LEGACY CONCERT SERIES

Dett & Bernstein

R. Nathaniel DETT: The Ordering of Moses (North Carolina Premiere)
Leonard BERNSTEIN: Chichester Psalms

Anne O'Byrne, soprano
Sarah Brauer, mezzo-soprano
Jason Dungee, tenor
Marques Jerrell Ruff, bass-baritone
Charlotte Master Chorale
Charlotte Symphony Orchestra
Kenney Potter, conducting

Thursday, September 28 - 7:30 PM

(Pre-Concert Talk at 6:30 PM) @ Cain Center for the Arts
21348 Catawba Ave, Cornelius, NC 28031

Saturday, September 30, 2023 - 7:30 PM

(Pre-Concert Talk at 6:30 PM) @ The Sarah Belk Gambrell Center for the Arts and Civic Engagement, Queens University of Charlotte
2319 Wellesley Avenue, Charlotte, NC 28207

Parking for Sarah Belk Gambrell Center is located in the North Parking Deck (2217 Wellesley Avenue), which is accessible from Wellesley Avenue via driveway next to the Levine Center for Wellness and Recreation. Limited disabled parking and loading/drop-off are located at the building’s entrance at 2319 Wellesley Avenue.

Program Guide

Celebrating the Oratorio Singers’ and Charlotte Master Chorale’s over seven decades of performing choral-orchestral masterworks, our Legacy Concert series continues with an examination of freedom and oppression across communities featuring Leonard Bernstein’s Chichester Psalms and the North Carolina premiere of R. Nathaniel Dett’s long-neglected oratorio The Ordering of Moses,a richly, emotional oratorio that offers a portrait of Moses from the burning bush to his deliverance of the Israelites. In his review of a 2022 performance in Birmingham, England, music critic Andrew Clements described the work this way:

“It’s a vivid piece of musical storytelling, a sequence of impassioned solo arias and dramatic choral numbers, always underpinned by pungent orchestral colours that progress steadily from the dark despair of the opening, strikingly coloured by cello and bassoon, to the brassy exuberance of the final moments, when Moses and his sister Miriam lead the Israelites in a celebration of their freedom.”

Our Soloists

Anne O'Byrne Sarah Brauer Jason Dungee Marques Jerrell Ruff

Anne O'Byrne soprano
Soprano Anne O’Byrne hails from Dublin, Ireland, where as a young singer, she joined the Irish Radio Choir, broadcasting weekly on national radio. She gained scholarships to attend the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester, England, before embarking on a career in opera and concert which has taken her all over the world.
Anne has worked with renowned conductors, such as Sir Simon Rattle and Sir Andrew Davis; Early Music specialists Harry Bicket OBE, Harry Christophers OBE, and Dame Emma Kirkby: and famed producers, such as Sir Jonathan Miller and Sir Trevor Nunn. She has sung over twenty leading roles—including Pamina in Mozart’sDie Zauberflöte; Gilda in Verdi’s Rigoletto; Mimi in Puccini’s La Bohème; Suzanna in Le Nozze di Figaro; Leila in Bizet’s Pearlfishers, and Adina in Donizetti’s L'elisir d'amore to name a few. Most recently Ms. O’Byrne sang the title role of Monteverdi’s opera, L’incoronazione di Poppeawith Capitol Opera Richmond. She has created roles in new operas for the Wexford and Covent Garden International Festivals, and recorded for Irish television, the BBC and NPR.
Anne moved to the United States in 2002 with her husband David Fisk, (CEO and President of Charlotte Symphony) and their two children, Fionnuala and Oliver. Since then, she has performed for Virginia Opera, the Richmond Symphony, RVA Baroque, and many East Coast choral societies. She has sung for luminaries including President Barack Obama, Condoleezza Rice, Robert Redford, and the Royal families of England and Monaco.
Ms. O’Byrne has been teaching voice for over 25 years, including at University of Richmond and GreenSpring International Academy of Music, Richmond. Many of her students are top prizewinners in national competitions and have followed Anne’s lead by also performing in venues like Carnegie Hall.
Anne is excited to be singing in her new home town of Charlotte with the Charlotte Master Chorale!
Sarah Brauer, mezzo-soprano
Sarah Brauer, mezzo-soprano, enjoys a varied career of concert, opera, and choral performance. Sarah earned her Master of Music degree from Rice University after completing her Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Southern California, and is currently pursuing her Doctor of Music degree at the University of Oregon.
Sarah has appeared as a soloist with the Oregon Bach Festival, Salem Chamber Orchestra, The Ensemble, Cascadia Chamber Opera, Jefferson Baroque Orchestra, Charlotte Master Chorale, Oregon Bach Collegium, Santa Fe Symphony, Willamette Master Chorale, Chatter, Houston Bach Society, and Aspen Music Festival, among others. Highlights include mezzo-soprano soloist for the concert-drama Defiant Requiem: Verdi at Terezín, created and conducted by Murry Sidlin; Mozart’s Requiem and Bach’s Magnificat with the New Mexico Philharmonic; Vivaldi’s Gloria, and Dido in Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas with the Santa Fe Symphony; and the role of Judy in the national touring production of Craig Hella Johnson’s Considering Matthew Shepard.
A native of Portland, Sarah has frequently collaborated with composers through the Oregon Composers Forum. Recent engagements include premieres of Cara Haxo’s concert-length Pretty Pretty Princess and the Underworld, and Zeelah in Daniel Daly’s opera, The Banshee, as well as with the Oregon Bach Festival’s Composer Forum, where she also premiered her own chamber music composition.
Sarah’s passion for historically-informed performance practice has led to seven years of collaboration with the annual International Musicking Festival, where she has been central in resurrecting and realizing manuscripts from the early Italian baroque, some of which have not been performed in over 300 years.
Upcoming engagements include a debut with the Dallas Symphony, a recording release and Christmas concert series with Conspirare, premiere with Cascadia Opera, and the Winter and Summer Festival Seasons with the Santa Fe Desert Chorale.
In addition to performing, Sarah is an Instructor of Voice at the University of Oregon and Linn-Benton Community College and serves on the board of Oregon Bach Festival. Sarah has recorded nine discs with Austin-based professional chamber choir, Conspirare, including the GRAMMY®-winning Sacred Spirit of Russia.
Sarah lives in Eugene, Oregon with her son, Luke, and dog, Schubert.sarahbrauermezzo.com
Jason Dungee, tenor
Dr. Jason A. Dungee, currently serves as the Director of Choral Activities at The University of North Carolina at Charlotte. He has earned degrees from the University of Arizona, Westminster Choir College and Hampton University. Prior to appointments as Director of Choral Studies in South Carolina and Florida, he taught high school choir in Newport News and Williamsburg, Virginia. He is a highly sought after clinician, and collaborator and has conducted several district and state level all-county choral events since arriving in Charlotte in 2022.
As a scholar, Dungee’s article “A Pedagogy for Living: Applying Restorative, Anti-Racist Pedagogy to the Choral Classroom” was published in The Choral Journal and has led to him being in demand as a presenter for organizations and Universities across the U.S.
Recently, Dr. Dungee was selected for two consecutive years to prepare choirs for the southeast leg of HBO’s internationally acclaimed touring production of The Game of Thrones Live Experience, featuring music from the hit TV program. In February of 2022 and April of 2023, Dungee was asked to prepare an ensemble for the rock band the Eagles for their performances in Charlotte and Greensboro, respectively. And he has conducted sold-out, critically acclaimed performances as guest conductor of the Charleston Gospel Choir. As performer, he sang the tenor solo for the London Symphony Orchestra and the Carnegie Hall premieres of Andre Thomas’Mass.
His pride and joy, however, is found in his wife Crysta, and their three children, Jordan, Andrew and Langston.
Marques Jerrell Ruff, bass-baritone
Marques Jerrell Ruff is an international musician, hailing from New England. TheHartford Courant marveled, “Ruff has a voice that has power, clarity and brilliant shades of color.” While GoldenPlec Magazinewrote, “Marques Jerrell Ruff has a voice that is powerful, acrobatic, and full of soul.”Mr. Ruff has been a featured soloist with the National Chorus of Korea & Symphony, Tallahassee Symphony, Hartford Symphony, Rogue Valley Symphony, and the Champaign-Urbana Symphony Orchestra. As an ensemble musician, he has appeared with the Santa Fe Desert Chorale, Conspirare, Exigence, Chanticleer, and Seraphic Fire. In addition to being a bass-baritone, Mr. Ruff is also a conductor and has conducted across the country, including with the Cantabile Youth Singers of Silicon Valley, St. Louis District Honor Choir, and the Missouri Choral Artists.
Mr. Ruff is committed to the proliferation and preservation of the Negro Spiritual and Black music across the globe, and his efforts have resulted in numerous presentations, both nationally and regionally, on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion within the Choral Arts.
Mr. Ruff is a graduate of Central Connecticut State University, where he was also the recipient of the University Singers Scholarship under the direction of Dr. Pamela J. Perry. He holds dual Master of Music degrees in Choral Conducting and Voice Performance from the University of Missouri-Columbia. Currently, he is completing his Ph.D. in Music Education with an emphasis in Choral Conducting at Florida State University. Mr. Ruff is a proud member of the American Choral Directors Association, Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Fraternity of America, and Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated. He can be found on all social media: @marquesjruff

Dett: The Ordering of Moses

R. Nathaniel Dett (1882–1943) began work at the Hampton Institute (now University), a historically Black college in Hampton, Virginia, in 1913. There he trained the choir to a new level of musical excellence, with his 40-voice Hampton Singers performing at Carnegie Hall in January 1914. Dett became director of the Music Department at Hampton in 1926, another first for an African American, the same year Oberlin Conservatory awarded him an honorary Doctor of Music degree, yet another first.

Dett’s later education included studies at Harvard University under Arthur Foote and the American Conservatory in Fountainebleau with Nadia Boulanger. In 1932, he completed a Master of Music degree at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York. For his master’s project, he composed what would become one of his most significant compositions, the oratorioThe Ordering of Moses.

This monumental work drew upon the biblical story of Moses and the Exodus, blending elements of African American spirituals with classical European forms and techniques in a powerful testament of his compositional skill, his dedication to preserving African American musical traditions, and his belief in the unique and indispensable role of African American music in American culture.

ThoughThe Ordering of Moses premiered to critical acclaim at the 1937 Cincinnati May Festival, its concurrent national radio broadcast was not met with the same enthusiasm. Around forty minutes into what was meant to be an hour-long program, NBC radio listeners across the country found the historic national broadcast cut short: “We are sorry indeed, ladies and gentlemen, but due to previous commitments, we are unable to remain for the closing moments of this excellent performance.”
No official explanation was given, but the prevailing theory was that NBC had caved to complaints from listeners who objected to the broadcasting of music by a Black composer. The piece was rarely performed for the following 70 years, until its recent revival by musical organizations across the country.

Bernstein: Chichester Psalms

Leonard_Bernstein_by_Jack_Mitchell 300.jpg Versatility was a defining feature of Leonard Bernstein's (1918–1990) career. He composed symphonies, operas, and musicals, including the legendary West Side Story. His works often explored complex and emotionally charged themes, reflecting his deep engagement with social and political issues.

The three movements ofChichester Psalms, written in 1965, are a captivating blend of Biblical Hebrew verse and Christian choral tradition, reflecting Bernstein's commitment to promoting unity and understanding among different faiths. As the Leonard Bernstein Office notes, “Bernstein specifically called for the text to be sung in Hebrew (there is not even an English translation in the score), using the melodic and rhythmic contours of the Hebrew language to dictate mood and melodic character. By combining the Hebrew with Christian choral tradition, Bernstein was implicitly issuing a plea for peace in Israel during a turbulent time in the young country’s history.”

Pre-Concert Talks (6:30 PM)

Arrive early for a Pre-Concert Talk and learn more about these works and the social issues they deal with.

Thursday

Marques L. A. Garrett, University of North Texas
Cantor Emeritus Elias Roochvarg, Temple Israel.

Saturday

Marques L. A. Garrett, University of North Texas

Marques L. A. Garrett

CMC Dett Marques L. A. Garrett.jpg Marques L. A. Garrett (he/him) is Associate Professor of Choral Studies at the University of North Texas and the editor of the anthology The Oxford Book of Choral Music by Black Composers. He is an accomplished vocalist and composer with his works available through several publishers and performed by festival/honor choirs, all-state choirs, and professional and university choirs such as Seraphic Fire and the Oakwood University Aeolians. He regularly serves as a choral clinician and guest conductor for festival and honor choirs throughout the country. He is an active researcher with published articles and presentations on the choral music of Black composers and rehearsal techniques for state, regional, and national conferences.

Cantor Elias Roochvarg

CMC Dett Cantor Elias Roochvarg.jpg Cantor Roochvarg was born & raised in Newark, New Jersey. He earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Music Education at UNC-Chapel Hill, and a Master’s Degree in Vocal Performance at Boston University. He decided to make Jewish Music his profession, and studied at the Hebrew Union College School of Sacred Music, receiving his Cantorial Investiture in 1978. He lived in Israel for three years, and has returned many times since. He was the Cantor of Beth Israel, Owings Mills, MD, from 1980-1995, and the Cantor at Temple Israel of Charlotte, NC, from 1995 till his retirement in 2018, when the title of Cantor Emeritus was bestowed upon him. In 2009, he published a book, WELL-VERSED IN SCRIPTURE: The First Five Books Of The Bible In Contemporary Rhyme. Cantor Roochvarg has received honorary doctorates from Hebrew Union College (2003) and the Jewish Theological Seminary (2013). He and his wife Linda, a physician, have three outstanding adult children.

These concerts are presented in partnership with the Charlotte Symphony Orchestra, the Gambrell Center of Queens University of Charlotte, and collegiate singers from Queens University of Charlotte and UNC Charlotte and are made possible, in part, with funding from ASC and the N.C. Arts Council, a division of the Department of Natural & Cultural Resources, and the Sally Ann and Joe Hall Fund of the Charlotte Symphony’s Endowment.

^*The September 30th performance is presented in partnership with the Gambrell Center and features special performances by the Queens University Choral Union & Chamber Singers, Justin Smith, director, and the University Chorale of UNC Charlotte, Jason Dungee, director.

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