Performing at Bowdoin College
Music of the Spheres: The Ecstasies Above
Vox Nova Chamber Choir, a Midcoast-based ensemble dedicated to the creative exploration of modern and contemporary vocal music, will present a concert of contemporary choral music with the DaPonte String Quartet and other guest artists on January 18th, 2014, at 7:30pm and on January 19th at 3:00pm in Studzinski Recital Hall at Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine.
This exciting concert features two major choral works for voices and strings. The Ecstasies Above, the title piece on the program, is an otherworldly and serenely expressive work set to the prodigious poem Israfel by Edgar Allan Poe. The program concludes with a pleasingly emotive work that swells to satisfying heights, entitled Sunrise Mass, by Norwegian composer Ola Gjeilo.
Tickets are $15 in advance and $20 at the door. They are available at Shermans in Freeport, Gulf of Maine Books in Brunswick and Now You’re Cooking! in Bath, and from choir members. Admission is free with Bowdoin I.D. and as always, students attend free of charge.
Vox Nova Chamber Choir was founded in 2009 by Shannon Chase and Karen Topp and features members of the Maine Midcoast community, including Bowdoin College faculty and alumni. The group champions the expansive body of modern and contemporary choral music and seeks to engage audiences in a fresh musical experience through exposure to new music composed by living composers. Although the choir typically performs an entirely a cappella repertory, Vox Nova has become known for inventive programming and has sought in recent years to engage in meaningful collaborations with soloists and instrumentalists in order to bring the audience a well-rounded listening experience.
Dr. Shannon M. Chase holds degrees in choral conducting and literature from The Florida State University, The University of Maine, and The University of Southern Maine. She studied under such notable conductors as Rodney Eichenberger, André Thomas, Dennis Cox and Robert Russell and completed professional training with such notable conductors as Helmut Rilling, Anton Armstrong, Donald Nuen, Doreen Rao, Weston Noble, Robert Shaw and Sir David Wilcox. Dr. Chase has served on the faculties of The University of Oregon, Bowdoin and Colby Colleges and most recently, Mason Gross School of the Arts of Rutgers University. She is Founder and Music Director of Vox Nova Chamber Choir, Instructor and Founder of PRIMA Musica, a studio for vocal instruction, and teaches courses in and conducts the Southern Maine Youth Chorale, an advanced choir for youth singers at USM.
CONTACTS
Dr. Shannon M. Chase, music director
admin@voxnovachamberchoir.com
(207) 462-5669
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