Sacred & Profane 2012-13 Season

Sacred & Profane Chamber Chorus's season brochure arrived in the mail this week, and unlike last year's, which was printed in light red 8 point type on glossy paper, I can read this year's. (Note to S&P: if someone sends you email about an issue like this, you should answer it. People are more likely to come to your concerts if they can read the season brochure.)

It's a beautiful season with a ton of interesting and rarely-performed music, with an overall theme of Music of Transcendence. The first program focuses on music by Pärt, Tavener, and Górecki; the second on music from the Jewish Tradition; the third, on Scandinavian composers.

A huge draw, for me, is the Requiem of the Icelandic composer Jon Leifs.

Full season after the cut, copied and pasted from the chorus's web site. As for most small choruses, ticket prices are low; $22 at the door, $18 in advance; $15 for students.



Sacred & Profane’s 35th Season: Music of Transcendence

A Contemplative Christmas: Holiday Music by the Spiritual Minimalists

The Spiritual Minimalist composers Arvo Pärt, John Tavener, and Henryk Górecki have won the dedication of listeners of all sensibilities, including lovers of popular music, early music aficionados, and followers of the avant-garde. All three of these composers turned to sacred music at a time when modern composers frequently rejected sacred music for secular influences, creating music that is meditative, hypnotic, and gently repetitive.
Join Sacred & Profane as we sing the moving music of these important composers, as well as the music of one of their Medieval inspirations, Hildegard von Bingen. Our concert will include celebrated pieces such as Pärt’s Magnificat, Tavener’sThe Lamb, and Górecki’s Totus Tuus.

Saturday, December 8, 8 PM
 St. Mark’s Episcopal Church
 2300 Bancroft Way (at Ellsworth)
Berkeley
Saturday, December 15, 8 PM 
First Presbyterian Church of Alameda
 2001 Santa Clara Ave (at Chestnut)
Alameda
Sunday, December 16, 4 PM
 St. Francis Lutheran Church
 152 Church Street (btwn Duboce & Market)
San Francisco

Hallelujah: Music from the Jewish Tradition

Join Sacred and Profane as we celebrate the diversity of Jewish Choral Music. We will sing sacred and secular music of the Jewish people from the seventeenth- through the twentieth-centuries, including folksongs in Yiddish, Ladino, and Hebrew, and music by such composers as Salamone Rossi, Kurt Weill, and Shulamit Ran. We will feature music that spans the emotional gamut of Jewish experience, from works commemorating the tragedy of the holocaust to celebratory dances.

Sunday, March 3, 4 PM
 Congregation Emanuel
 2 Lake Street (at Arguello)
San Francisco
Saturday, March 9, 8 PM
 Congregation Beth El 
1301 Oxford Street (btwn Eunice and Rose)
Berkeley

Songs from the North: Music from Scandinavia

In the last several years, Sacred & Profane has championed the rich choral tradition of Sweden and its neighboring countries. In May, we will continue to sing some of Scandinavia’s most beautiful and inspiring music, including a number of works based on the rich folk music of the region. Our program will feature music from all five Scandinavian countries, including Grieg’s lovely Four Psalms for choir and baritone, Leifs’ moving Requiem, Mäntijärvi’s delightful Four Shakespeare Songs, Sixten’s Peace for the Victims of the massacre in Norway in 2011, and two pieces by one of our favorite composers, Karin Rehnqvist.

Sunday, May 11, 8 PM
 St. Mark’s Episcopal Church
 2300 Bancroft Way (at Ellsworth)
Berkeley
Sunday, May 12, 4 PM
 St. Francis Lutheran Church
 152 Church Street (btwn Duboce & Market)
San Francisco