The Washington Chorus presents New Music for A New Age

THE WASHINGTON CHORUS PRESENTS “NEW MUSIC FOR A NEW AGE”
WORKS OF LUNA PEARL WOOLF FEBRUARY 28
As a part of its annual New Music for a New Age series, The Washington Chorus (TWC) will present a concert showcasing the music of composer Luna Pearl Woolf. The concert will take place Sunday, February 28, 2016, at 5:00 PM at National Presbyterian Church, 4101 Nebraska Avenue NW, Washington, DC. The program will highlight two major Woolf works, Après Moi, le Déluge, featuring renowned cellist Matt Haimovitz and The Pillar, as well as selections from Woolf’s other works.
Luna Pearl Woolf, 42, is an award-winning composer based in Montreal. Her music is known not only for its artistry, but also for its political insights; her work often grapples with historical or current events, especially from a political point of view. In addition, Woolf is known for close collaboration with authors, filmmakers and dancers to create compelling sound worlds that draw audiences into an interactive musical experience. Woolf’s opera Better Gods, a work depicting the efforts of Lili’uokalani, the last queen of Hawaii, to restore Hawaiian sovereignty in the nineteenth century, was premiered this month by the Washington National Opera (WNO) at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. The piece was commissioned by the WNO’s American Opera Initiative program, which aims to develop new operas about American themes.
TWC will present two of Woolf’s primary works. The first, Après Moi, le Déluge, is the first major classical work to commemorate the flooding of New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath. The work is written for solo cello, to be performed by cellist (and Woolf’s husband) Matt Haimovitz, and chorus. The work was premiered at Carnegie Hall in 2012, with solo cello and a cappella choir, performed by Mr. Haimovitz and the Trinity Wall Street Choir, and conducted by TWC’s Music Director Julian Wachner. It was described by the New York Times as “an unsentimental but moving tribute” and “somber, sardonic and bluesy.” Strings Magazine has called the work “sorrowful, deeply political, and aching with universal regret.”
The second primary work will be selections from Woolf’s opera The Pillar, which is based on Diana B. Henriques’ bestselling book The Wizard of Lies; Bernie Madoff and the Death of Trust. In 2014 Woolf received Opera America’s Discovery Grant to develop this new work, and a public workshop-performance of three scenes from the opera was held in September, 2014. The Pillar focuses on Ruth Madoff, portraying her as a woman who has dedicated her life to her husband, a pillar of the community. When he falls into disgrace, she must confront choices, and consequences, of operatic proportions. The Pillar uses this contemporary scandal to deliver a timeless meditation on loyalty, corruption and the nature of love.
Soloists for this concert, in addition to Mr. Haimovitz, will include soprano Marnie Breckenridge, tenors Rexford Tester and Jonathan Blalock, and baritone James Shaffran.
All tickets for the concert are priced beginning at $25.00 and may be purchased by calling The Washington Chorus Box Office at (202) 342-6221 or ordering securely online at www.thewashingtonchorus.org.
About Luna Pearl Woolf
The music of composer Luna Pearl Woolf has been praised for its “psychological nuances and emotional depth,” by the New York Times. Her works in opera, dramatic chamber music, silent film and music-storytelling have been commissioned by Carnegie Hall, Washington National Opera, Minnesota Sinfonia, Salle Bourgie, ECM+, as well as individual artists and festivals, collaborating with artists such as Joyce DiDonato, Frederica von Stade, Sanford Sylvan, Daniel Taylor, Lisa Delan, Christopher O’Riley, the Brentano String Quartet, and the Russian National Orchestra, as well as Academy Award-winner Jeremy Irons and writers Cornelia Funke, Eleanor Wilner, and David Van Taylor. This season the Washington National Opera, Francesca Zambello Artistic Director, premiered Better Gods, a new opera centered on Queen Lili‘uokalani and the overthrow of the Hawaiian monarchy, with librettist Caitlin Vincent. The sold-out production was directed by Ethan McSweeny and conducted by Timothy Myers. Cellist Matt Haimovitz commissioned a new “overture” to Bach’s sixth cello suite. The piece, for solo cello piccolo, was premiered at Miller Theatre in New York City and will be released on the PENTATONE Oxingale Series next fall. In May the Musée des Beaux-Arts Montréal hosts a composer portrait evening of Woolf’s music, including a new commission responding to a major work in the museum’s permanent collection. Mélange à trois, Woolf’s wordless opera for violin, cello and percussion, commissioned by the BIK ensemble, will open the program. Recordings of Woolf’s music are available internationally on the Oxingale and PENTATONE labels, including her secular holiday carol How Bright The Darkness, recently released on the album, “December Celebration.” She has been featured on NPR, BBC, CBC, MPR and WNYC and in the New York Times, Associated Press, Wall Street Journal, Publisher’s Weekly, Boston Globe, Opera News, Strings Magazine, New Music Box, and L’Opéra among others. Woolf founded the ground-breaking Oxingale Records with cellist Matt Haimovitz in 2000, garnering several GRAMMY, INDIE and JUNO nominations, and launched Oxingale Music in 2010, publishing the works of award winning composers.
About The Washington Chorus
The Washington Chorus (TWC), now in its 55th season, is noted for its critically-acclaimed performances and recordings of the entire range of the choral repertoire. A three-time nominated and two-time Grammy Award–winner, TWC is widely recognized as a cultural leader in the Washington area. The Chorus presents an annual subscription series at the Kennedy Center, the Music Center at Strathmore, and other major venues throughout the Washington, D.C. area. TWC is proud to have sung with the NSO in more than 250 performances, under the direction of many of the world’s greatest conductors. 2015-2016 season highlights include Vaughan Williams’s A Sea Symphony, five Candlelight Christmas concerts, the music of acclaimed composer Luna Pearl Woolf in the sixth installment of TWC’s award-winning series New Music for a New Age, a program of the French masters that includes Duruflé’s Requiem, and guest appearances with the National Symphony Orchestra. TWC is committed to the performance of contemporary music and was proud to receive Chorus America’s 2011 ASCAP Alice Parker Award, recognizing a chorus programming significant, recently- composed music that expands the mission of the chorus and challenges the chorus’ audience in a new way. Other awards include the 2000 Grammy Award for “Best Choral Performance” for the live-performance recording of Benjamin Britten’s War Requiem. As a leader in its commitment to community, the Chorus offers numerous educational and outreach programs, including the Junior Washington Chorus for teens ages 16–18, the Side-by-Side High School Program (now in its 24th year), Conductor in the Classroom, and Outreach Singers (presenting free concerts for groups who may not be able to attend concerts in the traditional concert hall setting). For further information about TWC, concerts, and recordings, visit thewashingtonchorus.org.
About Julian Wachner
Music director of The Washington Chorus, Julian Wachner is one of North America’s most exciting and versatile musicians, sought after as both conductor and composer. He is also the director of music and the arts at New York’s historic Trinity Wall Street. He was honored with a 2013 Grammy nomination for “Best Choral Performance” for his recording of Handel’s Israel in Egypt with the Trinity Choir and Baroque Orchestra. Mr. Wachner has also made memorable guest appearances with such major orchestras as the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Montreal, Madison and Pittsburgh Symphonies, the Boston Pops, and the Hong Kong Philharmonic, among others. In 2014, he made his debut with the San Francisco Opera, and the famed Philharmonic Baroque Orchestra. His extensive catalogue of compositions is highly praised by the New York Times, the Boston Globe, and the Washington Post, among others. A three-disc CD of his most important works for orchestra and voices has recently been released on the Musica Omnia label. For more information and other recordings, visit www.julianwachner.com.