A CHANTICLEER CHRISTMAS BEGINS DECEMBER 11th; 12 PERFORMANCES IN THE BAY AREA
The Grammy Award-winning vocal ensemble Chanticleer keeps its oldest and best-loved tradition with 12 performances of A Chanticleer Christmas in the Bay Area between December 11th and 23rd. A Chanticleer Christmas offers profound, peaceful and joyous music in beautifully decorated missions, churches and cathedrals around the Bay Area.
Chanticleer’s Christmas season begins on November 29th in Washington D.C. with concerts in Chicago, New York City and Westport, Connecticut before returning to California for performances in Oakland, San Francisco, Santa Clara, Petaluma, Carmel, Livermore, Stanford’s Memorial Chapel and Los Angeles’ Walt Disney Concert Hall. American Public Media will broadcast excerpts taped at New York's St. Ignatius Loyola on over 300 member stations nation-wide during the Christmas season.
A Chanticleer Christmas tells the story of the nativity in music written from the 13th to 21st centuries. This year's program is under the direction of Ragnar Bohlin, Music Director of the San Francisco Symphony Chorus and Chanticleer Guest Music Director, who introduces a composer from his native Sweden to Chanticleer audiences. Fredrik Sixten's adaptation of his "There is no Rose of such Virtue" and his "Rose of Roses," written for Chanticleer in 2014, will have their world premieres along with works by Desprez, Gabrieli, Distler, Sviridov, Mantyjarvi and others as well as Chanticleer's signature arrangements of new and traditional carols and spirituals. Chanticleer’s most popular recorded song, Franz Biebl’s “Ave Maria”, is a beloved feature of A Chanticleer Christmas.
The 2014-15 season has seen Chanticleer perform in France, Germany, Italy and Sweden–where the ensemble spent two weeks in October. A rigorous touring season in 22 states and the District of Columbia began in October and will continue throughout the year. A highlight of the Bay Area season will be the second National Youth Choral Festival with 300 high school singers from around the country joining Chanticleer, Guest Music Director, and mezzo-soprano Dolora Zajick for a gala culmination in Davies Symphony Hall on March 30, 2015. The season will conclude with a return to Chanticleer's early music roots in Spanish Gold under the direction of Guest Music Director William Fred Scott.
Chanticleer was awarded Chorus America’s prestigious Education and Outreach Award for 2010, and takes pride in its annual interaction with more than 5,000 students around the Bay Area and the U.S. The ensemble recently launched its newest educational program introducing a small, mixed youth chorus for Bay Area singers aged 14-20, known as the Louis A. Botto (LAB) Choir in honor of Louis A Botto, the founder and original Artistic Director of Chanticleer. The LAB Choir is frequently heard in performances in Bay Area schools, community centers, and other venues.
Called “America’s favorite choral ensemble,” by the New Yorker magazine, Chanticleer has developed a worldwide reputation for its impeccable musicianship, beauty of sound, and wide-ranging repertoire from Renaissance and Mexican Baroque to jazz, gospel, folk, and adventurous new music. Chanticleer Records releases live and studio recordings on CD and in digital formats; both may be found at: www.chanticleer.org.
For information regarding performance dates and tickets to A Chanticleer Christmas ($30-$65), visit: www.chanticleer.org. Tickets are also available by phone through City Box Office at 415-392-4400.
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FOR CALENDAR EDITORS:
A CHRISTMAS CHANTICLEER
December 11-23, 2013
STANFORD, CA
Stanford Memorial Church
Thursday, December 11, 7:30pm
OAKLAND, CA
Cathedral of Christ the Light
Friday, December 12, 8pm
SAN FRANCISCO, CA
St. Ignatius Church
Saturday, December 13, 8pm
Sunday, December 21, 8pm
PETALUMA, CA
St. Vincent Church
Sunday, December 14, 6pm & 8:30pm
BERKELEY, CA
First Congregational Church
Tuesday, December 16, 8pm
SACRAMENTO, CA
Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament
Wednesday, Dec 17, 8pm
LOS ANGELES, CA
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Thursday, December 18, 8pm
SANTA CLARA, CA
Mission Santa Clara
Saturday, December 20, 6pm & 8:30pm
CARMEL, CA
Carmel Mission
Monday, Dec 22 6pm & 8:30pm
LIVERMORE, CA
Livermore Valley Performing Arts Center
Tuesday, December 23, 7:30pm
Tickets:
$30-$65
415-392-4400
www.chanticleer.org