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Press Releases
Kent Tritle’s Spring 2025: Bach’s St. Matthew Passion, SurRound II, and the World Premiere of Moravec/Campbell All Shall Rise
Paul Appleby Sings His First Evangelist in the St. Matthew Passion, Susanna Phillips Leads the Roster of Soloists in All Shall Rise
Kent Tritle, center, at the Oratorio Society of New York Messiah at Carnegie Hall December 23, 2024; at left is Joseph Parrish, at right, Joshua Blue. Photo by Brian Hatton
In the spring of 2025, Kent Tritle leads his three choral ensembles in a masterpiece of the literature, an immersive surround-sound presentation, and a world premiere: Bach’s St. Matthew Passion with the Cathedral Choirs and Orchestra of St. John the Divine on March 8; “SurRound II” with Musica Sacra, a concert in 360°, also at the Cathedral, on April 1; and a new oratorio by Paul Moravec and Mark Campbell, All Shall Rise, with the Oratorio Society of New York, that “raises its voice in celebration of that most essential of democratic principles: voting equality,” on May 5 at Carnegie Hall.
For J. S. Bach’s mighty St. Matthew Passion at St. John the Divine, Kent spotlights the musical architecture of Bach’s masterwork with creative placement of the Cathedral’s choirs – the Choir, Chorale (volunteer ensemble) and Choristers (boys and girls) in the space. This concert marks acclaimed tenor Paul Appleby’s first performance of the part of the Evangelist; he leads a soloist roster of young rising stars: Joseph Parrish as Christus, and soprano Eva Martinez, mezzo-soprano Mary Beth (Nelson) Zaros, tenor Joshua Blue, and baritone Harrison Hintzsche. (March 8, 2025, at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine)
Returning after a sold-out debut in October 2023 is Musica Sacra’s “SurRound II,” an immersive concert in 360° in the candlelit Cathedral of St. John the Divine. The audience, seated in the Great Choir stalls and floor, will experience a program of medieval, Renaissance, and contemporary works as Kent leads the singers throughout the cathedral. The program includes Gregorio Allegri’s Miserere and John Tavener’s Lament of the Mother of God as well as music by Adolphus Hailstork, Sarah McDonald, William Dawson, Pérotin, Joanna Forbes L’Estrange, Heinrich Schütz, and Morton Lauridsen. (April 1, 2025, at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine)
About the 2023 SurRound event, Classics Today said, “By placing the chorus above, behind, and mixed in with the choir stalls for different works, the never ending panoply of tone and color put us in the middle of the creative process. A remarkable evening.”
Culminating the Oratorio Society of New York season, Kent leads a concert featuring the world premiere of All Shall Rise, an oratorio exploring the history of voting rights in the U.S., by the Pulitzer Prize-winning duo of composer Paul Moravec and librettist Mark Campbell – the third work OSNY has commissioned from the pair, following Sanctuary Road (2018) and A Nation of Others (2022) – along with Mendelssohn’s Symphony No. 2, “Lobgesang.” Campbell says the new work “aligns the extraordinary words of such historical figures as Frederick Douglass, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Paine, and Mathilda Franziska Anneke with four personal stories of our time.” The concert’s soloists are Susanna Phillips, Lucia Bradford, Jonathan Pierce Rhodes, and Steven Eddy. (May 5, 2025, at Carnegie Hall)
During Holy Week, Kent and his music staff at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine will offer music of the season at services April 13-20 presented in person and via livestream (see schedule below).
Continuing its tradition of high-profile collaborations, Musica Sacra also returns to the New York City Ballet for that company’s signature production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream (May 27 – June 1, 2025, at David Koch Theater).
Kent Tritle is one of America’s leading choral conductors. Called “the brightest star in New York's choral music world” by The New York Times, he is Director of Cathedral Music and Organist at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York City; Music Director of the Oratorio Society of New York, the acclaimed avocational chorus; and Music Director of Musica Sacra, New York’s elite professional chorus. In addition, Kent is a member of the graduate faculty of The Juilliard School, serving its Vocal Arts Department. An acclaimed organ virtuoso, he is also the organist of the New York Philharmonic.
Kent Tritle’s discography features recordings on the Telarc, Naxos, AMDG, Epiphany, Gothic, VAI and MSR Classics labels. Recent releases include the Paul Moravec/Mark Campbell oratorio A Nation of Others with the Oratorio Society of New York; the Grammy-nominated Naxos recording of the Moravec/Campbell Sanctuary Road also with the Oratorio Society; Mahler's Symphony No. 8 in David Briggs's organ-choral version, and Eternal Reflections: Choral Music of Robert Paterson with Musica Sacra. Other releases include the 2013 recording of Juraj Filas’ Requiem, Oratio Spei dedicated to the victims of 9/11, with the Prague Symphony Orchestra and the Kühn Choir; Messages to Myself, an acclaimed recording with Musica Sacra of five new works; and recordings – including Cool of the Day, an a cappella program of music ranging from Gregorian chant, Palestrina, and spirituals to Strauss’s Deutsche Motette, and Ginastera’s The Lamentations of Jeremiah with Schnittke’s Concerto for Choir – with the Choir of St. Ignatius Loyola.
Kent Tritle is renowned as a master clinician, giving workshops on conducting and repertoire; recent years have included annual choral workshops at the Amherst Early Music Festival, workshops at Berkshire Choral International, Summer@Eastman and at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki. As Director of Choral Activities at the Manhattan School of Music from 2008 to 2022, Kent established the school’s first doctoral program in choral conducting. A Juilliard School faculty member since 1996, he currently directs a graduate practicum on oratorio in collaboration with the school’s Vocal Arts Department.
Kent Tritle founded the Sacred Music in a Sacred Space concert series at New York’s Church of St. Ignatius Loyola, and led it to great acclaim from 1989 to 2011. From 1996 to 2004, he was Music Director of New York’s The Dessoff Choirs. Kent hosted “The Choral Mix with Kent Tritle” on New York’s WQXR, a weekly program devoted to the vibrant world of choral music, from 2010 to 2014. Among his recent honors are the 2020 Chorus America Michael Korn Founders Award for Development of the Professional Choral Art, the 2017 Distinguished Achievement Award from Career Bridges and the 2016 President’s Medal for Distinguished Service from the Manhattan School of Music. Kent is on the advisory boards of the Choral Composer/Conductor Collective (C4) and the Clarion Music Society, and was the 2016 honoree at Clarion’s annual gala. He was recently featured in the WIRED video series “Masterminds,” an installment titled, “What Conductors Are Really Doing.”
Kent Tritle on Facebook: www.facebook.com/kenttritle
Kent Tritle on Instagram: www.instagram.com/kenttritle/
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Kent Tritle Spring 2025
Saturday, March 8, 2025, at 7:00 pm
Cathedral of St. John the Divine, New York, NY
CATHEDRAL CHOIRS OF ST. JOHN THE DIVINE
Kent Tritle, conductor
Paul Appleby, Evangelist
Joseph Parrish, Christus
Eva Martinez, soprano
Mary Beth (Nelson) Zaros, mezzo-soprano
Joshua Blue, tenor
Harrison Hintzsche, baritone
J.S. BACH St. Matthew Passion
Tuesday, April 1, 2025, at 7:30 pm
Cathedral of St. John the Divine, New York, NY
Kent Tritle, conductor
“SurRound II” is an immersive concert in 360° in the candlelit Cathedral of St. John the Divine. The audience, seated in the Great Choir stalls and floor, will experience a program of medieval, Renaissance, and contemporary works as the singers move throughout the cathedral. The program includes Gregorio Allegri’s Miserere and John Tavener’s Lament of the Mother of God as well as music by Adolphus Hailstork, Sarah McDonald, William Dawson, Pérotin, Joanna Forbes L’Estrange, Heinrich Schütz, and Morton Lauridsen.
HOLY WEEK SERVICES AT THE CATHEDRAL OF ST. JOHN THE DIVINE
In-person and livestreamed:
April 13, 10:30 am – noon: Palm Sunday Holy Eucharist
April 17, 6:30 – 8 pm: Maundy Thursday Service
April 18, noon – 1 pm: Good Friday Liturgy of the Word
April 19, 7:30 – 9 PM: Great Vigil of Easter
April 20, 10:30 am – 12:15 pm: Easter Day Service
Link to repertoire list for Holy Week
Monday, May 5, 2025, at 7:00 pm
Carnegie Hall, New York, NY
Kent Tritle, conductor
Susanna Phillips, soprano
Lucia Bradford, mezzo-soprano
Jonathan Pierce Rhodes, tenor
Steven Eddy, baritone
FELIX MENDELSSOHN Symphony No. 2, “Lobgesang”
PAUL MORAVEC/MARK CAMPBELL All Shall Rise (world premiere)
May 27 – June 1, 2025
David H. Koch Theater, Lincoln Center, New York, NY
A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Musica Sacra, Kent Tritle, director, is featured in performances of Mendelssohn’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream.
February 14, 2025
FEATURED JOBS
RENT A PHOTO
