Seán Boulware To Conduct Mark Hayes' GLORIA In Carnegie Hall On Easter Sunday

On Easter Sunday, April 17, Seán Boulware will return to Carnegie Hall's Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage under the auspices of MidAmerica Productions to conduct Mark Hayes' Gloria. Joining him onstage are vocal soloists Sydney Kucine, soprano; Jenni Bank, mezzo-soprano; Joseph Sacchi, tenor; and Erik Earl Larsen, baritone. This program was originally scheduled to be presented on Easter Sunday, 2020, and is finally coming to fruition two years later.

The text of the Gloria, a prayer from the Catholic liturgy, has been the cornerstone of a multitude of musical settings, and Dr. Boulware is thrilled to lead Mark Hayes' contribution, which he calls "a pinnacle of color and harmonic enjoyment."

"The Mark Hayes' Gloria is a wonderful work, especially for Easter Sunday," Dr. Boulware said. "What I love about this work is the fact that it is very natural to sing, and the harmonic structure completely supports the sacred text and is totally fulfilling for the singer. It honors both the Latin and English versions of the Gloria text from the Mass. It is a unique work for the singer to enjoy and a fulfilling work for the audience to connect to instantly. These are really the marks of a great major work that will stand the test of time!"

Dr. Boulware will lead a massed choir comprising five ensembles, all hailing from California: Aria Women's Choir and Monterey Peninsula Voices, led by Dr. Boulware himself; Pacific Voices, led by Crista Berryessa; and Pacific Grove High School Breaker Choir and Salinas High School A Cappella Choir, both making their Carnegie Hall debuts, both led by Dr. Boulware's wife, Michelle. He will conduct during the second concert of MidAmerica Productions' first season coming out of the COVID pandemic. "I really want to express my thanks to MidAmerica Productions for working with us so diligently to bring this concert to fruition after all the pandemic issues all of us have encountered," Dr. Boulware said. "I am so excited to continue the level of musical excellence despite the "great pause" of the pandemic and to bring our best art to New York and that magical, historic stage we know as Carnegie Hall!"

Sharing the Playbill

Headlined by the New England Symphonic Ensemble (Preston Hawes, artistic director), the concert on April 17 will begin at 2:00 PM with Jenny Bent at the podium. She will lead three choirs in a performance of Brahms' Schicksalslied and Ola Gjeilo's Dark Night of the Soul:

• The Santa Rosa Junior College Concert Choir, Santa Rosa, Calif. (Jody Benecke, director)
• Sonoma State Symphonic Chorus, Rohnert Park, Calif. (Jenny Bent, director)
• Reedley College Choir, Reedley, Calif. (Kirstina Rasmussen Collins, director)

After intermission, Christopher Munce will make his Carnegie Hall conducting debut, leading two choirs in a performance of Proud Music of the Storm and Into the Light, two compositions by GRAMMY-nominated composer Jake Runestad:

• Lee's Summit High School Concert Choir, Lee's Summit, Mo. (Christopher Munce, director)
• Marlborough Chamber Choir, Los Angeles, Calif. (Angela Lin, director)

Following a brief transition, Karl Chang will take the stage to conduct the Crystal Concert Choir (Diana Lin, director), Crystal East Choir (Ying Wu, director), Crystal Ensemble (Chiafen Lin, director), and Crystal South Choir (Jane Li, director), all from California's bay area, in a varied program of choral works including Z. Randall Stroope's "Inscription of Hope," John Rutter's "For the Beauty of the Earth," and an arrangement of the Chinese-language song "Da Yu (Big Fish)" from the award-winning film Big Fish and Begonia.

Purchase Tickets

Tickets for this concert in Carnegie Hall's Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage are $20, $50, $75, $100, or $150. They may be obtained by contacting CarnegieCharge at (212) 247-7800, visiting the Carnegie Hall Box Office at 57th Street and Seventh Avenue in New York, N.Y., or by going online to www.carnegiehall.org. For more information, contact Molly Waymire at molly.waymire@piptix.com.

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ABOUT SEÁN BOULWARE, conductor

Dr. Seán Boulware is a sought-after conductor, adjudicator, clinician and vocalist throughout the United States and Europe. He is in demand as a consultant for choral organizations in the areas of chorus management, audience development, performance tours, and technology implementation. Currently, Seán is back conducting live singers in most of his choirs. Seán has prepared choruses for conductors including, John Alexander, Seiji Ozawa, Gerald Wirth, Keith Lockhart and John Rutter. He has also prepared choirs to sing with Josh Groban, Michael McDonald, Tommy Sims, Keith and Kristyn Getty. In 2012, Sean conducted the Monterey Peninsula Choral Society at the Summer Olympic Games in London, England.

Internationally, Sean has conducted choirs and seminars throughout Europe, Brazil, and Japan. In 2022 Dr. Boulware will be returning to Italy to conduct the California Central Coast Choral on his 22nd performance tour. Seán's choirs can be heard on iTunes, CDbaby.com and SoundCloud. He was honored by American Idol as the conductor for the most requested/downloaded Classical Group for 2005-2007.

Seán is currently the Conductor of the Monterey Peninsula Voices, Aria Women's Choir, The California Central Coast Chorale, Novus Diem Chorale, and the new professional choir, Inspirare, from Monterey. He also teaches music theater at Pacific Grove Middle School and High School. He lives in Pebble Beach, CA with his wife, Michelle, and their two sons. He has studied with Dr. Lynn Bielefelt, Dr. Joseph Flummerfelt, Dr. James Jordan, Rodney Eichenberger, Dr. Steven Grahl, Dr. James Potter, John Alexander, Paul Mayo and Shirley Nute.

ABOUT MIDAMERICA PRODUCTIONS AND MIDAM INTERNATIONAL

Peter Tiboris created and conducted his first concert in New York on January 7, 1984, at Lincoln Center, featuring The American Symphony Orchestra, soloists, and three choruses, the Louisiana Chorale of Acadiana, Camerata Singers of Baton Rouge, and Collegiate Chorale of New York.

For 39 years, MidAmerica Productions has brought together conductors, soloists, and choral and orchestral ensembles from the U.S. and abroad to appear at New York's top venues, including Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage, Weill Recital Hall, and Zankel Hall at Carnegie Hall; and Alice Tully Hall and Avery Fisher Hall (now David Geffen Hall) at Lincoln Center. In addition to presenting orchestral and choral works, MidAmerica Productions has championed contemporary composers with 98 World Premieres, 38 United States Premieres, and 121 New York Premieres.

Additionally, MidAmerica Productions has presented concerts in numerous U.S. cities and in countries throughout the world, including Greece, England, Austria, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Italy, France, Portugal, Russia, Ukraine, Slovakia, and Mexico.