Evento

The River Has Many Voices: Voci's 20th Anniversary Retrospective

Featuring contemporary musical gems from Voci's 20-year repertoire, many written especially for Voci, plus the world premiere of a new choral song cycle by Voci Conductor Navari. Also featuring works by Callaway, Clark, Frank, Knell, Larsen, Meckler, and Paulus.

The 2011-2012 season marks Voci Women's Vocal Ensemble's 20th Anniversary. Founded in 1991, Voci is recognized as one of the finest choral groups in the Bay Area. Led by artistic director Jude Navari, who is active throughout the Bay Area as a conductor and composer, the Ensemble has been described as having a particularly lush and ethereal quality. Voci champions music by women and for women and commissions new works by contemporary composers, especially from the San Francisco Bay Area. The group's size of 24 voices conveys a poignant intimacy and allows for a deep, personal connection among chorus members and between chorus and audience. Voci's commitment to musical excellence, unique mastery of style and technique, and adventurous and innovative programming have earned high praise from critics and choral musicians alike. The singers are women who share a passionate love of music, fierce dedication to the ensemble, and deep commitment to the community.

In 2011-12 Voci is celebrating its 20th Anniversary with a series of intimate concerts, and gala performances in March 2012, featuring favorite contemporary works from its 20 year history, as well as a stunning new vocal song cycle by Conductor Jude Navari. Navari's new work, "Siddhartha Fragments," evocatively weaves together passages about the river from Herman Hesse's novel, Siddhartha. Navari set these passages as a birthday gift to Voci for its twentieth anniversary concert. Navari says, "This was an important book for me when I was a teenager. I was especially drawn to the passages about the river from which I culled the 'fragments' for this choral piece. Returning to these passages after almost thirty years, I still found them potent and beautiful. This inspired me to set them as a birthday gift to Voci for its twentieth anniversary concert." Navari's new work will also feature Voci's talented pianist, Sharon Lee Kim.

Voci's Twentieth Anniversary season will culminate in performances at the prestigious Tapestry International Festival in Vancouver, BC in May 2012. Voci is one of three women's choruses in North America selected to perform at the festival, hosted by the renowned Elektra Women's Chorus.