Spring, 2010

Madness and Mirth

Join Sacred and Profane as we descend into madness! We will sing such works as Britten’s charming setting of Christopher Smart’s poetry, Rejoice in the Lamb and Danish composer Per Nørgård’s brilliant Wie ein Kind, an avant-garde work with texts by Rainer Maria Rilke an the schizophrenic Swiss poet and painter Adolf Wölfi. We then turn to the lighter side of life with Geoffredo Petrassi’s Nonsense Songs, William Bergsma’s Riddle Me This, Jaako Mäntyjärvi’s Announcements, and other mirthful works.

Friday, May 7, 8:00 pm St. Mark’s Episcopal Church Berkeley

Saturday, May 8, 8:00 pm St. Francis Lutheran Church San Francisco

Winter, 2010

Music of America

While composers from Europe dominated the music landscape from the Medieval era until World War II, many of music's greatest innovators since 1945 have come from the United States. Join us as we sing Samuel Barber's choral classic Reincarnations, Morten Lauridsen's magical Fire Song Madrigals, and American Spirituals arranged by Moses Hogan. We will also perform works by three composers born since 1970: Eric Whitacre, Stacy Garrop, and Loretta Notareschi. We are excite to reprise Notareschi's Italia Mia, commissioned in 2007 and premiered in 2008 by Sacred & Profane.

Sunday, March 6, 8 PM St. Francis Lutheran Church 152 Church Street (btwn Duboce & Market San Francisco

Sunday, March 7, 4 PM St. Mark’s Episcopal Church 2300 Bancroft Way (at Ellsworth) Berkeley

Fall, 2009

Spain and the New World

Sacred & Profane kicks off our 32nd season with both beautiful classical gems and lively folk music from Spain and Latin America. Our concert will span several centuries and countries, from Medieval Spain to 20th -century Argentina. We will sing ethereal Christmas motets of Victoria, Villa-Lobos, and Busto and rarely heard folk songs from Mexico, Bolivia, Ecuador, and Venezuela. The concert's highlight is Ariel Ramírez' Navidad Nuestra, featuring tenor Jimmy Kansau and the VNote Ensemble.

Friday, December 4, 8 PM St. Mark’s Episcopal Church 2300 Bancroft Way (at Ellsworth) Berkeley

Saturday, December 6, 8 PM First Presbyterian Church of Alameda 2001 Santa Clara Ave (at Chestnut) Alameda

Sunday, December 12, 4 PM St. Francis Lutheran Church 152 Church Street (btwn Duboce & Market) San Francisco

Program

First Half – Mostly Spain

I.    Processionals from Llibre vermell a.    Men: Polorum regina with tambourine b.    Women: O Virgo splendens

II.    Spain/Old World a.    Renaissance – a cappella i.    Guerrero: Canite tuba ii.    Victoria: Ave Maria iii.    Victoria: O magnum mysterium

b.    Greenberg, ed: Three Spanish Christmas Carols of the 16th Century i.    E la don don, Verges Maria ii.    Dadme albricias, hijos d’Eva iii.    Ríu, Ríu, Chíu

c.    Geronimo Gonzalez: Serenissima Una Noche d.    Villa-Lobos i.    Praesepe ii.    Ave Maria e.    Javier Busto i.    Lux fulgebit ii.    Ave Maris stella

Second Half – New World, Folk f.    Traditional/Folk: Max Lifschitz arrangements (1984) i.    Bolivia: Navida va purimihua ii.    Ecuador: Yo soy indiecito iii.    Venezuela: Adorar al niño iv.    Mexico: ¡Miren cuántas luces! v.    Emile Desamours: Noèl Ayisyen (Haiti) g.    Ariel Ramirez (Argentina): Navidad Nuestra