MUSICIANS OF THE OLD POST ROAD presents a special Holiday concert: Christmas in the New World
Saturday, December 17, 2016 3 pm, Emmanuel Church, 15 Newbury St., Boston
Sunday, December 18, 2016, 4 pm, First Unitarian Church, 90 Main St., Worcester
$35 priority seating/ $30 general admission / $10 students
Children ages 7-17 are admitted FREE when accompanied by an adult
Season Partner: Refugee & Immigrant Assistance Center (RIAC)
For more information and tickets: call 781-466-6694 or visit www.oldpostroad.org
Musicians of the the Old Post Road presents a celebration of the holiday season with festive music exported to 18th-century Mexico,Central and South America. Selections include lively Spanish villancicos, ornate Italian cantatas, and rhythmically-playful works with indigenous influences. Castellanos, dDurán, Iribarren, Jerusalem, Pacheco, and Sumaya are among the featured composers.
The ensemble will be joined by three special guest artists for this program. Lauded for her “velvety suaveness” (The New York Times) and for her “brilliant, agile soprano” (San Diego Story), Jessica Petrus makes her debut with the group. Returning artist, mezzo soprano Catherine Hedberg, is specialist in Spanish repertoire who has been praised for her “soulful singing” (The Boston Globe). Baroque guitarist Eloy Cruz of Mexico City is a featured instrumentalist on the concert. Cruz is a long-time collaborator with the group, including performing on the ensemble’s highly acclaimed CD of music of the Juan and Jose Pla. The ensemble’s historical string players, flutists, and a harpsichordist complete the roster of performers.
With this program, Musicians of the Old Post Road continues its tradition of holiday concerts that offer a refreshing departure from the usual concert fare. For these concerts, the ensemble shares rediscovered music from 17th and 18th century Mexico, central, and south America that was written by both immigrant and native-born composers. Highlights include the energetic villancico Vaya de jácara by the Guatemalen composer Rafael Castellanos, gorgeous Italian-style cantatas by Mexican Cathedral composers Ignacio Jerusalem and Manuel de Sumaya, and the humorous A cantar un villancico by the Peruvian composer Roque Ceruti. Instrumental works include guitar music from the Salvidar codex, and the regional premiere of orchestral Versos by Ignacio Jerusalem and José Manuel Aldana.
Concerts will take place Saturday, December 17, 2016 3 pm at Emmanuel Church, 15 Newbury St. in Boston and on Sunday, December 18, 2016, 4 pm, at First Unitarian Church, 90 Main St. in Worcester.
This program is the second of the group’s concert season which has an over-arching theme of “Musical Migrations.” Each program this year focuses on a different path of migration of 18th-century musicians and their music in the Old and New Worlds, which helped to shape the musical environments in which these musicians found themselves, changing the course of music history. The season shines a light on a variety of musical cultures in performances of well-loved masterpieces and exciting “rediscoveries” of the Baroque and Classical periods.
Learn more about this dynamic season on the group’s website, www.oldpostroad.org. Unless otherwise noted, tickets are $35 for preferred seating, $30 for general admission, and $10 for students, and children aged 7 to 17 are admitted free with an adult. Flexible three- and four-concert subscriptions are also available. All Old Post Road concert sites are wheelchair accessible. The concert series is sponsored in part by the Bear Foundation and the Massachusetts Cultural Council, an agency of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
In recognition of the theme of migration, the ensemble has partnered with the Refugee & Immigrant Assistance Center (RIAC) to raise awareness for the important work being done to support today’s immigrants. Throughout the season, the group will host members of the RIAC community at their concerts. This will provide an opportunity for staff, immigrants, and refugees to share their stories. Old Post Road will also accept donations of hard goods at concerts to benefit the RIAC, and will keep their audience informed of these efforts through email and social media posts. For the December concerts, attendees are invited to bring donations of hats, scarves, and mittens.
ABOUT THE ENSEMBLE
Musicians of the Old Post Road takes its name from its acclaimed concert series that brings period instrument performances of music of the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries to beautiful historic buildings along New England’s fabled Old Post Road, the first thoroughfare to connect Boston and New York City in the late 17th century.
Winner of the 1998 Noah Greenberg Award from the American Musicological Society, Musicians of the Old Post Road has also received programming awards from Chamber Music America and the US-Mexico Fund for Culture. The ensemble has toured in Germany, Austria, and Mexico, and has appeared at festivals and on concert series in the US, including the Indianapolis Early Music Festival, the Boston Early Music Festival Concert Series, the Castle Hill Festival, the Artists Series at Mercer University in Macon, Georgia, and the Connecticut Early Music Festival. The ensemble has held a residency at Dartmouth College and was featured on WCVB television’s “Chronicle” program and 99.5 All Classical radio’s “Live from Fraser” program.
The ensemble’s discography includes six recordings that have each been praised in the US and abroad. They include: The Virtuoso Double Bass (Titanic, 1994), Trios and Scottish Song Settings of J. N. Hummel (Meridian, 1999), Galant with an Attitude: Music of Juan and José Pla (Meridian, 2000), Quartets of Telemann and Bodinus(Meridian, 2004), FelizNavidad: Christmas from Spain and New Spain (Meridian, 2008), and Roman Handel (Centaur, 2013). The ensemble’s 7th CD, Earthly Baroque, is projected for release by Centaur in 2017.
ABOUT THE SEASON PARTNERSHIP
Musicians of the Old Post Road is proud to partner with the Refugee & Immigrant Assistance Center this season. The RIAC was established in 1993. It is a community-based, grassroots organization dedicated to promoting educational and socio-economic development in Massachusetts refugee and immigrant communities. To realize their mission, RIACoffers the following range of services to support successful resettlement and to promote self-sufficiency: Refugee Resettlement, Post-Resettlement Support Services, Community Education & Outreach and Counseling Services. Throughout the season, OPR will provide a platform to share their message and will hold drives to bring in hard goods such as the hats/mittens, books, art supplies and personal care products that help the RIAC support their community.
SEASON AT A GLANCE
Christmas in the New World
Festive Spanish Baroque villancios, ornate cantatas, and lively instrumental music exported to 18th century Central & South America, with vocal soloists Catherine Hedberg & Jessica Petrus.
Saturday, December 17, 2016, 3pm, Emmanuel Church, 15 Newbury Street, Boston
Sunday, December 18, 2016, 4pm, First Unitarian Church, 90 Main Street, Worcester
Destination London
Artful contributions to the concert life of this most musical city made by Handel, Bononcini, Pepusch, and others with soprano Teresa Wakim.
Friday, March 3, 2017, 7:30pm, First Parish, 50 Cochituate Road, Wayland
Saturday, March 4, 2017, 3pm, Emmanuel Church, 15 Newbury Street, Boston
Scores from the Suitcase
Rediscovered works by Haydn, Pleyel, Antes, and others, imported to early America, including works preserved by the Moravian communities.
Friday, April 28, 2017, 8pm, Emmanuel Church, 15 Newbury Street, Boston
Sunday, April 30, 2017, 4pm, Worcester Historical Museum, 30 Elm Street, Worcester
$35 preferred seating/ $30 general admission / $10 students
Children ages 7-17 are admitted FREE when accompanied by an adult
For more information and tickets: call 781-466-6694 or visit www.oldpostroad.org
