Oratorio Society of Minnesota Announces Mendelssohn “Elijah” Concert at Ted Mann Concert Hall on Aug
Oratorio Society of Minnesota Announces Mendelssohn “Elijah” Concert at Ted Mann Concert Hall on August 6
Minneapolis, July 13, 2016 -- The Oratorio Society of Minnesota is proud to announce the concert of Felix Mendelssohn’s greatest oratorio, Elijah, which will be presented by the Society’s Summer Chorus, a festival chorus of 150 singers, world-class soloists and a professional orchestra. The concert, conducted by Artistic Director Matthew Mehaffey.
Premiered in 1846 at the Birmingham Festival in England, the oratorio depicts events in the life of the Biblical prophet Elijah, taken from the books 1 Kings and 2 Kings of the Old Testament. Elijah is considered a masterpiece in every sense of the word, a work that is effective in a house of worship as well as in a concert hall. And while it reflects the 19th century concept of musical art and the cultural sensibilities of the Romantic era, Mendelssohn’s genius created something timeless, a work that enthralls people in every walk of life, in every land, and of every religious faith.
Visit www.oratorio.org for more information and tickets.
Who: Oratorio Society Summer Chorus, soloists, narrator and professional orchestra
What: Felix Mendelssohn’s oratorio Elijah
When: Saturday August 6, 2016.
- Pre-Concert discussion on Mendelssohn and his oratorio Elijah by University of Minnesota Musicology professor and Mendelssohn expert
Peter Mercer-Taylor 7:00 p.m.
- Concert: 7:30 pm
Where: Ted Mann Concert Hall, Minneapolis
Tickets $10-15 available at http://oratorio.org or by calling 866-811-4111
The Oratorio Society of Minnesota is an auditioned 90-voice choral ensemble based in the Twin Cities. Celebrating its 37th season, OSM challenges and delights its audiences through dynamic and diverse choral music performed with skill and passion. Society members are of all ages and from all walks of life and have considerable choral singing experience. The Society’s civic engagement and educational programs foster lifelong choral singing.
American conductor and educator Matthew Mehaffey is crafting a national reputation in the field of choral/orchestral music through his engaging artistry, collaborative spirit, affirming pedagogical style, and entrepreneurial approach to concert programming.
As a conductor, Dr. Mehaffey serves as Music Director of two respected civic choruses, The Oratorio Society of Minnesota and The Mendelssohn Choir of Pittsburgh – the “Chorus of Choice” of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. Each week he leads over 200 passionate amateur and professional singers in Pittsburgh and St. Paul in the development of concert programs that both celebrate the standard choral/orchestral repertoire and push the boundaries of a traditional choral concert. Recent notable professional engagements include work with Washington National Opera, Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, Minnesota Orchestra, Czech National Symphony Orchestra, Prague Proms, Lyra Baroque Orchestra, VocalEssence, Minnesota Chorale, Singers in Accord, and Turner Network Television.
As a teacher, Dr. Mehaffey is Associate Professor of Music at the University of Minnesota, where he conducts the University Singers and Men's Chorus, teaches graduate and undergraduate courses in conducting and music literature, and is the 2015 recipient of the Arthur "Red" Motley Exemplary Teaching Award. At the university, Mehaffey and his colleague Kathy Saltzman Romey oversee a choral program of 6 graduate students, 7 choirs, and over 300 singers. Graduate conducting students under the tutelage of Romey and Mehaffey have achieved considerable success in a variety of venues, including: the ACDA National Choral Conducting Competition (2015 winner); prestigious conducting masterclasses offered by ACDA, Chorus America, National Collegiate Choral Organization, and the Oregon Bach Festival; presentations at College Music Society and NAfME symposia; and by serving as choral leaders in academic institutions and civic ensembles around the country. He has served on the faculties of The George Washington University, Macalester College, and the summer faculties of Westminster Choir College, and University of St. Thomas.
He is the co-author of Choral Ensemble Intonation: Methods, Procedures, and Exercises and the co-editor of three volumes of Teaching Music Through Performance in Choir – all for GIA Publications. He is also co-author of the chapter “A Multiplicity of Voices: Choral Music in the United States,” for the internationally released volume, The Cambridge Companion to Choral Music.
Dr. Mehaffey possesses degrees in music from Bucknell University, Westminster Choir College, and the University of Arizona, and is eternally grateful for his formative musical mentors William Payn, Kay Payn, James Jordan, Joseph Flummerfelt, Maurice Skones, and Bruce Chamberlain. He lives in Minnesota with his wife Libby, their four children, and two dogs on a hilly plot of land that reminds him of his hometown of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He enjoys golf, baseball, and cooking in his spare time.
Contact: Matthew Mehaffey, Artistic Director
612-432-7398 mehaffey@umn.edu
Connie Shaver, 612-308-5785 connieshaver@outlook.com