November 9th, 2019
The Choral Artists of Michigan are pleased to present a CAM Benefit Concert featuring Lauren Munaco, mezzo soprano, Jim Watson, tenor, and Kate Watson, violin, on Saturday, November 9, at Pomeroy Living Orion’s Event Center, 101 E Scripps Road, Lake Orion 48360. This CAM Benefit Concert is given to serve both the senior living community at Pomeroy and donors interested in the Choral Artists of Michigan. The concert will enrich the lives of the senior living community through engaging musical performances. In addition, the CAM is raising funds for their Song of Freedom Choral Festival.
This fall, the CAM was awarded the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs (MCACA) Minigrant in the amount of $1,350. This grant was awarded through the MCACA peer review process and was one of 561 applications to compete for the MCACA fiscal year 2019 funding. Organizations receiving an MCACA grant award are required to match those funds with additional dollars. Local support of the project so far includes community music patrons, Evola Music, and Musical Resources, the sole print music distributor of the CAM. A complete list of grant awards around the state is available by contacting MCACA at (517) 241-4011, or by visiting the MCACA website at www.michigan.gov/arts.
Admission to the CAM Benefit Concert is open to the Pomeroy Senior Living community and the community music patrons of the Choral Artists of Michigan by rsvp. Please contact Artistic Director, Jim Watson, at jwatson055@gmail.com for information on becoming a community music patron.
October 24th, 2019 at 7 p.m.
The Choral Artists of Michigan are pleased to present a collaborative concert with the Lake Orion Baptist Senior High Singers of Dan Forrest’s Jubilate Deo at 7 p.m. on Thursday, October 24, at the First Baptist Church – Lake Orion, 255 E Scripps Rd, Lake Orion 48359.
This new work brings the global aspect of the Psalm 100 text to life. Forrest arranges seven different languages, drawing from a wide spectrum of musical influences. Each movement features a different national musical style. In a single work, the audience will experience music inspired by Africa, Israel, China, and Spain. This is CAM first, and it begins a realization of their mission to collaborate with youth choruses for educational outreach.
At the performance, the LOBS Senior High Singers will announce an exciting invitation to perform at the Lincoln Center in New York City. The Senior High Singers will travel to New York in March 2020 for a special performance of the Jubilate Deo with the composer in residence, Dan Forrest, at the piano in the world-famous Lincoln Center stage.
Admission to Jubilate Deo is free and open to the public. A free-will offering will be taken at the conclusion of the concert. All funds will go to offset student costs of the Senior High Singers to NYC 2020 trip.
The CAM Chamber Singers are comprised of local vocal music artists that sing professionally throughout the communities of Metro Detroit; members are drawn from the choristers of the Michigan Opera Theatre and paid choral scholars. This ensemble performs choral masterworks and features new works by living composers. The Community Chorus is a choral ensemble open to community members that are passionate about the choral art. The choir enrolls a diverse membership, and they perform varied works. The combined choirs are under the direction of Dr. Jim Watson, Artistic Director, with piano accompaniment by Hannah Watson. In addition, the choirs are accompanied by a chamber ensemble: Rachel Werner, flute; Donna Hobson, oboe; Carl Hemak, clarinet; Kate Watson, violin; and Melody Mieczkowski, cello.
The Choral Artists of Michigan is a professional choral organization that engages audiences through outstanding experiences in vocal music. Their mission includes recording choral masterworks and organizing music festivals for educational outreach.
February 8th, 2020 at 3 p.m.
The Choral Artists of Michigan are pleased to present the Song of Freedom Choral Festival on Saturday, February 8, 2020, at 3:00 p.m. at St. Paul’s United Methodist Church, 620 Romeo St, Rochester, MI 48307. The CAM Chamber Singers and Community Chorus present inspiring choral masterworks from American composers William Billings, Samuel Barber, and a musical premiere from film composer, J.A.C. Redford. In addition, this choral festival features the Macomb Children’s Chorus ensembles: the Treble Choir, Symphonic Choir, and Troubadours. The choirs enjoy string ensemble accompaniment. At the conclusion of the festival, all choirs sing en masse to celebrate this exciting collaboration.
Samuel Barber transcribed his passionate and best known work, Adagio for Strings, for choral forces, adding the text, Agnus Dei. The CAM choirs plan a stirring interpretation of this masterwork. The CAM Chamber Singers present other choral masterworks from Barber including “To Be Sung on the Water” and “Sure on this Shining Night.”
Finally, the choir will premiere J.A.C. Redford’s Musica Dei Donum Optimi. Redford is a film composer, orchestrator, and conductor. His composing credits include film music: The Trip to Bountiful, One Night with the King, What the Deaf Man Heard, Mama Flora’s Family and Disney’s Oliver & Company, Newsies and The Mighty Ducks II and III. He has composed the music for nearly 500 episodes of series television, including multiple seasons of Coach and St. Elsewhere, for which he received two Emmy nominations.
General admission to the Song of Freedom Choral Festival is $10. For ticket information, call 248-505-5900. Doors open at 2:30 p.m., and seating is on a first come, first served basis.