; v roce 2003 reprezentovala ČR na koncertě nových členských zemí EU v Madridu. V únoru 2007 debutovala sólovým recitálem v lipském Gewandhausu; v květnu téhož roku vystoupila spolu s fenomenální anglickou trumpetistkou Alison Balsom na společném recitálu v rámci Pražského jara v Dvořákově síni Rudolfina. Od roku 2006 zastává funkci vedoucí klávesových nástrojů v Symfonickém orchestru hl. m. Prahy FOK, kde vystupuje také sólově. V roce 2015 vystoupila s Českou filharmonií pod taktovkou Jiřího Bělohlávka jako sólistka v Janáčkově Glagolské mši v koncertní síni Musikverein ve Vídni; s tímto orchestrem také navštívila v roce 2014 USA, kde v rámci turné hrála např. v newyorské Carnegie Hall. Od útlého věku se zabývá také kompozicí. Její skladby zazněly na vlnách amerického rádia WPRB Princeton New Jersey, nizozemského rádia Mona Lisa Amsterodam, Českého rozhlasu a na četných koncertech doma i v zahraničí.
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LINH KAUFFMAN, soprano / soprán American soprano Linh Kauffman enjoys an active international career in opera, oratorio, and recital. She made her Latin American debut as Melia in Mozart’s Apollo et Hyacinthus at the Teatro Nacional de Panamá and this past season returned for Handel’s Acis and Galatea for Antiqva Panamá and Purcell's Dido and Aeneas for Festival Musica Antigua Panamá. She recently debuted at the Festival Musique en l'Île in Paris in Purcell opera excerpts and toured Germany with Helmuth Rilling and the Festivalensemble Stuttgart. Other recent performances include Mahler Symphony No. 2 with the Minnesota Orchestra, Mahler Symphony No. 4 with the Metropolitan Symphony, Euridice in Gluck’s Orfeo for the Twin Cities Early Music Festival, and the title role in Handel’s Esther with Lyra Baroque Orchestra. Americká sopranistka Linh Kauffman se stále více prosazuje na mezinárodní scéně, a to jak na poli opery, tak i oratoria a recitálu. Její hlas měli možnost slyšet posluchači v Severní a Jižní Americe i v Evropě. V Národním divadle v Panamě se například představila v Händelově opeře Acis a Galatea či v Purcellově opeře Dido a Aeneas. V Paříži debutovala na festivalu Musique en l'Île a v Německu zpívala pod taktovkou Helmutha Rillinga na Festivalensemble. Mimo jiné se představila také na Oregon Bach Festival, s Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Rochester Philarmonic a se Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra.
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GARY RUSHMAN, tenor / tenor Hailed by the San Francisco Chronicle as 'funny and fresh-voiced', Gary Ruschman has appeared with major and regional orchestras, ensembles, presenters, and opera companies across the U.S. and abroad, including the Boston Pops, Minnesota Orchestra, Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, Consortium Carissimi, Portland Opera, American Bach Soloists, Royal Opera House Oman, San Francisco Opera Center, Ballet San Jose, Birdland, and in concert alongside jazz legends Doc Severinsen and Bobby McFerrin. The tenor's recent highlights include the world premiere of Hagen and Freeh's dance opera Test Pilot, Metamorphosis Opera Theatre's concert presentation of Alcina, and Handel's Esther with Lyra Baroque Orchestra. Rushman also recently premiered Edie Hill's Rincon de Cielo for Saint Paul's Schubert Club, and performed Bach's Cantata 131 with Minnesota Bach Ensemble. An active choral conductor and clinician, Gary serves as Director of Music at St. Timothy Lutheran Church in Saint Paul, MN, and is an ASCAP award-winning composer / arranger. He earned degrees with honors from Northern Kentucky University and the San Francisco Conservatory of Music.
Gary Rushman je mezinárodně uznávaný tenorista. Je známý posluchačům po celých Spojených státech, ale prosadil se i v mnoha evropských zemích. V USA zpíval například s Boston Pops, Minnesota Orchestra, Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, Consortium Carissimi, Portland Opera, American Bach Soloists, Royal Opera House Oman, San Francisco Opera Center, Ballet San Jose, Birdland a zazpíval si i na koncertě po boku jazzových legend - Doca Severinsena a Bobbyho McFerrina. Rushman nahrával pro mnoho televizních a rozhlasových společností, například Yomuri Television Japan, European Broadcast Union, NPR's Tiny Desk Concerts, University of California Television a další. Gary Rushman je rovněž činný jako sbormistr a skladatel.
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PHILIP ZAWISZA, baritone / baryton A native of Niles, Michigan and a graduate of the Interlochen Arts Academy, Philip Zawisza completed his Master's Degree at Indiana University with Nicola Rossi-Lemeni. He began his solo career with the Santa Fe Opera and the Lyric Opera of Chicago on radio and television PBS broadcasts. Philip sang alongside Carlo Bergonzi for his farewell performances in L'elisir D'amore at the Baltimore Opera in 1993. Zawisza started in Europe with the National Theatre in Mannheim where he developed roles such as Germont (La Traviata), Enrico (Lucia di Lammermoor), Posa (Don Carlos), Escamillo (Carmen) Wolfram (Tannhäuser) and Papageno (Die Zauberflöte). In 1995, he was awarded the Arnold Peterson Prize as an outstanding performing artist. Zawisza recorded the world-premiere of Blarr's Jerusalem Symphony with Jun Markl and sang Orff's Carmina Burana and Manuel de Fallas' Altantida with conductor Miguel Gómez Martínez. He has worked with the Radio symphony orchestras of Madrid, Munich, Koblenz, Frankfurt, and Nuremburg. As a Bach singer in Salzburg, he has performed with Howard Armen and Ivor Bolton. Along with his engagements as an opera singer, Zawisza is a recognized song recitalist. Currently, Philip Zawisza teaches at the University of Minnesota where he is an Assistant Professor of voice.
Philip Zawisza se narodil v americkém státě Michigan, kde vystudoval Interlochen Arts Academy. Titul magistr získal na Indiana University. Jeho sólová kariéra začala v Santa Fe Opera a the Lyric Opera of Chicago. Zawisza zahájil evropskou kariéru s Národním divadlem v Mannheimu, kde ztvárnil role Germonta (La Traviata), Enrica (Lucia di Lammermoor), Posy (Don Carlos), Escamilla (Carmen) Wolframa (Tannhäuser) a Papagena (Die Zauberflöte). V roce 1995 mu byla udělena cena Arnolda Petersona. Zawisza nahrál světovou premiéru Blarrovy Jerusalem Symphony pod taktovkou Juna Markla. K jeho rolím patří dále například Figaro (Barbiere di Siviglia), Golaud (Pelleas et Melisande ) a Gerard (Andrea Chénier). Zawisza je činný rovněž jako pedagog na University of Minnesota. 16
JOSHUA MAIZE, assistant conductor / asistent dirigenta Joshua Maize is working on a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in conducting under Robert Bode at the Conservatory of Music and Dance at the University of Missouri - Kansas City and is an active vocalist, organist, and musicologist. He holds degrees from the University of Kansas (M.M. – musicology and church music) and UMKC (B.M.E. – choral music education). Josh specializes in music of the Renaissance and Baroque periods, with a focus on musical rhetoric in early German Baroque vocal repertoire. He is the founder / conductor of Schütz Projekt Vocal Artists, a Kansas Citybased ensemble dedicated to the performance of works by Heinrich Schütz and his contemporaries. Recent performances include Schütz’s Matthäuspassion (2015) and Auferstehungshistorie (2016) in collaboration with instrumentalists from Indiana University’s Historical Performance Institute. In addition to his study of the German Baroque, he is continuing research on early French and Franco-Flemish sacred music. As a vocalist, Josh is recognized as a lyric baritone with a unique and beautiful sound, especially fitting for early music. Currently, he sings with Te Deum Chamber Choir and Te Deum Antiqua, where he also serves as Artistic Associate. He has been a member of a number of ensembles including Simon Carrington Chamber Singers, Norfolk Chamber Choir, Spire Chamber Ensemble, and KC Collegium Vocale. He is currently Choirmaster for Grace Episcopal Church having previously served as Choral Scholar for Grace Episcopal Cathedral and Choral Intern for Village Presbyterian Church.
Joshua Maize v současné době dokončuje doktorská studia na University of Missouri v Kansas City. Na pódiích v USA se představuje nejen jako lyrický baryton, ale také jako varhaník, dirigent a sbormistr. Jako zpěvák vystupoval s renomovanými soubory jako například Simon Carrington Chamber Singers, Norfolk Chamber Choir, Spire Chamber Ensemble a KC Collegium Vocale.
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MATTHEW MEHAFFEY, conductor / dirigent American conductor and educator Matthew Mehaffey is crafting an international reputation in the field of choral/orchestral music through his engaging artistry, collaborative spirit, affirming pedagogical style, and entrepreneurial approach to concert programming. As a conductor, each week he leads over 200 passionate amateur and professional singers in Pittsburgh and St. Paul in the development of concert programs that both celebrate the standard choral/orchestral repertoire and push the boundaries of a traditional choral concert. Recent notable professional engagements include work with Washington National Opera, Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, Minnesota Orchestra, Czech National Symphony Orchestra, Prague Proms, Lyra Baroque Orchestra, Vocal Essence, Minnesota Chorale, Singers in Accord, and Turner Network Television. As a teacher, Dr. Mehaffey is Associate Professor of Music at the University of Minnesota, where he conducts the University Singers and Men's Chorus, teaches graduate and undergraduate courses in conducting and music literature, and is the 2015 recipient of the Arthur "Red" Motley Exemplary Teaching Award. Dr. Mehaffey possesses degrees in music from Bucknell University, Westminster Choir College, and the University of Arizona. Americký dirigent a sbormistr Matthew Mehaffey se prosazuje na mezinárodní scéně v oblasti sborové a orchestrální literatury a je stejně úspěšný na poli pedogogiky a hudební vědy. V roli dirigenta vede na 200 amatérských a profesionálnách zpěváků v Pittsburghu a St. Paul, s nimiž provádí díla ze světové orchetrálně-sborové literatury, ale i díla, která si teprve hledají cestu na hudební pódia. Spolupracoval například s Washington National Opera, Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, Minnesota Orchestra, Czech National Symphony Orchestra, Prague Proms, Lyra Baroque Orchestra, Vocal Essence, Minnesota Chorale, Singers in Accord, and Turner Network Television. Dr. Mehaffey vystudoval Buckness University, Westminster Choir College and the University of Arizona. Jeho hlavními mentory byli William Payn, Kay Payn, James Jordan, Joseph Flummerfelt, Maurice Skones, and Bruce Chamberlain. 18
RYAN BOARD, conductor / dirigent Ryan Board, continues to garner international attention as a conductor, choral artist, teacher, singer, and clinician. In his role as director of choral activities at Pepperdine, Dr. Board directs the Pepperdine Concert Choir and the Pepperdine Chamber Choir and teaches courses in conducting, music history, and music education. His research interests focus on rhetoric and affections in the sacred vocal music of the Baroque Era. He maintains an active schedule as a professional singer and conductor. For five years he directed the renowned Kansas City Collegium Vocale and was previously the director of Armonia Early Music Ensemble. He is currently principal conductor for the Prague Choral Festival and is also an avid conductor of choral-orchestral literature having conducted works ranging from J. S. Bach’s St. John Passion to Arnold Schoenberg’s A Survivor from Warsaw. Choirs under Board’s direction have been invited to perform at prestigious venues for state, regional, national, and international events including the national convention of the American Choral Directors Association, the Prague Choral Festival, and the Piccolo Spoleto Festival’s spotlight Series. Early in his career, Board taught choral music in the public schools of Idaho, and served as associate music director for the World Vision Youth Ambassador Program for which he performed and conducted in more than 18 countries in Europe, Asia, and the Americas. He has performed as a vocalist with notable early music ensembles including Fuma Sacra and the Choral Scholars, both of Princeton, New Jersey, and also with the Simon Carrington Chamber Singers.
Ryan Board je vedoucím katerdy sborového dirigování na Pepperdine University v USA, kde vede Pepperdine University Choir a Pepperdine Chamber Choir. Dr. Board vyučuje dirigování, hudební teorii, historii a hudební výchovu. Centrem jeho hudebněvědeckého výzkumu je období baroka. Dr. Board se věnuje nejen dirigování, pedagogice a hudební vědě, ale je rovněž činný jako zpěvák. Pět let vedl dnes již proslulý sbor Armonia. Na Prague Choral Festival se v roli dirigenta vrací podruhé. 19
© PRAGUE CHORAL FESTIVAL 2016
