'Acoustic Magnificence' Coming To Lansdale

By LINDA MARIE BELL

LANSDALE, PA -- On Saturday April 30, 2016 at 7:30 pm in the acoustically magnificent Trinity Lutheran Church(Lansdale, PA), The Choristers, one of the premier concert choirs in the Philadelphia suburbs, will present“Gems from Vienna” featuring Joseph Haydn’s Te Deum, Ludwig van Beethoven’s Choral Fantasia, and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Mass in C Minorcompleted and edited by Dr. Robert D. Levin. The choir will be accompanied by a 32-piece professional orchestra. Soloists include: Sopranos Maureen Francis & Carole Latimer, Tenor Lawrence Jones, and Bass Ben Wager.

Vienna was the epicenter of music composition in the late 18th century. The three composers represented in The Choristers’ spring 2016 concert were residents of this grand city and they knew each other. Haydn and Mozart played string quartets together. Mozart’s Requiem was performed at Haydn’s Memorial Service. Beethoven was a student of Haydn and it is believed that a young Beethoven met Mozart once in spring of 1787. Attend the concert and one will hear wonderful works from all three of these gifted composers’ pens.

Artistic Director David M. Spitko states, “I am so excited that this concert features two members of The Choristers’ artistic team. Associate Director Kelly Wyszomierski will be conducting the Haydn Te Deum and the choir’s accompanist, Michelle Enos, will be the piano soloist for the Beethoven Fantasia in C Minor for Piano, Chorus and Orchestra, also known as his Choral Fantasia.”

Maestro Spitko continues, “Audiences usually hear the Choral Fantasia as a precursor to Beethoven’sNinth Symphony, a work to which it bears great resemblance because both are based on a simple song melody that Beethoven wrote when he was just a teenager—a precursor to the “Ode to Joy”.

The Choristers is a 65-70 voice auditioned concert choir that has thrived since its organization in 1978 by David M. Spitko, Artistic Director. Over the past decade, the choir has performed standard challenging choral repertoire, including Bach’s Mass in B Minor and Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis as well as underperformed works such as Dvořák’s Stabat Mater, Vaughan Williams’ Dona Nobis Pacem, Bernstein’s Chichester Psalms, Bruckner’s Mass in E Minor, selections from Duke Ellington’s Sacred Concerts, and Gershwin’sPorgy and Bess ~ Concert Version (for which the Artistic Director created a four-hand piano accompaniment from the orchestral score).The Choristers was the first non-professional choir ever to present Kile Smith’s completeVespers with Piffaro.

The concert will be held in Trinity Lutheran Church, 1000 W. Main St., Lansdale, PA 19446. Buy Advance Tickets (discounted) online. Adult $25 ($30 at door), Senior Citizen $20 ($25), College/High School $5 ($10). Children under high school age are admitted FREE! For more information about the concert and/or directions, view the choir’s website atwww.TheChoristers.org or call 215-542-7871.