Artistic Director Matthew Lewis Discusses the Summer Choral Festival on VAN
/Our Summer Choral Festival is almost here! Beginning Tuesday, June 4, St. George's Choral Society will host a two-week choral intensive, with two rehearsals a week, culminating in a performance of Durante's Magnificat and Handel's Laudate pueri, HWV 237 on Saturday, June 15 at 7:00 pm.
Apply now to sing with us this summer.
Want to learn more? Enjoy an interview between St. George’s Choral Society Artistic Director Matthew Lewis and President Rachel Ruoff on The Vocal Area Network. Here’s an excerpt:
Rachel Ruoff: What influenced your decision to perform Handel's Laudate pueri and Durante's Magnificat for the Summer Choral Festival?
Matthew Lewis: I try to find pieces that are fun to sing, challenging and yet manageable for the rehearsal parameters we have. Some of the big choral pieces would be fun, but we would have trouble learning them in four rehearsals. Having said that, we've definitely done some difficult works in past festivals! Like the year we did the Poulenc Gloria along with the Bernstein Chichester Psalms. These pieces are, to some degree, standard choral repertoire, but it was tough getting them learned and finessed in four rehearsals. The Durante and Handel we are doing this year are delightful and fun pieces, both in a similar style. The orchestration is strings only for the Durante, and strings plus oboes for the Handel.
