PROGRAM NOTES
THE SEA AND THE LIGHT
feature an alumni performer . The performer they had in mind was Renée Fleming and — to my great excitement — she accepted the offer , thereby initiating one of the most treasured collaborations of my career .
“ We wanted to focus on an iconic American woman as the subject , and I happened on a quote by Georgia O ’ Keeffe :
My first memory is of the brightness of light , light all around .
“ I learned that O ’ Keeffe had written thousands of letters over the course of her lifetime , many of them to Alfred Stieglitz , the renowned photographer and art curator who became her husband . With intense emotion — and often humor — these letters chronicle O ’ Keeffe ’ s journey from a young artist enthralled by and indebted to the older Stieglitz to her complete immersion in the North American Southwest where she lived alone for many years , finding inspiration for her best-known works .
“ Having wholeheartedly embraced the role of O ’ Keeffe , Renée proposed expanding the work to include an equal part for Stieglitz . I welcomed this challenge of creating a larger work that would encompass their years both together and apart , from the first cautious exchanges between the two artists , through their impassioned and complicated relationship , to the years long after Stieglitz ’ death , when I imagine O ’ Keeffe writing to him even still .”
Instrumentation Three flutes including two piccolos , two oboes , English horn , three clarinets , two bassoons , contrabassoon , four horns , three trumpets , three trombones , tuba , timpani , percussion , harp , piano , celeste , and strings .
Musical Terms Overture : An orchestral introduction to an extended work , such as an opera or ballet . Javanese gamelan : A collection of musical instruments , primarily percussion with gong- or bell-like sounds . It is traditional music of the Javanese , Sundanese , and Balinese peoples of Indonesia . Whole-tone melodies : Unlike the diatonic scales of most Western music , the whole-tone scale uses only whole tones ( or major seconds ), which often prevents a strong impression of tonality in compositions .
Image Credits
THE BRIGHTNESS OF LIGHT
Projection Design , Wendall K . Harrington Projections Programming by Paul Vershbow Text Animation by David Biedny Research by Susan Hormuth and Mary Recine Typography Bo G . Eriksson
This program would not have been possible without the extraordinary archival resources and generous cooperation of the Georgia O ’ Keeffe Museum and the Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library .
Text excerpts from the letters by Georgia O ' Keeffe and Alfred Stieglitz used and reprinted by permission of the Yale Collection of American Literature , Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library . All rights reserved .
2021-22 SEASON
RETURN
TO THE
STAGE !
In its 56th season , Baltimore Choral Arts Society is thrilled to sing together again as we resume safe public performances with our 2021-22 Season Return to the Stage !
We return to Baltimore venues that allow flexible social distancing – Cathedral of Mary Our Queen , Shriver Hall Auditorium , and Murphy Fine Arts Center at Morgan State University .
LEARN MORE ON OUR WEBSITE !
BaltimoreChoralArts . org 410.523.7070
Max Kuzmyak
Images courtesy of
Alamy Stock Photo Alfred Stieglitz , An American Place , 1938 ( c ) The Ansel
Adams Publishing Rights Trust
Alfred Stieglitz Collection , Gift of The Georgia O ' Keeffe Foundation © Board of Trustees , National Gallery of Art , Washington , D . C . Amon Carter Museum of American Art ,
Fort Worth , TX The Art Institute of Chicago / Art Resource , NY Everett Collection Historical / Alamy Georgia O ' Keeffe Museum , Santa Fe / Art Resource , NY Georgia O ' Keeffe Museum , Santa Fe / Artist Rights
Society ( ARS ), NY
Library of Congress , Prints & Photographs Division , The Alfred Stieglitz Collection , Gift of Georgia O ' Keeffe
LOOK Magazine Photograph Collection , Library of Congress , Prints & Photographs Division , National Archives and Records Administration The Metropolitan Museum of Art / Art Resource , NY The Museum of Modern Art / Artists Rights Society
( ARS ), NY Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza / Scala / Art
Resource , NY National Archives and Records Administration . The Philadelphia Museum of Art / Art Resource , NY The Estate of Yusef Karsh The Ansel Adams Publishing Rights Trust
Rejoice & Sing !
SUNDAY , NOVEMBER 7 , 2021 | 3 PM CATHEDRAL OF MARY OUR QUEEN
Christmas with Choral Arts
TUESDAY , DECEMBER 7 , 2021 | 7:30 PM CATHEDRAL OF MARY OUR QUEEN
Christmas for Kids
SATURDAY , DECEMBER 11 , 2021 | 11 AM CHRYSALIS AT MERRIWEATHER PARK
facebook . com / BaltimoreChoralArts @ BaltimoreChoralArts
ANTHONY BLAKE CLARK Music Director
Sponsored by
Christmas for Kids sponsored by
@ BaltimoreChoralArts
NOV-DEC 2021 / OVERTURE 19