Coming
up this Sunday, June 30 at 8 p.m., 90.9 WGUC presents its Music Cincinnati
series, this month spotlighting Cincinnati’s Vocal Arts Ensemble. Just what
exactly is the VAE and what can listeners expect to hear on this special from
90.9?
Since
they were founded in 1979, the Vocal Arts Ensemble has sought to present
passionate performances for diverse audiences. The chamber choir is currently
led by Grammy Award-winning conductor Craig Hella Johnson, who is recognized as
one of the nation’s leading choral conductors. Through a variety of innovative
performances, the VAE seeks to increase the public’s appreciation for choral
music.
What
can you expect to hear this Sunday? The Music Cincinnati broadcast will feature
the VAE performing twentieth-century choral repertoire conducted by the
director of the May Festival Chorus, Robert Porco. The concert was recorded
March 10, 2019 inside Memorial Hall in Cincinnati’s Over-the-Rhine community. You’ll
enjoy music including Arvo Pärt’s Psalm
117 and Doxology, Three Shakespeare
Songs by Ralph Vaughan Williams, and John Tavener’s moving Song for Athene. Followed by that, it’s
daffodils, primroses, marsh flowers and more with Benjamin Britten’s Five Flower Songs. We’ll also hear the Night of Snow by Francis Poulenc. On the
second half of the program, Maestro Porco leads the choir in Henryk Gorecki’s Totus Tuus and Four Motets on Gregorian Themes by Maurice Durufle. They conclude
their program with selections from Aaron Copland’s Old American Songs.
This
certainly is a program you won’t want to miss! It will be available on air,
online at wguc.org, and through our free mobile app June 30th at 8 p.m.!
If you aren’t available when it airs, you can also access WGUC’s Music
Cincinnati series archived at http://www.wguc.org/schedule/musiccincinnati.html
