Press Release - October 12, 2005, Boston, MA

"Le Roi David" Opens Back Bay Chorale Season

Music Director Scott Allen Jarrett begins his second season with the Back Bay Chorale in a celebration of the vibrant French music of the early twentieth century on November 18, 8:00 P.M. at Old South Church, Copley Square. The centerpiece of the concert is Arthur Honegger’s dramatic “symphonic psalm” Le Roi David.

Written in 1921, the piece chronicles King David’s tumultuous life – slaying the giant, betrayed by his king, triumphant in battle, lusting for another’s wife, suffering his son’s death, offending his god, yet ultimately creating the legacy of the Kingdom of Israel. Structurally, Le Roi David is a series of scenes, many of which are brief. But each advances the dramatic framework of the music. The Back Bay Chorale production will be staged by Lynn Torgrove, and Claude Corbeil, the internationally acclaimed lyric bass, is the Narrator.

Le Roi David also features the debut performances of the Back Bay Chorale’s Emerging Artists in Residence. Soprano Amanda Jellen has performed throughout the United States and Europe to critical acclaim in both concert and opera, and she is active performer of contemporary music. Winner of the New England Conservatory’s annual Commencement Concert Competition, mezzo-soprano Andrea Coleman was recently selected as a Young American Artist with Glimmerglass Opera. With a master’s degree from the New England Conservatory, tenor Stefan Reed has participated in numerous recitals, oratorio performances, and opera productions and was a soloist in the Chorale’s production of Schumann’s Paradise and the Peri.

The Back Bay Chorale’s new Emerging Artists in Residence Program is designed to showcase emerging talented singers in the Greater Boston area. Through instructional and performance opportunities with the Chorale, the artists will expand their knowledge of choral music performance and artistic leadership and, in turn, lend their expertise to the Chorale. The Program is funded in part by an Alfred Nash Patterson Grant from Choral Arts New England and generous donations by its supporters.

Full details are available at http://www.bbcboston.org/