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 White Plains , NY - The Westchester Choral Society announces its 2008-09 season, the 67th of the award-winning chorus.
On Sunday, November 23, 2008 , at 3:00 p.m., Westchester Choral Society Music Director Frank Nemhauser will conduct “A Celebration of Folk Songs” arranged by Brahms, Bartók, Britten, and Rutter, plus a trio of American favorites. The chorus will be accompanied by David Baranowski. The concert will take place at the Rye Presbyterian Church, 882 Boston Post Road , Rye . Tickets are $25 (students with ID $10) and include a Gala Reception to meet the artists following the concert.
On Sunday, December 7, 2008 , at 3:00 p.m. the Westchester Choral Society will repeat a joyful holiday event: an open sing of Handel’s Messiah. All are invited to sing along or just listen. Music Director Frank Nemhauser will conduct, and the accompanist will be David Baranowski. The Messiah Sing will take place at the Music Conservatory of Westchester, 216 Central Avenue , in White Plains (near the County Center and next to City Limits Diner). Admission is $10 and includes refreshments; scores will be available or people may bring their own.
On Sunday, March 29, 2009, at 3:00 p.m., musical theater performer singer-pianist Jim Fredericks will lead a “Show Tune Sing-Along” at the Music Conservatory of Westchester, 216 Central Avenue, in White Plains (near the County Center and next to City Limits Diner). Admission is $10 and includes refreshments and the use of song sheets.
On Saturday, May 2, 2009 , at 8:00 p.m. , the Westchester Choral Society will present a joint concert with the Fairfield County Chorale and the AmorArtis Orchestra in the Norwalk Concert Hall, 125 East Ave. , Norwalk , CT. The choruses will perform Mozart’s Mass in C minor and Mendelssohn’s Psalm 42. Frank Nemhauser and Johannes Somary will conduct. Admission is $25.
About the Westchester Choral Society
The Award-Winning Westchester Choral Society (www.westchesterchoralsociety.org) was founded by Sarah Stewart Bowne in 1942 to perform Bach’s B minor Mass with 15 singers. Today its 50 singers perform works from Baroque to contemporary, presenting concerts every season to audiences in Westchester and nearby communities. The Westchester Choral Society is a proud member of Chorus America , the Vocal Area Network, and the Westchester Arts Council, which honored it in 2000 with its Arts Organization Award.
Join the Westchester Choral Society!
The Westchester Choral Society invites singers to join them in their concerts this season. It rehearses on Tuesday evenings 7:00–9:30 at the Music Conservatory of Westchester, 216 Central Avenue, White Plains, NY (near the County Center), where it is Chorus in Residence. It welcomes singers in all voice sections. To schedule a singer-friendly audition, please call WCS President Numa Rousseve at (914) 285–9026; the chorus also offers the option of trying out rehearsals before auditioning.
What goes on in the “singer-friendly” auditions? In a five- to-ten-minute session, Music Director Frank Nemhauser will ask singers to perform a prepared solo, not part of a choral work or hymn, which need not be memorized (but bring a copy of the music for the accompanist); then sight-read a short passage (nothing too difficult); and vocalize to determine your vocal range. Mr. Nemhauser says, “I am looking for quality of voice and the ability to read music/learn music. I would like to stress that the audition procedure will be short, and I am extremely kind during auditions.”
About Music Director Frank Nemhauser
Currently in his fourth season as Music Director of the Westchester Choral Society, Frank Nemhauser is also the Music Director of the Berkshire Choral Festival. He is the Director of Vocal Studies of the Mannes College of Music.
Mr. Nemhauser has been Music Director of the Hartford Chorale, Chorus Director of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, and Associate Director of the Collegiate Chorale. He has been a guest conductor with the Houston Masterworks Chorus, The Dessoff Choirs, The Greenwich Choral Society, and The Handel Choir of Baltimore. In addition, he has led workshops and clinics for the Metropolitan Opera Guild, the San Francisco Symphony Chorus, The New Amsterdam Singers, The Augusta Choral Society, The Pennsylvania Music Educators Association, and the Southwestern Virginia Spotlight on the Arts Festival.
In his most recent Berkshire Choral Festival performance, Mr. Nemhauser conducted the Festival Chorus and Orchestra in the Dvořák Stabat Mater. In previous appearances at BCF, he conducted the Mozart Requiem, Bach’s Magnificat, the Brahms Alto Rhapsody and Nänie, the Stravinsky Symphony of Psalms, the Fauré Requiem, the Lauridsen Lux Aeterna, the Britten cantatas St. Nicholas and Rejoice in the Lamb, the Rutter Gloria, and Handel’s Solomon. Mr. Nemhauser has also led BCF concerts in Santa Fe, Canterbury, and Salzburg.
As a singer, Mr. Nemhauser has appeared throughout the United States and Europe, performing with The New York City Opera National Company, The Ensemble for Early Music, and Chanticleer and has also sung at numerous festivals, including Tanglewood, Edinburgh, Aspen and Spoleto.
About Accompanist David Baranowski
David Baranowski is a highly versatile accompanist, performing on piano, organ, and harpsichord, with repertoire ranging from Beethoven to Deep Purple. He has played numerous chamber and choral concerts in the Westchester area. As an organist, Mr. Baranowski has performed such works as the Brahms, Fauré, and Duruflé Requiems, the Dvořák Mass in G, and Handel’s Messiah. A conductor as well, he has directed the Poulenc Gloria, the Schubert Mass in G, and the Rutter Magnificat. At the piano, Mr. Baranowski has been performing major works as an accompanist, collaborative artist, and soloist for a number of years.
For the past five years, he has been touring internationally with rock icon Ritchie Blackmore as a keyboardist and singer. He has played over 100 concerts and visited nearly 25 countries as a member of Blackmore’s Night, which has been on the charts in Germany, the Czech Republic, England, and the US. Mr. Baranowski has appeared on German television multiple times and was recently featured on the primetime program Hit Giganten.
Currently the Director of Music at St. Joseph Roman Catholic Church in Danbury, Mr. Baranowski studied piano with Paul Ostrovsky and Steven Lubin, and organ with Robert Fertitta. He received both his Bachelor and Master of Music degrees from the Purchase College Conservatory of Music.
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