(MORRISTOWN, NJ) -- The Morris Choral Society concludes its season with a grand finale concert “Americana” on Sunday May 15 at 3:00pm at the Trinity Lutheran Church, 131 Mountain Way, Morris Plains, New Jersey. The concert will feature important works by two major American composers: Randall Thompson and Aaron Copeland.
The program begins with Thompson’s “Frostiana: Seven Country Songs” which is based on the poetry of Robert Frost. Commissioned by the town of Amherst, Massachusetts, the work is filled with New England pastoral imagery and includes some of Frost’s most beloved poems such as “The Road Not Taken” and “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening.”
The guest soloist will be American Verdi Baritone Jonathan Green who graduated from Oberlin Conservatory of Music and has been a soloist with New York’s National Choral. His operatic credits include title roles in “Rigoletto,” “Falstaff”, “Figaro,” “Scarpia,” and “Crown” in Porgy and Bess plus several others. He will solo with the chorus as well as sing several solo numbers including Aaron Copeland’s moving “At the River.”
Tickets are $25 for adults, $20 for seniors, and $15 for children. They may be purchased online at www.morrischoralsociety.org or by calling 973-723-6424.
Director Emeritus Wayne Walters will lead the all-male ensemble, Express Male, both as part of MCS and on its own. One of the highlights of Express Male’s performance will be a special arrangement of the well-known folk song “Shenandoah.”
The concert will also include a salute to the brave people of Ukraine with the singing of the “Ukrainian National Anthem” and will conclude with the popular work by Randall Thompson “The Testament of Freedom.” Originally written in 1943 to celebrate the bicentennial of the birth of Thomas Jefferson, the four-movement piece has become extremely popular because of its uplifting message. The work draws on the writings of Jefferson.
The Morris Choral Society is directed by Michael Shane Wittenburg who is active with many companies in the metropolitan New York area including the New Jersey Association of Verismo Opera and the Hudson Valley Chorale. He holds degrees from the Eastman School of Music in Rochester and the University of Tennessee in Chattanooga. An accomplished pianist, he will perform a work by Franz Liszt.
The accompanist for the chorus is Jennifer Yang who has served as the organist for the Morristown United Methodist Church since 2015 and performs solo recitals around the world.
The Morris Choral Society is funded in part by the Arts Council of the Morris Area through the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State, a Partner Agency of the National Endowment for the Arts. Additional funding has also been provided by the Arts Council of the Morris Area/Dodge Foundation Partnership and by the Masterwork Music and Art Foundation.
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