Flower Songs

Friday, October 4, 2019 | 8:00 PM | Seattle Opera Center
by invitation only

Friday, October 11, 2019 | 7:00 PM | Seattle First Baptist Church
Seattle Sings Choral Festival, honoring Dr. Morten Lauridsen
free admission – donations welcome at the door
1111 Harvard Avenue, Seattle

The Emerald Ensemble is honored to present a live broadcast performance to commemorate the inauguration of Classical KING-FM's new studio. A week later we will participate in the Greater Seattle Choral Consortium's "welcome home" concert for the foremost American choral composer, Morten Lauridsen, who has retired from his Californian teaching post to settle in our Northwest islands. Lauridsen's settings of French poetry by Rilke, Les chansons des roses, form the colorful leaves and flowers of these performances. The stem is Britten's Five Flower Songs, and the branches are two other American works by the Revolutionary-era William Billings and local composer Jeremy Kings.

See program note, including texts and translations.

Repertoire (October 4)

• Benjamin Britten (1913-1976) – Five Flower Songs
• William Billings (1746-1800) – I am the rose of Sharon
• Jeremy Kings (b.1987) – A red, red rose
• Morten Lauridsen (b.1943) – Les chansons des roses

Repertoire (October 11)

• Morten Lauridsen (b.1943) – En une seule fleur
• Benjamin Britten (1913-1976) – The evening primrose
• William Billings (1746-1800) – I am the rose of Sharon
• Morten Lauridsen – Contre qui, rose
• Benjamin Britten – Ballad of Green Broom

Performing Artists

• Joel Bevington, tenor
• Gustave Blazek, bass
• Gary D. Cannon, conductor
• Erica Convery, mezzo-soprano
• Sammie Gorham, soprano
• David Hendrix, tenor
• Brandon Higa, tenor
• Alivia Jones, soprano
• J. Scott Kovacs, bass-baritone
• Melissa Plagemann, mezzo-soprano
• Ksenia Popova, soprano
• Linda Strandberg, soprano
• Lana Van Boven, mezzo-soprano
• Ingrid Verhulsdonk, piano
• Cliff Watson, bass
• Robin Wyatt-Stone, baritone
• Kathea Yarnell, mezzo-soprano