Our Spring concert will be held Monday, March 18 at Libby Gardner Hall at the University of Utah.
Embrace the spirit of renewal with the Utah Chamber Artists at our “From Winter to Spring” concert. This evening is a celebration of rebirth and hope, featuring masterpieces that traverse the emotional landscape of humanity and its yearning for peace. Our program includes Mozart’s “Laudate Dominum,” a divine expression of reverence, J.A.C. Redford’s “Night Pieces,” inspired by Wordsworth’s evocative contrasts of light and shadow, and Ralph Vaughan Williams’ “Dona nobis pacem,” a poignant plea for peace penned between the World Wars. Join us for a night of sublime music that reflects the eternal cycle of renewal and the enduring hope for a better tomorrow.
Join the Encore Club now and enjoy reserved seating and concert recordings.
Featured Works
Laudate Dominum, KV 339 – W.A. Mozart
(Vesperae solennes de confessore)
Laudate Dominum is part of a larger work that was commissioned by the Archbishop of Salzburg, Hieronymus von Colloredo. It was composed in September 1780 in Salzburg was the final sacred work for the religious court of Salzburg, before moving to Vienna in 1781. It unfolds as one of the most lyrical soprano solos Mozart ever wrote, and it is a favorite among audiences. We have featured it a few times over the years, as both our singers and audience love the work. A sublime soprano solo begins the piece by floating over the top of the string accompaniment until the chorus takes over with a harmonized version of the melody. The work comes to a gentle conclusion, as the soprano returns with a reverential “Amen”.
Night Pieces – J.A.C. Redford
Long-time friend of Utah Chamber Artists, Redford says this of his composition: “I composed Night Pieces with the elegant sound and superlative musicianship of Barlow Bradford and Utah Chamber Artists particularly in mind. Rebecca Durham suggested the Wordsworth texts. I found the poet’s beautifully articulated contrasts of moonlight and shadow, cloud wrack and star-traced clarity unusually evocative and inspiring. The instruments were chosen for their rich, dusky colors. My choral approach to the settings is both narrative and impressionistic in an effort to recreate for the listener, something like the epiphanies that prompted Wordsworth’s profoundly poignant reflections.”
Dona nobis pacem – Ralph Vaughan Williams
“Dona nobis pacem” is a cantata written by Ralph Vaughan Williams in 1936 between world wars and first performed on October 2nd of that year. The work was commissioned to mark the centenary of the Huddersfield Choral Society. When World War I broke out, the 42-year old British composer immediately volunteered for service as an ambulance driver on the front lines. He witnessed unimaginable violence, bloodshed and slaughter. Later he served as an artillery officer, where the gunfire damaged his hearing. These experiences affected him profoundly, and back home, after the war, he struggled with these memories by composing music to try make some sense of it. The result was “Dona nobis pacem” which became a rallying cry for the failed anti-war movement. Subsequently it was performed throughout the war as a means of maintaining war-time morale and assurance that humanity would survive. The mass is an “anthology cantata”, one that utilizes different texts from various sources to convey a message. Vaughan Williams employed the words of the Old Testament, John Bright, and William Wordsworth. As it happens, Vaughan Williams musical plea for peace foreshadowed another monumental work – also an anthology of texts – Benjamin Britten’s “War Requiem” premiered in 1962.