A Festive Concert Will Initiate Crescendo’s 15th Anniversary

Crescendo is celebrating their 15th anniversary as they continue to provide top quality entertainment to audiences all across the tri-state region. The inaugural concert features "Magnificat" by Johann Sebastian Bach and George Frideric Handel's "Coronation Anthems".

Bach wrote the Magnificat back in 1723 for the Leipzig Christmas Vespers and later revised this classical piece of work which requires 5 soloists, a 5 part choir and an unusually large orchestra consisting of three trumpets, a pair of flutes and oboes, strings and continuo. This program will also include excerpts from Bach's Christmas Oratorio B-W-V 248 with a chance for the audience to also participate in this marvelous segment of classical music.

Handel's 4 coronation anthems uses text from The King James Bible and they were originally commissioned for the coronation of Great Britian's King George the 2nd. This quartet of ceremonial anthems have been popular for centuries and regularly played in concerts and festivals even during Handel's lifetime. They were originally composed for an enlarged choir of the Chapel Royal which consists of an orchestra of 160 players.

Locally, the Crescendo Chorus will bring these masterpieces to life in the 21st century featuring sopranos Julianne Baird and Jennifer Tyo, counter tenor Nichols Tamagna and tenors Philip Anderson teaming up with bass baritone Joseph Charles Beutel. Crescendo's founding artistic director, Christine Gevert will serve as the presentation's conductor.

You have a pair of opportunities to see this concert with the first show taking place on Saturday, October 26th at St. James Place, located at 352 Main Street in Great Barrington, Massachusetts and on Sunday, October 27th at Trinity Church on Lime Rock Road in neighboring Lakeville, Connecticut. Both shows begin at 4 pm.

Tickets are priced at $35 for general seating and students are admitted for $10 with a valid ID. Premium seating is also available for $100 per person with proceeds to benefit Crescendo's future music programs. You can buy tickets on line by going here. They will also be available at the door for each performance, but seating is limited as it is highly recommended to buy your seats in advance.

For more information on what will be presented during Crescendo's 15th anniversary, give them a call at 1-860-435-4866.

(The following information was obtained by WSBS via a press release sent by Crescendo for on-air an on line usage. Image courtesy of the Crescendo web site)