Houston Chamber Choir Honors the Music of Dave Brubeck with BRUBECK! A CELEBRATION

The Grammy Award-winning Houston Chamber Choir, under the direction of Robert Simpson, closes out the 2023-2024 season with Brubeck! A Celebration, the inaugural performance of “The Voice of Brubeck” on Saturday June 1 at 7:30 p.m. at Stude Concert Hall at Rice University.

“The Voice of Brubeck” is an homage to the great American jazz pianist and composer, Dave Brubeck, with the mission to reintroduce listeners to the phenomenal legacy of his jazz, symphonic, chamber, and sacred choral music. Several decades ago, Dave Brubeck's jazz compositions were widely performed, but audiences today are often unfamiliar with his music, even more so with his classical and sacred music.

Presented by Lago Vista Community Concerts Foundation and in partnership with the Brubeck Brothers Quartet, the Houston Chamber Choir, the Paul English Quartet, and many other fine musicians, “The Voice of Brubeck” is a multi-year collaboration that will result in fresh performances of Dave Brubeck's serious symphonic, chamber, and sacred vocal works, the studio recording of many of Brubeck's compositions that were never before recorded, and a series of performances and educational opportunities in the Greater Houston area. This follows the recent centennial celebration of Brubeck's life, with a goal of showcasing the artist's classical explorations and introducing newer generations to his timeless works.

Spearheaded by producer and Rice University professor of music composition Arthur Gottschalk, the June 1 program features the Houston Chamber Choir alongside a 19-piece orchestra with the Brubeck Brothers and Paul English Quartets. In 2006, the Houston Chamber Choir invited Dave Brubeck back to perform in Houston after a 20-year absence. Now, 18 years later, the Choir joins his sons Chris Brubeck and Dan Brubeck and noted Houston musicians Paul English and Horace Alexander Young, celebrating Dave Brubeck's contributions to jazz and his work with new musical forms.

“Jazz is a uniquely American genre of music influenced by African rhythms and created by African Americans,” says Gottschalk. “Dave Brubeck's music, influenced by his world travels, had a transformative impact on American Jazz. However, with this project, our purpose is to celebrate, promote, and preserve Dave Brubeck's symphonic, chamber, and sacred vocal music. This brings together stellar musicians and singers, including the talented men and women of the Houston Chamber Choir.”

“The Houston Chamber Choir is ending our season with a bang with this celebration of Dave Brubeck,” says Simpson. “It has been a thrill to work with Art, Horace and Paul on this unique collaborative project. We deeply appreciate the community support surrounding this multi-pronged initiative to educate and enlighten more people about Dave Brubeck's legacy.”

“The Voice of Brubeck,” to be produced and released on PARMA Recordings' GRAMMY Award-winning Navona Records label, will feature an underrepresented cross section of the late musical legend's oeuvre — a diverse offering of celebrated and previously-unrecorded choral and orchestral works that Brubeck regarded as some of his finest. The ensuing commercial album by PARMA Recordings and Navona Records is expected to be released in late 2024.

Tickets and More Information

Single tickets for Brubeck! A Celebration range from $10 for students to $45 for general admission. Seniors and military personnel receive a discount. Tickets can be purchased online at www.houstonchamberchoir.org/brubeck.

Stude Concert Hall is located in Alice Pratt Brown Hall on Stadium Road on the Rice University campus (6100 Main St, Houston, TX 77005). Campus Entrance No. 8 on University Boulevard is closest to the venue.

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