VocalEssence ¡Cantaré! Composer Jean Angelus Pichardo talks about the history behind the ocarina, a Mexican musical instrument, and also teaches how to play it. An ocarina will be featured in the premiere of one of Jean’s pieces at the VocalEssence ¡Cantaré! Community Concert on Thursday, May 21, 2015 at the Ordway Center for the Performing… Read More →
CONTACT: Jennifer Weismann 612-716-0556 Jennifer@owl-marketing.com VOCALESSENCE LAUNCHES ASPIRING COMPOSER MENTORSHIP PROGRAM Choral ensemble’s ReMix pairs up-and-coming talent with award-winning mentors MINNEAPOLIS — May 6, 2015 — Nationally acclaimed choral ensemble VocalEssence has added a new educational program to cultivate an upcoming generation of choral music composers. VocalEssence ReMix pairs four emerging Minnesota composers with four… Read More →
“There is nothing like seeing the face of a composer who hears his or her music sung for the first time,” says Kimberly Meisten, VocalEssence director of community engagement. VocalEssence ¡Cantaré! composers Julio Morales and Jean Angelus Pichardo returned to the Twin Cities in March for a two-week stay to help teach their newly composed… Read More →
Saturday, May 2, 2015 was a beautiful day to be on the Mississippi River aboard the Minnesota Centennial Showboat, enjoying cocktails and appetizers on the Victorian Deck, followed by river songs and tales with Don Shelby as Mark Twain, fiddler Sara Pajunen, and the VocalEssence Ensemble Singers conducted by Tesfa Wondemagegnehu. Visit our Facebook album… Read More →
On Tuesday, April 21, 2015, VocalEssence had the honor of participating in a true love story—a marriage proposal delivered via the VocalEssence Chorus with a piece composed by Mexican composer Novelli Jurado, a composer-in-residence for our ¡Cantaré! in Rochester school program. Novelli met Michelle Eng, his now-fiancé, while working with the 2012-2013 season of VocalEssence… Read More →
CONTACTO: Jennifer Weismann 612-716-0556 Jennifer@owl-marketing.com El conjunto coral con sede en Minneapolis estrena sus nuevas obras musicales compuestas por compositores mexicanos y estudiantes locales en el Concierto Comunitario ¡Cantaré! MINNEAPOLIS —1 de abril de 2015— VocalEssence invita a toda la familia a cruzar la frontera hacia una celebración musical mexicana en el Concierto Comunitario de… Read More →
REVIEW: Opera by Gertrude Stein, Virgil Thomson gets delightful staging by VocalEssence, Black Label troupe. By TERRY BLAIN Special to the Star Tribune MARCH 20, 2016 — 11:24PM http://www.startribune.com/four-saints-playful-in-words-and-music/372843271/ It has no plot worth mentioning, and the silliest libretto in operatic history. That’s the naysayers’ take on Virgil Thomson’s “Four Saints in Three Acts,” which hasn’t… Read More →
Older adults are pursuing active lives, and VocalEssence is gladly adding to their options with the launch of VocalEssence Vintage Voices—an exciting choral program that integrates the arts into the everyday lives of older adults by fostering the creation of choirs in assisted living facilities and senior centers. With funding from the Minnesota State Arts… Read More →
CONTACT: Jennifer Weismann 612-716-0556 Jennifer@owl-marketing.com VOCALESSENCE PUTS ON A BIG SHOW (OR NINE) WITH DIVERSE 47TH SEASON Celebrated Twin Cities choral organization announces new season promoting diverse communities—through the voice MINNEAPOLIS—March 14, 2015—Acclaimed Minneapolis-based choral ensemble VocalEssence—recognized internationally for its innovative explorations of music—announces an intriguing 47th season of concerts. The 2015-2016 lineup celebrates many… Read More →
This year, 49 partner schools are participating in the VocalEssence WITNESS School Program, which began with the annual Teacher Orientation Seminar in September and continues through workshops and residencies with our Teaching Artists. The theme, “Let Freedom Ring,” focused on the contributions of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., his lifelong promotion of racial equality through… Read More →
CONTACT: Jennifer Weismann 612-716-0556 Jennifer@owl-marketing.com VOCALESSENCE FUSES MEXICO WITH MINNESOTA IN ¡CANTARÉ! Minneapolis-based choral ensemble premieres new works by Mexican composers and local students in ¡Cantaré! Community Concert MINNEAPOLIS—February 16, 2015—VocalEssence invites families to cross the border to a Mexican musical celebration in the ¡Cantaré! (I Will Sing!) community concert on May 21.… Read More →
CONTACT: Jennifer Weismann 612-716-0556 Jennifer@owl-marketing.com GATHER AT THE RIVER WITH MARK TWAIN TO SUPPORT CHORAL ART Twin Cities-based VocalEssence and Don Shelby host fundraiser cruise for music education—May 2 MINNEAPOLIS—February 16, 2015—Join the 32-voice VocalEssence Ensemble Singers and television legend Don Shelby as they travel back in time on the historic Minnesota Centennial Showboat to… Read More →
CONTACT: Jennifer Weismann 612-716-0556 Jennifer@owl-marketing.com VOCALESSENCE CELEBRATES SPECIAL WITNESS ANNIVERSARY AND DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. Local choral ensemble and high school students team up with Sounds of Blackness in WITNESS: Let Freedom Ring—Feb. 8 MINNEAPOLIS — January 23, 2015 — Minneapolis-based choral ensemble VocalEssence will celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. — plus, the… Read More →
CONTACT: Jennifer Weismann 612-716-0556 Jennifer@owl-marketing.com VOCALESSENCE CELEBRATES BACH’S TWENTY-FIRST (OUT OF TWENTY) CHILD—P.D.Q. BACH! Minneapolis-based choral ensemble hosts birthday bash for composer and parodist Peter Schickele—Apr. 10 MINNEAPOLIS — February 12, 2015 — The 100-voice VocalEssence Chorus, 32-voice Ensemble Singers and the University of Minnesota’s Wind Ensemble will celebrate the 80th birthday of legendary composer,… Read More →
