Dessoff Choirs Completes 92nd Season Featuring International Guest Artists, 5/21

with an unforgettable concert dedicated to utopian visions. The Dessoff Choirs welcomes intergenerational and cross-cultural guest artists including the United Nations International School Senior Choir and its director Mr. Daniel Stroup, and Johanne Francois and completes its 92nd season The Dessoff Choirs Hailed as "one of the great amateur choruses of our time (New York Today) for its "full-bodied sound and suppleness (The New York Times)," Wenson Delice, co-directors of "Voices of Haiti," a children's choir based in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. The featured piece on the program The New Amorous World will be complemented by contemporary choral music sung in the original language from Haiti, China, and the Middle East. (Program details are below.)

"There is a joyous, optimistic spark in this season-ending concert," says Malcolm J. Merriweather, ninth Music Director and conductor of The Dessoff Choirs, and the Music Director of "Voices of Haiti." "This program endeavors to create experiences with audiences and performers to facilitate intergenerational community, cultural diversity, and music education. By joining hands through the universal language of music, The Dessoff Choirs hopes to unite cultures, minds, and hearts, and inspire audiences to dream for a more inclusive and accessible world."

Serving as the program's core is The New Amorous World (2014), the utopian cantata by Estonian-American composer Lembit Beecher on the exuberant prophecies of the French philosopher Charles Fourier (1772-1837). At the turn of the 19th century, Fourier was an ardent proponent of women's rights, gay rights, and to a certain extent, gender self-identification. According to Beecher, Fourier's strangely sympathetic mix of the pragmatic and fantastical could serve as the foundation of societal order. "My goal in this piece was to present glimpses of Fourier's utopian vision with sincerity...which will seem naïve and which will seem profound in 200 years." Beecher's five-movement work promotes unity, gender equality, economic efficiency, and education for children-all topics relevant for our audiences and performers today.

Similar to The New Amorous World, the program's other works symbolize hope and harmony. Adinu, arranged by Jordanian composer Shireen Abu-Khader, is set to the text of a traditional Sufi melody attributed to the Andalusian Moorish Sufi mystic, philosopher, and poet, Abu Abdillah Muhammad (1165-1240). He believed that love was the dominant universal force. He is, even today, a powerful symbol of inter-religious harmony. Gede Nibo by Steb Kallman honors the eponymous Voodoo spirit of Haitian cultural life. Gede Nibo is the advocate of the poor to the politicians or the people in power. Oseh Shalom - one of the great universal staples of modern Jewish worship and one of the most well-known Hebrew songs of all time - is given new life by one of the most exciting new composers of a new generation. Dr. Ellen Broad-Ginsberg's lush and tender a cappella setting keeps listeners intent with terrific movement amidst the parts, yet still remains accessible to choirs. The program culminates with the combined choirs and guest artists performing Gregg Smith's Now I Walk in Beauty, an arrangement of the Navajo prayer.

A New Amorous World is made possible in part with public funds from Creative Engagement, supported by New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo and the New York State Legislature and administered by Lower Manhattan Cultural Council. Lower Manhattan Cultural Council empowers artists by providing them with networks, resources, and support, to create vibrant, sustainable communities in Lower Manhattan and beyond.

The Dessoff Choirs, one of the leading choruses in New York City, is an independent chorus with an established reputation for pioneering performances of choral works from the Renaissance era through the 21st century. Since its founding in 1924, Dessoff's mission is to enrich the lives of its audiences and members through the performance of choral music. Its concerts, professional collaborations, community outreach, and educational initiatives are dedicated to stimulating public interest in and appreciation of choral music as an art form that enhances the culture and life of our times. With repertoire ranging over a wide variety of eras and styles, Dessoff's musical acumen and flexibility has been recognized with invitations from major orchestras for oratorios and orchestral works. Past performances include Britten's "War Requiem" and Mahler's "Symphony No. 8" with Lorin Maazel in his final performances as Music Director with the New York Philharmonic. Over the course of its 92-year history, Dessoff has presented numerous world premieres, including pieces by Virgil Thomson, George Perle, Paul Moravec, and Ricky Ian Gordon, as well as the first American performance in nearly 100 years of Montemezzi's opera "La Nave" with Teatro Grattacielo; and the American premieres of Philip Glass's "Symphony No. 5," and Sir John Tavener's over seven-hour work "The Veil of the Temple." Dessoff's recent discography includes REFLECTIONS, featuring music by Convery, Corigliano, Moravec, and Rorem, and GLORIES ON GLORIES, a collection of American song featuring composers ranging from Billings to Ives. Please visit dessoff.org for more information.

About Malcolm J. Merriweather

Malcolm J. Merriweather, appointed as the ninth Music Director and conductor of The Dessoff Choirs, is presenting his first season with The Dessoff Choirs beginning in September 2016. Conductor, baritone, and educator, he is also the current Director of Choirs at Brooklyn College of The City University of New York, Artist in Residence at Union Theological Seminary, and the Music Director of the "Voices of Haiti," a 60-member children's choir in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, funded by the Andrea Bocelli Foundation. Merriweather was previously Associate Choirmaster at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine under Kent Tritle. Recent conducting highlights for Merriweather have included Orff's Carmina Burana with the choirs and orchestra of the Brooklyn College Conservatory; Handel's Messiah with the Harvard Club Festival Choir; and the OH, FREEDOM concert with the West Village Chorale and Orchestra, where he previously served as Artistic Director. A protégé of Kent Tritle, Merriweather holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Conducting from the Manhattan School of Music, and Master of Music degrees in Choral Conducting and in Vocal Performance from the Eastman School of Music, as well as his Bachelor of Music degree in Music Education from Syracuse University. His professional affiliations include membership in Pi Kappa Lambda, the American Choral Directors Association, the Association for Anglican Musicians, and Chorus America.

Program Details

The New Amorous World (2014)

Composer: Lembit Beecher (b.1980)

Performers: The Dessoff Choirs

Lammaa Badaa
Composer: arr. Shireen Abu-Khader (b.1972)

Performers: The Dessoff Choirs

Fog elna khel

Composer: Salim Bali (b.1946)

Performers: The Dessoff Choirs

Kang Ding Qing Ke (2006)

Composer: Liu Zhuang (1932-2011)

Performers: The Dessoff Choirs

Tu Chao Mian (2006)

Composer: Liu Zhuang (1932-2011)

Performers: The Dessoff Choirs

Past Life Melodies

Composer: Sarah Hopkins (b.1958)

Performers: United Nations International School Senior Chorus

Hotaru Koi

Composer: Japanese Folksong arr. Ro Ogura (1916-1990)

Performers: United Nations International School Senior Chorus

What Shall We Do With The Drunken Sailor
Composer: English Sea Chantey arr. Robert Shaw (1916-1999) and Alice Parker (b.1925)

Performers: United Nations International School Senior Chorus

Ne Sedi Djemo

Composer: Bosnian Folk Song arr. Steven Sametz (b.1954)

Performers: United Nations International School Senior Chorus

Oseh Shalom
Composer: arr. Elaine Broad-Ginsberg (b.1962)

Performers: The Dessoff Choirs, United Nations International School Senior Chorus, Johanne Francois, and Wenson Delice

Gede Nibo

Composer: Steb Kallman (b.1952)

Performers: The Dessoff Choirs, Johanne Francois, and Wenson Delice

Fre o

Composer: Steb Kallman (b.1952)

Performers: The Dessoff Choirs, Johanne Francois, and Wenson Delice

Adinu

Composer: arr. Andre de Quadros (b.1953) and Shireen Abu-Khader (b.1972)

Performers: The Dessoff Choirs

Entarisi Ala Benziyor (2012)

Composer: Muammer Sun (b.1932)

Performers: The Dessoff Choirs

Now I walk in beauty (1979)

Composer: Gregg Smith (1931-2016)

Performers: The Dessoff Choirs, United Nations International School Senior Chorus, Johanne Francois, and Wenson Delice

(Picture Credit: Dessoff)

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