Bass-baritone Kevin Spooner returns following his 2024 work with Charlottesville Opera to join The Oratorio Society of Virginia as a soloist for Ralph Vaughan Williams’ Five Mystical Songs during Together in Song: Music & Poetry. The performance sets to music four poems by George Herbert, a Welsh poet and Anglican priest in the 16th century, […]
Bass-baritone Kevin Spooner returns following his 2024 work with Charlottesville Opera to join The Oratorio Society of Virginia as a soloist for Ralph Vaughan Williams’ Five Mystical Songs during Together in Song: Music & Poetry. The performance sets to music four poems by George Herbert, a Welsh poet and Anglican priest in the 16th century, […]
Whether you know him as Schroeder’s idol in the “Peanuts” strips, a time-traveling buddy of Bill and Ted’s, or as a lovable St. Bernard causing canine chaos, you’ve probably heard of Beethoven by now. And with good reason; his arrangements are ubiquitous. This week, The Oratorio Society of Virginia presents a concert celebrating the 200th […]
Carols everywhere: The Oratorio Society of Virginia returns to the stage after nearly two years for Christmas at The Paramount. Directed by Michael Slon and composed of some of the community’s finest singers, the choral group will perform an assortment of seasonal favorites, including excerpts from Antonio Vivaldi, Sergei Rachmaninoff, and Virginia’s own Adolphus Hailstork. […]
Farther Christmas: The English countryside serves as inspiration when The Oratorio Society of Virginia returns for its annual holiday concert. Christmas at the Paramount’s (below right) featured works, Ralph Vaughan Williams’ Fantasia on Christmas Carols and Gerald Finzi’s In Terra Pax, complement each other as the two British composers were colleagues and shared an affection […]
Promise to the world: The Oratorio Society of Virginia rounds out its season with MaySong featuring Brahms’ Ein deutsches Requiem (A German Requiem). The large-scale work is a “true choral blockbuster” says Executive Director Rowena Pinto Zimmermann. Christina Pier (soprano) and Trevor Scheunemann (baritone) appear as guest soloists, and an encore of The World Called, […]
As Charlottesville’s character has broadened, so has its classical music scene, which is now largely driven by community efforts to build the culture. When Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach began transforming the sounds we were used to hearing, 250 years ago, people said it was the death of classical music,” says Benjamin Rous, music director of […]
In the 50 years since The Oratorio Society of Virginia made its debut with a performance of Handel’s Messiah in the auditorium of Albemarle High School, the group has infused choral excellence into the community through its vast repertoire, high-caliber singers and annual holiday performances. In looking to commemorate the group’s half-century mark, Music Director […]
Anyone who doubts the power of community or the magic of the holiday season need only listen as 75 voices swoop and soar during The Oratorio Society of Virginia’s performance of the Christmas portion (Part 1) and “Hallelujah Chorus” of Handel’s Messiah. Led by conductor Michael Slon and accompanied by a chamber orchestra and four […]