The Westchester Chorale was thrilled to present our first live concert since 2019. It was a joy to bring the soaring sounds of “Voices of Jubilation” to our friends and neighbors who after two long years of struggling with the covid epidemic were ready to hear our musical message of universal unity and hope.
This powerful production took place at Larchmont Avenue Church on May 7th to an appreciative crowd.
The Music Director was Douglas Kostner, who is widely acclaimed for producing engaging programs which blend the familiar along with unusual and exciting pieces from the world’s choral repertoire.
The concert featured the world debut of Maestro Kostner’s most recent composition Come…and Dance, which was met with enthusiasm. This multi-rhythmic piece beautifully expresses our desire to return to life in the continuing aftermath of a worldwide pandemic. The text comes from The Land of Heart’s Desire, a play by William Butler Yeats. More than a century after it was written, this text is remarkably suitable for today.
Completing the program was Dan Forrest’s recent major cantata, Jubilate Deo, which is renowned for its vibrant music. Our audience raved about this glorious and uplifting oratorio that had never before been heard in Westchester County. Spiritually moving moments were provided by the soloists Michelle Hernandez, Leslie Lopez, and Elizabeth Sternlieb. Notable, too, was the sweet solo by young Jade Decker who enhanced the Westchester Children’s Chorus’s performance of the dreamy Chinese meditation of the third movement.
The Larchmont Symphonia, remarkable for its inclusion of incredibly talented youngsters from local middle and high schools, provided orchestral accompaniment to the concert.
For further info about the Westchester Chorale, contact us at WestchesterChorale@gmail.com. Also visit our Facebook page, where we will welcome your comments.
The “Voices of Jubilation” concert was made possible, in part, with funds from the Statewide Community Regrants Program, a regrant program of the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature and administered by ArtsWestchester.