Ragazzi Boys Chorus Will Perform Holiday Concert 'Mysteries And Miracles' in December

Ragazzi Boys Chorus makes its triumphant return to the stage with its first in-person concert in San Francisco in almost two years, Mysteries and Miracles. Featuring vaccinated singers from Ragazzi's Young Men's Ensemble, Concert Group, and Choral Scholars, this holiday concert will include treasured yuletide gems and contemporary festive pieces to celebrate the season. Led by Artistic and Executive Director Kent Jue, Mysteries and Miracles will perform at 4pm PST Sunday, December 12, 2021 at Old First Church in San Francisco. For the in-person concert, audience capacity is limited to 100, with social distancing enforced. All audience members are required to wear a mask, and all performers, staff, volunteers, and audience members must show proof of full COVID-19 vaccination before entering the concert space. For tickets ($25) and more information the public may visit Ragazzi.org or call 650-342-8785.

Livestreaming will also be available for this concert. A suggested donation of $20 per livestream viewer is encouraged to support the world-renowned Ragazzi Boys Chorus. More information and livestream tickets can be purchased at Ragazzi.org or by calling 650-342-8785.

With repertoire that spotlights the magic of the holiday season, Mysteries and Miracles will include a wide variety of songs in its repertoire. Among the works offered by Ragazzi's Concert Group (CG) and Choral Scholars (CS) are Richard Oswin's fervent Sanctus; Christmas classic Hodie, arranged by Edmund Hughes and Edward Galante; and While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks, Craig Courtney's dreamy, sparkling arrangement of the standard carol with text by Nahum Tate. CG and CS will also perform Anton Bruckner's profound motet Locus Iste and Philip Lawson's a cappella arrangement of Down to the River to Pray, an Appalachian folksong made popular by the Grammy Award-winning film O Brother, Where Art Thou?. CG will sing John Rutter's buoyant and lively Tomorrow Shall Be My Dancing Day; Evan Ramos' elegant O Magnum Mysterium, a setting of a Latin Christmas text exploring a moment of great wonder and mystery; and Alessandro Grandi's rich, resonant Hodie, nobis de caelo, edited by Tortolando. CS will also perform Howard Helvey's upbeat arrangement of the traditional Catalan Carol Fum, Fum, Fum.

During this thrilling performance, Young Men's Ensemble (YME) will perform Michael John Trotta's mesmerizing arrangement of the 18th century hymn Veni, Veni Emmanuel, Kim Andre Arnesen's beautifully expressive Cradle Hymn with words from Isaac Watts' poem, Morten Lauridsen's emotive a cappella arrangement O Magnum Mysterium, and David Conte's driving and rhythmic a cappella arrangement of the Traditional French Burgundian Carol Pat-a-Pan. YME will contrast Stephen Caracciolo's gorgeous a cappella arrangement of O Tannenbaum (composed by Melchior Franck) with Carl J. Nygard's delightful arrangement Oh! Christmas Tree???, a parody of the traditional German carol. YME will also sing a rollicking rendition of Jingle Bells by James Pierpont, arranged by Philip Lawson, and the joyous, traditional Kenyan song Wana Baraka, arranged by Shawn Kirchner.

Pivoting to a mixture of online and in-person rehearsals, Ragazzi's hybrid program has fostered both individual vocal development and collaboration. The choristers performed virtual concerts Beyond the Stars in December 2020, Destiny and Discovery in March 2021, Joy, Awe, and Wonder in May 2021, and Rising Together in Song in June 2021. To enable virtual rehearsals and performances, Ragazzi has employed advanced technology that allows choristers to learn and record their parts. The acclaimed chorus has also implemented a remote rehearsal console called Ragazzi Virtual Studio, which improves audio quality and reduces the latency (delay time) inherent in live video streaming platforms to a point where singers can harmonize in real-time over common internet connections. Pilot tested by Ragazzi choristers, this groundbreaking technology was developed by the JackTrip Foundation, which was launched by Ragazzi parent and software engineer Mike Dickey in collaboration with Chris Chafe and Stanford University's Center for Computer Research in Music and Acoustics.

Peninsula-based Ragazzi Boys Chorus is one of the San Francisco Bay Area's premiere music and performance organizations for boys. During the 2019-2020 school year, more than 250 boys from over 100 schools in 30+ Bay Area communities participated in the program. Ragazzi means "boys" in Italian and is the term used in opera to refer to children's voices. Ragazzi has performed with the San Francisco Opera, San Francisco Symphony, Opera San Jose, West Bay Opera, Symphony Silicon Valley, Masterworks Chorale, and the Stanford University Symphonic Chorus among others. The group has toured throughout the United States and internationally. Ragazzi was honored for its contribution to the San Francisco Symphony's triple Grammy Award-winning recording of Stravinsky's Perséphone, and has five CDs available: A Holiday Collection, Canciones de Alabanza, Magnificat: My Spirit Rejoices, Splendors of the Italian Baroque, and I Dream A World.

The concert will take place at 4pm PST Sunday, December 12, 2021. Livestreaming will additionally be offered for Mysteries and Miracles, for patrons who prefer to watch from home. Audiences who purchase a streaming ticket will be emailed a link to watch the program at home on their computer, SmartTV or other device.

For information or to order tickets visit Ragazzi.org or call 650-342-8785.

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