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Nov. 9: Miller Theatre Presents Vocal Quartet New York Polyphony in Gothic Polyphony
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Katy Salomon | Morahan Arts and Media
katy@morahanartsandmedia.com | 863.660.2214
Miller Theatre Presents New York Polyphony
in Gothic Polyphony, November 9
A Program Featuring Selections from the Worcester Fragments, Medieval Gems,
and Lost Music from the Golden Age of the Spanish Renaissance
“singers of superb musicianship and vocal allure” – The New Yorker
New York, NY (September 19, 2019) — Miller Theatre presents illustrious GRAMMY-nominated vocal quartet New York Polyphony in Gothic Polyphony on Saturday, November 9, 2019 at 8pm at Church of St. Mary the Virgin. The program begins at the dawn of the Renaissance, with selections of the Worcester Fragments. Rescued from the Reformation as recycled book-bindings, these Medieval gems show the mastery of the English style that would influence the next three centuries of composition, such as works by England’s first great composer, John Dunstable, as well as John Pyamour, John Plummer, Thomas Byttering, and Leonel Power. The program culminates with music from the Golden Age of the Spanish Renaissance: selections from Francisco de Peñalosa’s Missa 'L'homme arme and Sancta Maria, Pedro de Escobar’s Stabat mater dolorosa, Francisco Guerrero’s Antes que comáis a Dios, and Juan Gutiérrez de Padilla’s Stabat mater dolorosa.
New York Polyphony released their latest album, Peñalosa – Lamentationes, on Friday, September 6, 2019 on BIS Records (BIS-2407 SACD). The album features rarely heard works from late 15th-century and early 16th-century Spanish composers Francisco de Pen~alosa, Pedro de Escobar, and Francisco Guerrero, including world premiere recordings of Peñalosa's Lamentations and movements of his Missa L’homme arme´. Originally written for men's voices, the long overlooked works on Lamentationes are uniquely suited to the four men of New York Polyphony. Of the repertoire, bass Craig Phillips says, "The music leapt off the page. It was as though these pieces, especially Pen~alosa's unknown settings of the Lamentations, were written for us. We connected immediately to the sweep and sensuality of the repertoire."
Program Information
Gothic Polyphony
Saturday, November 9, 2019 at 8pm
Church of St. Mary the Virgin | 145 West 46th Street | New York, NY
Tickets: Starting at $30
Link: https://www.millertheatre.com/
Program:
From the Worcester Fragments
Anonymous – Gloria in excelsis Deo, trope: Spiritus procedens
Anonymous – Sanctus and Benedictus
Andrew Smith – Flos Regalis
Anonymous – Flos Regalis
Anonymous – Agnus Dei
Anonymous – Beata viscera
Leonel Power – Beata progenies
Thomas Byttering – Nesciens mater
John Dunstable – Speciosa facta es
John Dunstable – Quam pulchra es, No. 44
John Pyamour – Quam pulcra es
John Plummer – Tota pulcra es
Francisco de Peñalosa – Missa 'L'homme armé', Gloria in excelsis Deo
Francisco de Peñalosa – Missa 'L'homme armé', Credo in unum Deum
Francisco de Peñalosa – Sancta Maria, succure miseris
Pedro de Escobar – Stabat mater dolorosa
Francisco Guerrero – Antes que comáis a Dios
Juan Gutiérrez de Padilla – Stabat mater dolorosa
Performers:
New York Polyphony
Geoffrey Williams, countertenor
Steven Caldicott Wilson, tenor
Christopher Dylan Herbert, baritone
Craig Phillips, bass
About New York Polyphony
Praised for a “rich, natural sound that’s larger and more complex than the sum of its parts” (NPR), New York Polyphony is one of the foremost vocal chamber ensembles active today. The four men, “singers of superb musicianship and vocal allure” (The New Yorker), give vibrant, modern voice to repertoire ranging from Gregorian chant to cutting-edge compositions. Their dedication to innovative programming, as well as a focus on rare and rediscovered Renaissance and medieval works, has not only earned New York Polyphony two GRAMMY nominations and wide acclaim, but also helped to move early music into the classical mainstream.
Commissioning new works has been central to the mission of New York Polyphony since their founding in 2006. Both in performance and on recording, the ensemble has demonstrated a commitment to presenting contemporary compositions that explore the boundaries between ancient and modern music. They have forged relationships with numerous composers, including established artists such as Richard Rodney Bennett, Jonathan Berger and Jackson Hill, emerging talents Bora Yoon and Gregory Brown, and prominent figures such as Gabriel Jackson and Andrew Smith. In January 2017, as part of Miller Theatre at Columbia University's Early Music Series, New York Polyphony premiered The Vespers Sequence, a multi-movement setting of the Byzantine evening prayer service composed for the ensemble by Ivan Moody. Other projects include The Bitter Good by American composer Gregory Spears, for which the quartet was awarded a 2016 Commissioning Grant from Chamber Music America.
New York Polyphony’s growing discography includes two GRAMMY-nominated releases and albums that have topped the “Best of” lists of The New Yorker, Gramophone, and BBC Music Magazine. The ensemble’s 2017 release Missa Charles Darwin (Navona Records) features Gregory W. Brown’s innovative work of the same name—a piece that directly inspired bestselling author Dan Brown’s most recent novel in the Da Vinci Code series, Origin. New York Polyphony’s 2016 release Roma aeterna debuted at #4 on Billboard’s Classical chart and was hailed as "resplendent and elegant" (San Francisco Chronicle) and "nothing short of revelatory" (AllMusic). Called a “spacious, radiant retreat" by The New York Times, 2014's release Sing thee Nowell earned New York Polyphony the group its second GRAMMY nomination in the Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance category. Commended as “a complex, clear-eyed yet still painfully beautiful tapestry” (Gramophone), Times go by Turns (2013) amassed substantial critical acclaim and garnered the group’s first GRAMMY nomination. New York Polyphony’s previous releases include endBeginning (2012), Tudor City (2010), and a debut album I sing the birth (2007).
New York Polyphony tours extensively, participating in major concert series and festivals around the world. Noteworthy engagements include performances at Wigmore Hall in London and The Royal Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, residencies at Dartmouth College and Stanford University, concerts under the aegis of the Festival Oude Muziek Utrecht (Netherlands), and the European premiere of The Vespers Sequence at Musica Sacra Maastricht (Netherlands) in 2018. Elsewhere, New York Polyphony has performed as part of the Tage Alter Musik Regensburg (Germany); Festspiele Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (Germany); Rheingau Musik Festival (Germany); Internationales Festival für Vokalmusik "a cappella" Leipzig (Germany); Festival Internacional de Música Abvlensis (Spain); Stiftskonzerte Oberösterreich (Austria); Stavanger Kammermusikk Festival (Norway); Cartagena Festival International de Música (Colombia); San Francisco Performances (USA); and Early Music Vancouver (Canada), among others. They have been featured on Performance Today for American Public Media, Footprints to Paradise: A Medieval Christmas for Public Radio International, and BBC Radio 3’s In Tune. In December 2011, New York Polyphony made its national television debut on The Martha Stewart Show. Learn more at www.newyorkpolyphony.com.
*Photo at the top of release by Jacob Blickenstaff
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