The UMass Amherst Chorale will join with the Springfield Symphony Orchestra, Springfield Symphony Chorus and voice faculty soprano Jamie-Rose Guarrine for “Gloria! From Vivaldi to Gershwin,” a 3pm matinée on Saturday, April 11, at Springfield Symphony Hall.
Tickets for the concert are available, starting at $25, online at SpringfieldSymphony.org, or by calling the SSO Box Office at (413) 733-2291.
The concert, led by conductor Kedrick Armstrong (pictured), known for his stage presence and audience connectivity, will mark a return to Symphony Hall for the University Chorale. In March of 2024, the Chorale joined the Springfield Symphony Chorus and Orchestra in performing Cantique de Jean Racine (Gabriel Fauré) and Frostiana (Randall Thompson).
“We are thrilled to collaborate for the fourth time with the Springfield Symphony Orchestra and Chorus,” said Stephen Paparo (pictured), director of the University Chorale. “Some of the students performed in Symphony Hall during our last collaboration two years ago. The Hall itself is a historic space. I love seeing and hearing my students' reactions when everything starts to come together. Their excitement builds with each rehearsal leading up to the performance. It is a treat for us to perform with such outstanding musicians from our greater community.”
The program will open with Vivaldi’s Concerto for Two Cellos in G Minor, featuring two cellists, Aron Zelkowicz, who is founder and director of the Pittsburgh Jewish Music Festival, and Emily Taubl, principal cellist for the SSO. Then concertgoers will be transported to France with Poulenc’s Gloria, featuring the voices of the SSO Chorus and the UMass Amherst Chorale, closing on the streets of Paris with Gershwin’s An American in Paris.
“This program is all about voices, and when the Springfield Symphony Chorus and UMass Chorale come in, the entire sound shifts,” says Heather Caisse-Roberts, President & CEO of the SSO. “It becomes more immediate, more human, and you feel it differently in the room. The program itself moves in a really compelling way, from the intimacy of Vivaldi to the full scale of Poulenc’s Gloria, and then into the color and movement of An American in Paris.”
“The Poulenc Gloria is one of my favorite choral-orchestral pieces because it is quirky, dramatic and just fun to sing,” added Paparo. “The Symphony Chorus under the direction of Nikki Stoia (pictured) and the UMass Chorale sound wonderful together because Nikki and I have a shared vision and approach for preparing the singers.” In addition to her duties directing the Springfield Symphony Chorus, Stoia is a retired Music and Dance Department faculty member and continues to offer her skills as Collaborative Pianist.
The University Chorale is the oldest and largest choral ensemble in the Department of Music & Dance. Composed of undergraduate and graduate music majors, minors, and non-majors from the Five Colleges, the ensemble performs a wide variety of music, including classical masterworks, world music, contemporary works, and popular repertoire.