VAE CINCINNATI

VOICES IN EXILE
2025-03-01 19:30 (America/New_York) | Christ Church Cathedral, 318 E. Fourth St, Cincinnati, OH, 45202, United States
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ELENA SHARKOVA conductor
Throughout Russia’s tumultuous history, its government forced into exile scores of its best talent: composers, performers, writers, dancers and artists. Those who stayed were forced to work under brutal censorship and live in fear. The Voices in Exile concert illuminates and celebrates the strength, ingenuity and faith that kept composers such as Schnittke, Sviridov, Chesnokov, Gubaidulina and Rachmaninoff working despite the heartache of immigration and the darkness of the brutal regime. Life-affirming songs of faith and soul-searching laments are intertwined with poems by Pasternak, Tsvetayeva, Akhmatova and more.
Pre-concert talk:
Arrive by 6:45 PM for a 30-minute pre-concert talk by conductor Elena Sharkova.

CANDLELIT CHRISTMAS DEC 22
2024-12-22 19:30 | The Summit Country Day School, 2161 GRANDIN RD., United States
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MATTHEW SWANSON conductor
VAE’s beloved Candlelit Christmas returns to the Immaculate Heart of Mary Chapel at The Summit Country Day School. Music from across a thousand years is woven together into an unbroken tapestry of singing, all presented in contemplative candlelight. Hear the music of Judith Weir, Morten Lauridsen, Roderick Williams and other leading composers of today alongside the timeless plainchant and familiar carols of centuries past. Join VAE and fill the longest nights of the year with song.
Matthew Swanson will do a pre-concert talk at 7 pm before both performances.

CANDLELIT CHRISTMAS DEC 21
2024-12-21 19:30 | The Summit Country Day School, 2161 GRANDIN RD., United States

THE WOUNDED HEART: Songs of Passion & Loss
2024-10-18 19:30 | Christ Church Cathedral, 318 E. Fourth St, Cincinnati, OH, 45202, United States
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BENEDICT SHEEHAN conductor
An evening of passionate choral works by Maddalena Casulana, Barbara Strozzi, Laura Hawley and Anna Olson, culminating in the world premiere of Benedict Sheehan’s The Passion of Mary, a new exploration of the Christian Passion narrative from the perspective of Jesus’ mother.

Salon Concert: Sun, Moon & Stars
2024-04-04 19:00 | Wilks Studio, Music Hall, 1241 Elm St, Cincinnati, OH, 45202, United States
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CHRISTIN SEARS conductor
Using music selections from Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, David Childs, Laura Mvula and more, Sun, Moon & Stars explores stories of the human experience — life, longing, love and loss — through the wonders of our universe and the mystery and beauty that it holds.

BACH B MINOR MASS
2024-03-10 15:00 | Christ Church Cathedral, 318 E. Fourth St, Cincinnati, OH, 45202, United States
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CRAIG HELLA JOHNSON conductor
Program:
Bach Mass in B Minor
Beloved Grammy-winner Craig Hella Johnson returns to conduct his final performances as VAE Music Director with a performance of Johann Sebastian Bach’s greatest work, Mass in B minor. Full of mystery and splendor, this oratorio is a cathedral of sound, and represents the culmination of Bach’s work throughout his life.
This concert is sponsored by the Willard and Jean Mulford Charitable Fund of the Cambridge Charitable Foundation and the William O. Purdy, Jr. Foundation Fund of the Greater Cincinnati Foundation..
Need help? Contact the Box Office 513.381.3300 (M-F 10-5; Sat. 10-2)

BACH B MINOR MASS
2024-03-09 19:30 | Christ Church Cathedral, 318 E. Fourth St, Cincinnati, OH, 45202, United States
BUY TICKETS – SAT MAR 9 @ 7:30 pm
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CRAIG HELLA JOHNSON conductor
Program:
BACH Mass in B Minor
Beloved Grammy-winner Craig Hella Johnson returns to conduct his final performances as VAE Music Director with a performance of Johann Sebastian Bach’s greatest work, Mass in B minor. Full of mystery and splendor, this oratorio is a cathedral of sound, and represents the culmination of Bach’s work throughout his life.
This concert is sponsored by the Willard and Jean Mulford Charitable Fund of the Cambridge Charitable Foundation and the William O. Purdy, Jr. Foundation Fund of the Greater Cincinnati Foundation..
Need help? Contact the Box Office 513.381.3300 (M-F 10-5; Sat. 10-2)

Take Yourself With You
2024-02-03 19:30 | St. Catharine of Siena, 2848 Fischer Place, Cincinnati, 45211, United States
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LAUREN McALLISTER conductor
STEPHEN MICHAEL HANNA baritone
ELLEN GRAHAM mezzo-soprano
JACKIE STEVENS soprano
JASON VEST tenor
DAVID KIRKENDALL piano

Program:

H. LESLIE ADAMS To the Road! from The Wider View
M. C. RICHARDS Introit – Opening Song, from Angel Poems
EDWARD ELGAR Where Corals Lie, from Sea Pictures
ALEXANDER BORODIN Morskaja Carevna (The Sea Princess)
FANNY HENSEL Hörst du nicht die Bäume rauschen (from Gartenlieder, Op. 3)
MARC BLITZSTEIN I wish it so (from Juno)
CHRISTINA ROSSETTI Up-Hill
FANNY HENSEL Abendlich schon rauscht der Wald (from Gartenlieder, Op. 3)
SAMUEL BARBER Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening
ERNEST BLOCH La Vagabonde (from Poemes d’Automne)
FRANZ SCHUBERT Wanderers Nachtlied I & II
ANDRÉ CAPLET Forêt (from Le Vieux coffret)
FANNY HENSEL Schöne Fremde (from Gartenlieder, Op. 3)
RABINDRANATH TAGORE Closed Path
CHARLES IVES The World’s Highway
FANNY HENSEL Morgengruss (WN 433)
LORI LAITMAN Last Night the Rain Spoke to Me
JOHN DUKE Wood Song (from Songs Out of Sorrow)
GERALD FINZI For Life I had never cared greatly (from I Said to Love)
FANNY HENSEL Im Wald (from Gartenlieder, Op. 3)
M.C. RICHARDS Behold
STEPHEN PAULUS The Road Home

Join members of the VAE for an exploration of the many roads we take to learn about ourselves, each other, and our place in the universe. Selections from Fanny Hensel, Samuel Barber, H. Leslie Adams, and Stephen Paulus combine with poems from Mary Oliver, M. C. Richards, and Bengali Brahmin Rabindranath Tagore to round out the program.Need help? Contact the Box Office 513.381.3300 (M-F 10-5; Sat. 10-2)

HARMONY ACROSS TRADITIONS: An Evening with Isaac Cates
2024-01-27 19:30 | Zion Baptist Church, 630 GLENWOOD AVE., Cincinnati, OH, United States
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ISAAC CATES conductor
Program:

Lift Every Voice and Sing JAMES WELDON JOHNSON, arr. Rolond Corter
Striving After God UNDINE SMITH MOORE, ed. James Abbington
The Lord’s Prayer arr. ISAAC CATES
I’m Gonna Sing ‘Til the Spirit Moves in My Heart MOSES HOGAN
John 3:16 B.E. BOYKIN
Rest MICHAEL ENGELHARDT
It’s Working ISAAC CATES
Be Healed ISAAC CATES
Kontakion ISAAC CATES and NICHOLAS REEVES
Take My Life (Lacrimosa) ISAAC CATES
Ode V ISAAC CATES
Lovely Day words and music by BILL WITHERS and
SKIP SCARBOROUGH, orr. ROBERT T. GIBSON
Internationally renowned conductor and composer Isaac Cates will lead a diverse program of music highlighting contemporary, choral, gospel and folk music traditions, with each piece telling a story aimed at uplifting and connecting listeners to the music and to each other. Isaac has achieved international fame as an artist, composer, arranger, choral director, and educator, and is excited to share his own lived musical experience with our VAE audiences.
Need help? Contact the Box Office 513.381.3300 (M-F 10-5; Sat. 10-2)

AN INTIMATE CHRISTMAS WITH VAE
2023-12-16 19:30 | Christ Church Cathedral, 318 E. Fourth St, Cincinnati, OH, 45202, United States
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TREVOR KROEGER conductor
WITH QUEEN CITY CABARET
Escape the winter chill and the holiday rush at An Intimate Christmas with VAE, a cozy reimagining of our candlelit holiday concert. Conductor Trevor Kroeger will lead VAE singers, instrumentalists, and Queen City Cabaret in a program featuring fresh arrangements of favorite holiday tunes and unexpected choral gems. Join us for this warm and welcoming celebration of the most wonderful time of the year!
This concert is supported in part by the Crosset Family Fund of the Greater Cincinnati Foundation.
Need help? Contact the Box Office 513.381.3300 (M-F 10-5; Sat. 10-2)

Salon Concert: Take Yourself With You
2023-10-28 14:00 | Wilks Studio, Music Hall, 1241 Elm St, Cincinnati, OH, 45202, United States

Sanctuary Road
2023-04-29 19:30 | Jarson Kaplan Theater, 650 Walnut Street, Cincinnati, OH, 45202, United States
Jarson Kaplan TheatreSAT APR 29 at 7:30 pmBuy Tickets

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Malcolm Merriweather, conductorDashon Burton, bass-baritoneMalcom Merriweather, baritoneLaquita Mitchell, sopranoTaylor Raven, mezzo-sopranoNoah Stewart, tenor

Program: PAUL MORAVEC/MARK CAMPBELL: Sanctuary Road

Sanctuary Road by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Paul Moravec and Pulitzer Prize and Grammy Award winning librettist Mark Campbell. It is the second of Moravec’s “American historical oratorios.” Campbell conceived and created the libretto drawn from the astonishing stories found in William Still’s The Underground Railroad. Regarded as the Father of the Underground Railroad, Still‘s meticulous documentation of the heroic and courageous stories of enslaved African Americans escaping to freedom is transformed into a “modern choral masterpiece, representing struggle and hope in the best of the oratorio tradition” (Black Grooves).

“Each time I returned to Moravec’s new composition my admiration for his work grew, and the music stayed with me long after I stopped listening.”—The Classical Review

“The relevance of Sanctuary Road (2017) in our present century cannot be overstated, analogous to that of Tippett’s A Child of our Time to wartime Britain.”—Gramophone

“Moravec’s largely tonal score is deeply affecting and conveys the many voices represented in Still’s writings, notably in the prologue’s gently overlapping melodic lines where name after name ripples among soloists and chorus.”—Classical Music
VAE’s performance of Sanctuary Road is supported by the William O. Purdy, Jr. Foundation Fund of the Greater Cincinnati Foundation and the Cincinnati Arts Association.

Need help? Contact the Box Office 513.381.3300 (M-F 10-5; Sat. 10-2)

IMPORTANT: Please review our health and safety information and current protocols at vaecinci.com/health-safety

Path of Miracles
2023-01-21 19:30 | Christ Church Cathedral, 318 E. Fourth St, Cincinnati, OH, 45202, United States
Christ Church CathedralSAT JAN 21 at 7:30 pmBuy Tickets

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CRAIG HELLA JOHNSON conductor

Program: JOBY TALBOT: Path of Miracles

Inspired by the historic pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela, Path of Miracles by Joby Talbot is a haunting choral masterpiece, rich and raw in reflection of all life’s journeys. As Jill Kimball of the Second Inversion project writes, “You don’t have to be religious, or even spiritual, to find adventure in Joby Talbot’s Path of Miracles. The seventeen-part harmony, set to text that’s in turns religious, historical, and poetic, is indescribably beautiful. Talbot’s piece is the choral interpretation of a month-long journey filled with excitement, doubt, revelation, fear, and triumph.”

“Although it sounds forbidding as a concept it is anything but in performance, where it is engrossing, textured, emotionally engaging and dramatic..”—The Arts Desk

“This is musical mysticism at its richest and most greedy – grasping from all traditions and sources, and treasuring each element in this musical collage..”—Gramophone
VAE’s performance of Path of Miracles is supported by the Willard and Jean Mulford Charitable Fund of the Cambridge Charitable Foundation.

Need help? Contact the Box Office 513.381.3300 (M-F 10-5; Sat. 10-2)

IMPORTANT: Please review our health and safety information and current protocols at vaecinci.com/health-safety

Mass for the Endangered
2022-11-12 19:30 | Christ Church Cathedral, 318 E. Fourth St, Cincinnati, OH, 45202, United States
Christ Church CathedralSAT NOV 12 at 7:30 pmBuy Tickets

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CRAIG HELLA JOHNSON conductor
Program: SARAH KIRKLAND SNIDER: Mass for the Endangered
What does it mean to be stewards of the earth? Sarah Kirkland Snider’s Mass is a call to action and urgency in the ways in which we relate to the natural world. By weaving together the traditional musical modes of the Latin Mass and original text by Nathaniel Bellows her “gorgeous, moving piece” (The Nation) brings the divine down to earth and reveals the miracles, and responsibilities, of so much wondrous life around us.
“Snider’s lucid score [for ‘Mass for the Endangered’] is at once powerful and delicate…[with] striking harmonies, imaginative use of texture [and] counterpoint that is as intricate and exquisite as a spider’s web. This a luminous and arresting disc that conveys its urgent ecological message with power and beauty.”—BBC Music Magazine
“Arresting…[Mass for the Endangered] shines with multi-layered singing of uncommon beauty…Snider asserts her own musical personality as a composer who knows instinctively how to write for the human voice…Through her smart and resplendent exploration of age-old musical formulas, Snider’s eco-inspired Mass for the Endangered is a blast from the past that resonates profoundly in the present.”—NPR All Things Considered
VAE’s performance of Mass for the Endangered is supported by the Crosset Family Fund of the Greater Cincinnati Foundation and the Willard and Jean Mulford Charitable Fund of the Cambridge Charitable Foundation.
Need help? Contact the Box Office 513.381.3300 (M-F 10-5; Sat. 10-2) IMPORTANT: Please review our health and safety information and current protocols at vaecinci.com/health-safety
