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Voices of Ascension Chorus and Orchestra
On Tour: In New York City 20th Anniversary Season - Five Concerts in Five Venues
St. James' Church, Madison Ave. February 4
8 pm
St. James' Church


Level A: $55. CALL
Level B: $45. CALL
Level C: $35. CALL
Level D: $25. CALL
Level E: $10. CALL
Some seats are still available in limited sections, but not online. Call our ticket hotline, 212-358-7060. Phone sales will end at 4 pm on Thursday, the day of the concert. Any remaining seats will be sold at the Church of St. James, Madison Avenue and 71st Street, starting at 7:15 pm.
You can see a floor plan of the church (not a seating chart) at stjames.org
Gabriel Fauré

Fauré Requiem
Voices of Ascension Signature Pieces by Mendelssohn, Rachmaninoff, Bruckner, Holst, Stanford and others

Thursday, February 4, 2010 at 8:00 pm
Venue: St. James' Church, Madison Avenue at 71st Street

For Concert III we travel to one of the most prestigious and beautiful churches on the Upper East Side, St. James' Church. Here we will perform many of the pieces for which we are best known – favorite choruses by Mendelssohn, an excerpt from the Vespers of Rachmaninoff, the great Christus factus est of Bruckner, and many other works.

Fauré's beloved Requiem has long had its own special place in our repertory. From the rich string sonorities of the opening movements to the ethereal soprano tones of the "In Paradisum," Fauré has created a work of exceptional beauty and deep emotion.

Alice Tully Hall, Lincoln Center March 22 8 pm Alice Tully Hall
at Lincoln Center
Level A: $55. First 14 Orchestra Rows and Boxes A Left and Right
Level B: $45. Orchestra U thru X and Boxes B Left and Right
Level C: $35. Orchestra Y, Z and Boxes C Left and Right and Balcony Row A
Level D: $20. Balcony Rows B, C, and D
Level E: not available here
You will find a seating chart at lincolncenter.org

Rossini Petite Messe Solennelle (original version) with international opera superstar Jennifer Larmore

Monday, March 22, 2010 at 8:00 pm
Venue: Alice Tully Hall, Lincoln Center, 65th Street and Broadway

What a gala evening this promises to be, with Rossini's music, the great Jennifer Larmore, and the fabulous, newly-renovated Alice Tully Hall!

Composed near the end of his life, Rossini's Petite Messe is one of the most delightful and unique works in the choral repertory. A blending of the two worlds of opera and choral music, it combines a serious "solennelle" style and an extroverted, openly operatic style. Like Verdi's Requiem and Rossini's own Stabat Mater, his Messe is endowed with an abundance of beautiful arias, quartets, and choruses. We will be performing the work in its unique original version, featuring two pianos and harmonium.

We are very grateful to the Elizabeth & Michel Sorel Charitable Organization, Inc. for their support of this concert and for presenting us with the two exceptional pianists, Anna Shelest and Kana Mimaki. As a special prelude for the evening, the concert will begin with Franz Liszt's extraordinary piano Paraphrase Fantasia on Verdi's Rigoletto.

St. Mary's Church, NYC May 12
St. Mary's Church
Level A: $50. First Half of Nave
Level B: $40. Begins Half way back
Level C: $30. Behind Level B
Level D: $20. Rear Section
Level E: $10. No View
No seating chart, but St. Mary's has a website

The Glory of Palestrina

  • Missa Papae Marcelli, Offertories and Motets
  • Offertories
  • Motets

Wednesday, May 12, 2010 at 8:00 pm
Venue: The Church of Saint Mary the Virgin, 145 West 46th Street, just East of Times Square

We complete our season tour in one of the most remarkable musical venues of the city. Because of its vaulted Gothic arches and cathedral acoustics, the Church of Saint Mary the Virgin is widely known as one of the most atmospheric and satisfying spaces for Renaissance choral music in New York. Here we offer a celebration of the glories of the great master of the late Renaissance, Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina.

Over the years, the Voices of Ascension have performed and recorded many works of Palestrina to great critical acclaim. For this celebration we have picked his most famous mass, the sublime Missa Papae Marcelli, and a selection of what we feel are his finest and most special motets and offertories. This glorious music in this remarkable acoustical space should provide a wonderful conclusion to our tour of New York.

Earlier concerts this season:

Zankel Hall at Carnegie Hall October 27
7:30 pm
Zankel Hall
at Carnegie Hall

Johann Sebastian Bach

Bach Magnificat in D
The 2009 Winners of the Sorel Composition Competition:

  • Mary and Gabriel by Abbie Betinis, for chorus and percussion
  • Anacreontics by Judith Cloud, for chorus and guitar
  • Benedictus by Jocelyn Hagen, for a cappella chorus
  • Nisi Dominus by Martha Sullivan, for double chorus and orchestra

Tuesday, October 27, 2009 at 7:30 pm (Note earlier time!)
Venue: Zankel Hall at Carnegie Hall, Seventh Avenue between 56th & 57th Streets

We begin our tour at Carnegie Hall's Zankel Hall with one of the most beloved of all choral works, Bach's Magnificat in D. Composed for his first Christmas services in Leipzig, Bach lavished on this work all the brilliance and inspiration he had to offer. Although a relatively compact work, its elaborate orchestration and elevated ceremonial style place it alongside his greatest (and larger) works, such as the Mass in B Minor. In recent years we have loved performing Bach at Zankel Hall, where every individual choral and instrumental line is heard with absolute clarity!

We are delighted to collaborate again with the Elizabeth & Michel Sorel Charitable Organization, Inc. in performing the winners of their international competition for women composers. This year offers a brilliant array of highly varied works, from Mary and Gabriel, with its large batterie of nine percussion instruments and chorus, to the unique timbre of chorus and guitar in Anacreontics, to the mystical choral sonorities of Benedictus, and finally the Nisi Dominus for two choirs and full orchestra.

Read Dennis Keene's program notes for this concert.

The Church of the Ascension, Fifth Avenue in Greenwich Village, New York City December 15
8 pm
The Church of the Ascension

Christmas image from brochure

Candlelight Christmas Concert

Tuesday, December 15, 2009 at 8:00 pm
Venue: Church of the Ascension, Fifth Avenue at Tenth Street

Our second concert returns to Ascension a few weeks before the sanctuary closes for renovations.

Once again the church will be lit by hundreds of candles as the Voices of Ascension present four centuries of Christmas music – a wonderful mixture of classical pieces and favorite Christmas carols. As is our custom, the evening will include musical surprises and a special guest soloist.

(Please note: Our annual Christmas concerts regularly sell-out. Be sure to order your tickets early. Subscribers and Donors of $100 or more receive priority handling.)

Please note: Children under eight cannot be admitted.

©2009 Ascension Music Chorus & Orchestra, Inc.
Voices of Ascension Chorus and Orchestra - Dennis Keene, Artistic Director and Conductor
12 West 11th Street, New York, NY 10011-8695
Office: (212) 358-1469 Ticket hotline: (212) 358-7060