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The Saint Louis Chamber Chorus invites you to join us for our 53rd Season, the twentieth outstanding series of a cappella choral concerts under the direction of Artistic Director Philip Barnes. In this season’s concerts, the first of two to carry the title “Collaborations,” the Chorus explores the creative possibilities of working with other artists to present works normally outside its scope. This is an exciting prospect for both performers and audiences, and is sure to attract the attention of those eager for inspiration. Each program is tailored to its surrounding, and offers the audience a unique opportunity to explore visually and acoustically six diverse settings.
Recently described by Gramophone magazine, the ‘gold standard’ for classical music reviews, as “this superb choir,” the Chamber Chorus is without equal in the Midwest for the breadth of its selections and the originality of its programming as well as its standard of performance. It has pioneered the cause of new music without neglecting the standard works of the a cappella repertoire; the singers are equally adept at Renaissance polyphony, the Romantic masterpieces of Brahms, Bruckner and Schumann, or the challenges of giving life to a never-performed work.
Philip Barnes is only the fourth artistic director of the Chorus since its founding in the mid-1950s by fellow Englishman Ronald Arnatt. Appointed in 1989, Barnes brought a distinguished musical and academic resume to the position, and since then has only added to that with numerous plaudits in the local, national and foreign press. He has has inspired his singers and their audiences with a rich and informed repertoire. Few directors can match his knowledge of, or his enthusiasm for, unaccompanied choral music.
Please consider acting now to pledge your support as a season subscriber.
By doing so, you will guarantee yourself a reserved seat to hear repertoire unmatched in both
quality and content, in magnificent, historic settings carefully selected by the Artistic
Director (three of which are completely new to the Chorus this season).
To order season tickets for the 53rd season, you may use the
Order Form, or you may order by telephone using Visa or
MasterCard at
All performances are on Sunday afternoons, commencing at 3:00 p.m. Please see our Concert Information page for ticket information and concert policies. Locations in the list below are linked to commentaries on the structure and history of the venues, also provided with the programs at the concerts.
Concert I: Sunday, September 28, 2008
On First Hearing
Saint Louis Abbey
500 South Mason Road •
Creve Coeur, Missouri 63141
Powerful and accomplished works never before heard in St. Louis. Discover Portuguese polyphony by Manuel Cardoso, a grand psalm by Felix Mendelssohn, and the “Snake in the Grass” mass by Magnus Williamson. A highlight will be the world premiere of Alma Redemptoris Mater by Carolee Coombs-Stacy.
Concert II: Sunday, November 9, 2008
Bantock & Bach
Third Baptist Church
620 North Grand Boulevard •
St. Louis, Missouri 63103
British pageantry and grandeur by Sir Granville Bantock is contrasted with the timeless music of J.S. Bach, whose longevity is debated by Knut Nystedt (Immortal Bach) and Judith Bingham (Bach’s Tomb).
Concert III: Sunday, December 21, 2008
An Old World Christmas
Cathedral Basilica of Saint Louis
4431 Lindell Boulevard •
St. Louis (Central West End), Missouri 63108
Traditional carols from the British Isles, France, Spain and Scandinavia complement Marian texts set by Arvo Pärt of Estonia and Franz Biebl of Germany. English composer Sasha Johnson Manning also contributes a new work written specially for this concert and with the rich acoustic of the Cathedral Basilica in mind.
Concert IV: Sunday, February 22, 2009
Echoes of Oxbridge
Cardinal Rigali Canter
20 Archbishop May Drive
• Shrewsbury, Missouri 63119
The collegiate ambience of this chapel provides an ideal setting for works written by and for musicians at the ancient universities of Oxford and Cambridge. Compositions written over a period of five centuries illustrate this presentation in words and music. NOTE: UNOBSTRUCTED VIEW GUARANTEED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY.
Concert V: Sunday, April 5, 2009
With Open Palms
1285 North New Florissant Road
• Florissant, Missouri 63031
A masterpiece of the Renaissance, Palestrina’s Stabat Mater was traditionally sung in Rome on Palm Sunday. In today’s performance it is vividly contrasted by a new setting commissioned for the Chamber Chorus by one of America’s greatest composers, Stephen Paulus. Other Palm Sunday paeans are contributed by Orlando Gibbons and Max Reger.
Concert VI: Sunday, May 31, 2009
Maclean & Monteverdi
7316 Balson Avenue •
University City, Missouri 63130
The sublime Missa In Illo Tempore by the Venetian master Claudio Monteverdi is interpolated with a series of original works by our ‘Composer-in-Residence,’ Clare Maclean. We welcome her to St. Louis from her home in Sydney, Australia for the first performance of her Psalm 137, sung in Hebrew.