The Ordering of Moses
by R. Nathaniel Dett
Thursday, October 13, 2022, 7:30 PM
Hochstein Performance Hall
Sarah Joyce Cooper, Soprano
Alexis Peart, Mezzo-soprano
Emmett Tross, Tenor
Holden Turner, Baritone
Thomas Warfield, Dance
The Rochester Oratorio Society Chorus and Orchestra
Eric Townell, Artistic Director
Kevin Nitsch, Accompanist
David Hult, Concertmaster
The Nathaniel Dett Chorale
Brainerd Blyden-Taylor, Founding Artistic Director
The Roberts Wesleyan Chorale
Adam Potter, Director
arr. Stacey V. Gibbs (b. 1962) | Work Song, “Great God Almighty”
The Roberts Wesleyan Chorale
Adam Potter, Conductor
R. Nathaniel Dett | O Holy Lord
The Nathaniel Dett Chorale
Brainerd Blyden-Taylor, Conductor
Intermission
R. Nathaniel Dett | The Ordering of Moses
1. Go Down, Moses
2. Is it Not I, Jehovah
3. Orchestra Interlude
4. And When Moses Smote the Water
5. March of the Israelites Through the Red Sea
6. The Egyptians Pursue
7. Sing Ye To Jehovah
Sarah Joyce Cooper (Miriam)
Alexis Peart (The Voice of Israel)
Emmett Tross (Moses)
Holden Turner (The Word)
The Combined Choirs and the ROS Orchestra
Eric Townell, Conductor
Table of Contents
The Ordering of Moses
by R. Nathaniel Dett
An oratorio for soli, chorus and orchestra with text based on scripture and folklore composed and set to music by R. Nathaniel Dett.
Composer’s Note:
“The Moses here depicted is not the Moses familiarized to us by the other arts; especially by the work of Michaelangelo, whose statue of the patriarch has become symbolic.
At the time of this “ordering”, Moses was a shepherd, on a hillside,—undoubtedly a young man,—which explains the part being assigned to a Tenor voice.”
Text of the Oratorio:
THE WORD – BARITONE SOLO
All Israel’s children sorely sighed; And unto God they sorely cried.
All Israel’s children sighed And unto God they cried;
‘Neath Egypt’s king they hard were tried; By reason of their bondage.
CHORUS: By reason of their bondage, sorely.
VOICE OF ISRAEL – ALTO SOLO
O Lord, behold my affliction; My heart is turned within me;
A darkening cloud is Thy anger. Thy hand is hard against me.
My eyes and heart fall grieving; I walk alone in deep shadows.
Oppressed and sighted in her mourning. Zion sighted in her mourning. O Lord!
CHORUS: O Lord!
SOLOS: God looked on Israel and heard her children groaning.
He looked on her children groaning and had respect unto her.
God looked on Israel and had respect unto her.
ALL: And had respect unto her.
CHORUS: God looked on Israel and heard her children groaning. Mercy, Lord!
He looked on her children groaning. Mercy, Lord!
And from a burning bush, flaming, God spake unto Moses.
GO DOWN, MOSES
Go down, Moses, Way down in Egypt’s Land; Tell Pharaoh: “Let my people go!”
Thou shalt lead thy people to the promised land.
Go down, Take thy rod in thy hand, Thou shalt lead thy people to the promised land.
For I have looked on Israel and have heard her children groaning,
And I have respect unto her. “Go down, Let my people go!”
VOICE OF MOSES – TENOR SOLO
Lord, who am I to go unto Pharaoh, and why should I lead children to Israel?
How shall they know Thou sendest me? What name shall I say unto them?
What signs or wonders show?
I am not eloquent, Have no gift of speech, Am slow of tongue!
CHORUS: And God spake unto Moses saying,
VOICE OF GOD – BARITONE SOLO
“Who hath made a man dumb?
Or who hath made his mouth speak?
IS IT NOT I, JEHOVAH!
BARITONE SOLO: Is it not I, Jehovah! Now therefore go!
CHORUS: Jehovah! God of your fathers?”
Now therefore go down, and I will be thy mouth;
I will instruct thee what thou shalt say. Now therefore go!
Go down, Moses, way down in Egypt’s land; Tell Pharaoh, Let my people go!
Thou shalt lead thy people to the promised land;
Go down, take thy rod in thy hand, Let my people go!
I’ve looked on Israel, and I’ve heard her children groaning,
And I have respect unto her. Let my people go!
“Now go, I will instruct thee, Go down, Moses! Let my people go!
AND WHEN MOSES SMOTE THE WATER
THE WORD – BARITONE SOLO
And when Moses smote the water, The children all passed over,
When Moses smote the water, the sea gave way!
CHORUS: And when Moses smote the water, The children all passed over
When Moses smote the water, The sea gave way!
Rejoice, children, and be glad, The sea gave way!
MARCH OF THE ISRAELITES THROUGH THE RED SEA
CHORUS: Ah.
THE EGYPTIANS PURSUE
BARITONE SOLO: And when they reached the other shore,
They sang a song of triumph o’er.
MOSES: I will praise Jehovah for he has triumphed gloriously,
The horse and his rider he has o’er thrown in the midst of the sea!
He is my God and I will praise Him; He has become the rock of my salvation.
CHORUS: O hallelujah, hallelujah! Hallelujah, Let us praise Jehovah! Praise the Lord!
BARITONE SOLO: Then did the women of Israel Gather with timbrels and dances;
And Miriam gifted with prophecy, Answered exhorting then, saying:
MIRIAM SOLO: Come, let us praise Jehovah, For his triumph is glorious,
The clouds and fire are his chariots, The winds and waves obey him;
Now all the armies of Pharaoh are sunk as stones in deep waters.
The deeps stood up as the mountains When thou didst blow Thy breath upon them!
CHORUS: Hallelujah!
SING YE TO JEHOVAH
MOSES SOLO: Sing ye to Jehovah, for he has triumphed gloriously.
CHORUS: Thy right hand, O Lord, is become glorious in power;
Pharaoh’s hosts thou has cast in the depths of the sea!
MOSES SOLO: Sing ye praise to Jehovah; Sing ye!
CHORUS: He is King of Kings, He is Lord of Lords!
Praise Jehovah, Sing together, Praise Jehovah, Great God of our Fathers;
God the Great, I Am that, that I Am!
Hallelujah, God the Great, I Am that, that I Am!
Hallelujah, He is a Man of war. He is a Man of war, mighty is Jehovah,
Mighty in battle, He has overthrown his foes.
Hallelujah! Praise Jehovah, Hallelujah, Praise the Lord!
Mighty is Jehovah, Mighty in battle. No God doth wonders like Him.
O sing to Jehovah, Praise the Lord, Praise the Lord;
Sing to Jehovah, Praise the Lord. Great I Am, that I Am, Praise the Lord.
Hallelujah, Sing to Jehovah, Whose right hand is our salvation, O praise the Lord,
Sing unto Him who hath triumphed.
MOSES & MIRIAM SOLOS: O praise ye, praise ye Jehovah, Praise His holy name!
CHORUS: Ah. He is King of kings and He is Lord of Lords;
Sing together, Praise Jehovah. Great God of our Fathers;
Praise the Great I Am, that I Am, Hallelujah, I that Am, Hallelujah,
King of kings and Lord of Lords Praise His holy name.
Mighty is Jehovah, Mighty in battle! He has triumphed o’er His foes.
O praise Him, Mighty in battle, No God doth wonders like him.
Praise the Lord, Sing to Jehovah, Great I Am, that I Am, Praise the Lord.
Hallelujah, Sing to Jehovah whose right hand is our salvation, Hallelujah.
Praise the Lord, Hallelujah! Praise the Great I Am.
MOSES SOLO: I will sing unto Jehovah, For he has triumphed gloriously.
Jehovah is my strength and my song. He is my God and I will praise Him.
Thou, Lord, in thy loving kindness
Hast led the people, whom Thou hast redeemed!
Jehovah shall reign forever!
MIRIAM SOLO: The horse and his rider he hath thrown into the sea,
And he is become my salvation. My father’s God and I will exalt Him.
Jehovah shall reign forever!
R. Nathaniel Dett
Nathaniel Dett (1882-1943) completed The Ordering of Moses in 1937, having begun it as his MM thesis at the Eastman School of Music (1932). The oratorio’s rich, emotional orchestration offers a symbolist portrait of Moses from the burning bush up to his deliverance of the Israelites through the Red Sea.
Born in the historic slave refuge of Drummondville (now Niagara Falls), Ontario, Dett and his family moved across the Rainbow Bridge into Niagara Falls, NY. Ultimately, it was Rochester’s Clarissa Street neighborhood which Dett called home from the 1930s until his death. Dett fully immersed himself in Rochester, serving as president of its NAACP, forming choirs at the Clarissa St. YWCA, and directing music at Trinity Presbyterian (now Trinity Emmanuel) and Two Saints Episcopal churches. A mentor to Rochester’s William Warfield, Dett composed megahits such as “Listen to the Lambs,” which was known to thousands of Rochesterians. With his WHAM American Choir on national radio broadcast, Dett also lent his talents to high school students in the Inter-High Choir and set his piano piece, “Juba Dance,” for them.
As the first Black recipient of a Bachelor of Music in the US (Oberlin, 1908), Dett was also the first Black graduate of the Eastman School (1932). He completed his four-volume collection of spirituals in Rochester, presenting important historical transcriptions alongside his own fusions of African and European idioms. Two piano suites during the Rochester years, Tropic Winter and 8 Bible Vignettes, evoke the abstraction of Scriabin. While The Ordering of Moses is Dett’s only orchestral piece known to survive today, he composed at least two symphonic pieces for CBS Radio and provided incidental music for Rochester’s 1934 Centennial Pageant.
We hope that Rochester becomes reacquainted with one of its most famous residents by diving deeper into Dett!
Featured Artists
Sarah Joyce Cooper
Soprano Sarah Joyce Cooper has been hailed for her “meltingly beautiful” (Opera News) singing and “alluring” (Don & Catharine Bryan Cultural Series) stage presence. This season, she will appear again with Syracuse Opera and Tri-Cities Opera to perform the role of Monica in their co-production of Menotti’s The Medium. She also looks forward to making her debut with the Rochester Oratorio Society as Miriam in Nathanial Dett’s oratorio, The Ordering of Moses. She will later make her debut as Maggie Porter in the Alabama Shakespeare Festival production of Jubilee, written and directed by Tazewell Thompson.
Previous performances include Clorinda in La Cenerentola (Syracuse Opera), La Charmeuse in Thaïs (Maryland Lyric Opera), Juliette in Roméo et Juliette (Opera Western Reserve), Violetta in La Traviata (MassOpera), Mimì in La Bohème (Opera Theater of Cape Cod/ Boston Opera Collaborative), Micaëla in Carmen (Prelude to Performance), Zerlina in Don Giovanni (Boston Opera Collaborative), Pamina in Die Zauberflöte, and Countess in Le Nozze di Figaro (Savannah Voice Festival). Ms. Cooper has also appeared as a soloist with the Eastern Connecticut Symphony Orchestra, the Maryland Lyric Opera Orchestra, and the Radcliffe Choral Society at Harvard University. In 2019, she was invited to perform as a soloist with the Du Bois Orchestra in the historic world premiere of Florence Price’s long-lost cantata, Abraham Lincoln Walks at Midnight.
Alexis Peart
African-American mezzo-soprano Alexis Peart is an alumna of the Eastman School of Music and is currently based in Boston, MA, where she is pursuing a graduate degree in Vocal Performance from Boston University. In the 2021/2022 season, Alexis joins the Boston University Opera Institute as the seductive devil, Brittomara, in Jake Heggie’s If I Were You, and as Taller Daughter in Missy Mazzoli’s Proving Up. She then debuts the role of Ada Lovelace in Guerilla Opera’s world premiere opera workshop of The Thrilling Adventures of Lovelace and Babbage by Elena Ruher. Alexis is a 2020 and 2021 alumna of the Wolf Trap Studio Artists Program.
Operatic highlights include the title role in Handel’s Giulio Cesare with Chicago Summer Opera, Der Trommler in Viktor Ullmann’s Der Kaiser von Atlantis with the Eastman School of Music, Léonore in Andre Campra’s Le Carnaval de Venise and Cupid in John Blow’s Venus and Adonis with Eastman’s baroque ensemble Collegium Musicum, and Alma March in Mark Adamo’s Little Women with Hawaii Performing Arts Festival, coached by the composer.
In concert, Alexis has appeared as the alto soloist in Beethoven’s Mass in C with the Finger Lakes Choral Festival, J.S. Bach’s cantatas No. 102 “Herr deine Augen sehen nach dem Glauben,” No. 48 “Ich elender Mensch, wer wird mich erlösen,” and No. 79 “Gott der Herr ist Sonn und Schild,”as the alto soloist in Handel’s Messiah with the Eastman School of Music.
Upcoming events and performances can be found online at alexispeart.com, on Instagram @alexis_peart, and Facebook @alexispeartmezzo.
Emmett Tross
Revered as a ” sweet-toned tenor” who possesses “a figure of dignity that suggests still waters” by Opera NewsTM, American Tenor Emmett Tross is an exciting emerging young artist. His vocal abilities and attention to detail are intimate and full of a loving expressiveness. He has performed in many great halls, Opera Houses and with wonderful companies including but not limited to, Alice Tully Hall, Carnegie Hall, NYC Opera, Harlem Opera Theater, Eastman Theater, St, John the Divine and St. Jean Baptiste. He has Performed and/or soloed with the New York Philharmonic, Lakeland Youth Symphony Orchestra, Rochester Philharmonic, Oratorio Society of New York and many more. With a voice that lends itself effortlessly to many genres and an ear for tonality and fine tuning, Mr. Tross has become one of the most respected Tenors and teachers. He currently holds the title of Choral Master and Organist at New York City’s Cambria Heights Reformed Church and Director of Music at the First Reformed Church of Astoria. Mr. Tross is excited and grateful to be returning to his hometown of Rochester, New York with the Rochester Oratorio Society for the first time. In memory of my wonderful teacher Patricia Misslin.
Holden Turner
Holden James Turner, a Baritone from Rochester, NY, was most recently seen playing Papageno in Mozart’s “The Magic Flute” with the Chicago Summer Opera. He’s been honored to perform as the Baritone Soloist for the World Premiere of Florence Price’s “Song of Hope” with the Ithaca College Symphony Orchestra. He has been featured as a Bass Soloist with the Rochester Oratorio Society on multiple occasions, including Schubert’s Masses 1, 2, 3, and 4, and the Tenor Soloist for the World Premiere of Frank James Staneck’s “Twelfth Night”. He has studied under the direction of Nicole Cabell and Marc Webster and was also a Young Artist at Songfest in the Summer of 2017. Mr. Turner has worked with many great artists, including Martin Katz, Roberta Alexander, Nicholas Phan, and more. He has placed in competitions such as the National Association of Teachers of Singing and has received awards from associations such as the Rochester Philharmonic League, The New York Summer School of the Arts, and others.
Thomas Warfield
Thomas Warfield is a Senior Lecturer at NTID/RIT teaching dance and social science in the Performing Arts Program of the Department of Cultural and Creative Studies. He has performed, from stage to television to film, in more than 100 cities around the world as a singer, dancer, actor, model, composer, choreographer, director, producer, educator, activist and poet. Some of his innovative performances include: La Boheme at the Metropolitan Opera, concerts on Martha’s Vineyard, a circus in Japan, and three maximum-security prisons in the United States. The recent north-American tour of his original project AstroDance, combining dance and astrophysics, was funded by the National Science Foundation. Mr. Warfield earned a BFA degree from SUNY Purchase, and an MFA from the University of Utah in dance ethnology. He studied at the School of American Ballet, Joffrey Ballet, Martha Graham School of Contemporary Dance, the Dance Theatre of Harlem, at Merce Cunningham, Limon and Alvin Ailey School. In support of our community, Mr. Warfield has served on numerous Rochester boards of directors, including ARTWalk, the William Warfield Scholarship Fund, the MuCCC Theatre, Nazareth College Arts Center, Education for Peace, Gateways Music Festival, and Genesee Center for the Arts & Education Diversity Advisory Council, and many more. He attributes his passion and blessings in life to the SPIRIT of love.
The Rochester Oratorio Society
The Rochester Oratorio Society (est. 1945) annually presents 2-6 performances of stimulating and gratifying music for chorus and orchestra. Guest conductors such as Leonard Bernstein, Erich Leinsdorf, David Zinman, Uri Segal, and Christopher Seaman have led its concerts. At present, the ROS seeks to illuminate provocative intersections between music and society by programming music to commemorate events such as the Emancipation Proclamation, Lincoln’s birth, and the NY Women’s Suffrage Centennial. We also support youth, under-resourced persons, emerging artists, and local organizations through our many outreach activities. Multimedia performances interweaving visual art, spoken word, and dance are a hallmark of our seasons. The Rochester Oratorio Society melds high artistry with intense community engagement. It has premiered works locally such as Berlioz’s Requiem and Britten’s War Requiem and is best known for its performances of Handel’s Messiah. The ROS has toured in Italy, the UK, Eastern Europe, and China, where they were the keynote ensemble at the 9th International Cultural Festival preceding the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Our music formed a feature episode of WXXI’s televised “Voices” series. We have maintained a lengthy relationship with the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra and we collaborate with the region’s finest vocalists, instrumentalists, ensembles and artists. ROS supports composers locally and abroad by commissioning and premiering new music. It brings music well outside the concert hall, traveling to colleges, libraries, schools, and even street corners. Our educational program, Exploratorio!, will grow new musicians from under-served schools to complement our support for early-career vocalists through the nationally acclaimed Rochester International Vocal Competition, presented annually by ROS since 2007.
Eric Townell, Artistic Director
Eric Townell became the third music director of the Rochester Oratorio Society in 2006. An international award-winning conductor of opera, choral and orchestral repertoire, Eric has been a frequent guest conductor for the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra. He has led professional productions nationwide and internationally for the past three decades. Eric previously held artistic posts in Milwaukee, Madison and Stevens Point, Wisconsin, and served as Artistic Director of Rochester Lyric Opera for four seasons. Eric is concurrently Artistic Director of the Finger Lakes Choral Festival. He is the host of “In the Spotlight,” produced and distributed statewide by Penfield Television.
Kevin Nitsch, Accompanist
Kevin Nitsch is a pianist, collaborator and teacher in the Rochester area. Kevin is a member of the piano faculty at Nazareth College of Rochester, is vocal coach at SUNY Geneseo and is the Music Director at the Baptist Temple in Brighton. Kevin performs regularly with Rochester Oratorio Society, Finger Lakes Opera, and Lyric Opera. In celebration of Beethoven’s 250th birth year, Kevin anticipates performing the five piano concertos in the Fall of 2020.
Kevin holds a BM in Piano Performance from the University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory of Music, and a MM and a DMA in Performance and Literature in Piano Performance from the Eastman School of Music.
Kevin lives in Penfield with his wife, Brenda and enjoys hiking, biking and kayaking. He is a certified yoga instructor and finds pianobenchasana to be his favorite pose.
ROS CHORUS
Sopranos
Sara Anthony
Tania Beghini
Barbara Bissell-Erway ♪
Laurel Buckwalter
Miriam Cowans
Luanne Crosby
Karen Crummins
Lisa deBlieck ♪
Karen Dey ♪
Amy Ewell ♪
Paulette Gissendanner
Alayne Gosson-Kane ♪
Liane Grasso
Lilith Hart ♪
Shari Holzer ♪♪♪♪♪
Cora Jackson ♪♪♪
Rebecca Johnson
Jane Keller
Yasuko Kelly
Katie Kovacs*
Jo Ann Lampman ♪♪♪♪♪
Annette Leopard
Ruth Mance
Francine McAndrew
Leta Mueller ♪♪♪
Mary Ann Nazzaro ♪♪♪
Susan Reindel
Elise Rosenfeld ♪♪♪♪
Katherine Schumacher ♪♪♪
Kelly Smeltzer
Sophia Soler (Performance Intern)
Beal St. George
Rachel Stuart
Cynthia Towler
Arlene Vanderlinde ♪♪
Vicky Wadsworth
Katherine Clark Walter ♪
Wendy Willis ♪
Denise Yarbrough
Altos
Debbie Loo Anderson ♪♪
Dianne Bailey
Lynn Brussel ♪♪
Donna Budgeon ♪
Jane Capellupo ♪♪♪♪♪
Jenifer Cheney ♪
Mary Ellen Coleman
Carol Elliott ♪♪♪♪♪
Sarah Engel
K. Sue Geier
Maryellen Giese ♪♪
Kathleen Green ♪
Barbara Hellwig ♪♪♪
Jenny Horn ♪
Carole Huther ♪♪♪
Lisa Klein ♪♪♪
Grace Leung
Sue Lione
Honey Meconi
Sandy Moncrief
Dorothy Needler ♪
Virginia Payne ♪♪♪
Patricia Sanborn ♪♪♪
Molly Sanchez ♪
Nancy Schreiber ♪
Grace Seiberling ♪
Monica Tyne
Patricia Van Dussen ♪♪♪
Betty Wells ♪
Jenessa Wheeler
Susan Woodhouse
Tenors
John Buckwalter
MingRen Huang**
Greg Madejski
Daniel McInerney ♪♪
Charles Meyer ♪
Jeff Moran
Alex Nick**
Nick Novellin*
Simone Picciolo ♪♪
Jeffery Snarr
Patrick Walter ♪
Markese Williams*
Virginia Wohltmann ♪♪♪♪
Basses
Brandon Bartlett
Alan Bartlow, Sr. ♪♪
Robert Booher
Philip Burke
Timothy Coleman
Douglas Constable ♪♪♪♪
Peter Gaess ♪
Scott Griswold
Christian Haller ♪♪
Harry Hellwig ♪♪♪
Stanley Jones
Roy Kirvan
Robert Leopard
Eric Logan
Louis Malucci
Richard Moncrief
Luciano Pagano*
David Prener
Steven Smith ♪♪
Rob White
Ted White
Ben Willmott
Jeffrey Wright ♪♪
___________
10 Year Member ♪
20 Year Member ♪♪
30 Year Member ♪♪♪
40 Year Member ♪♪♪♪
50 Year Member ♪♪♪♪♪
Choral Scholar *
Choral Fellow **
ROS ORCHESTRA
David Hult, Concertmaster
Margaret Leenhouts, Second Violin
Joanne Lowe, Viola
Joan Kinsella, Cello
Humberto Colon, Db Bass
Diane Smith, Flute l
Judith Ricker, Oboe l
Margaret Quackenbush, Clarinet l
Martha Scholl, Bassoon l
Jonathan Dozois, Horn l
Kevin Smith, Keyboard
Kristen Shiner McGuire, Timpani
Tom Nanni, Percussion l
Kevin Nitsch, Keyboard
ROS BOARD OF DIRECTORS – OFFICERS
Sue Geier, President
Jeff Moran, Vice President
Daniel McInerney, Secretary
Nina Fargnoli, Treasurer
BOARD MEMBERS
Phillip Burke
Jenny Horn
Carole Huther
David Prener
Katherine Clark Walter
Ben Willmott
STAFF
Eric Townell, Artistic Director
Dianne Bailey, Office Coordinator
Jo Ann Lampman, Registrar
Kathleen Green, Financial Operations Manager
COMMITTEE CHAIRS/KEY VOLUNTEERS
Choral Scholars and Choral Fellows | Maryellen Giese
Development Committee | Jenny Horn
Education and Community Outreach | Molly Sanchez
Event and Fundraising Committee | David Prener
Executive Committee | Sue Geier
Finance Committee | Nina Fargnoli
Governance Committee | Carole Huther
Marketing and Public Relations Committee | Sarah Stage
Membership Committee | Katherine Clark Walter
Production Management Committee | Donna Budgeon/Patrick Walter
Play YOUR part in the Rochester Oratorio Society
The Rochester Oratorio Society invites you to join us in helping to ensure our continuing legacy of providing audiences with high quality live choral music through support of the ROS Endowment at the Rochester Area Community Foundation.
The ROS Endowment provides significant income each year to support current operating costs. Cash donations to the Endowment in any amount are always welcome, or donate directly to the ROS Endowment via the Rochester Area Community Foundation web site at www.racf.org.
Planned gifts to The Rochester Oratorio Society are a wonderful way to strengthen our organization today, while providing you, our donor, with options that fit your wealth management plans. A planned or deferred gift, along with the accompanying benefits to you, is arranged during your lifetime, but the gift to the Rochester Oratorio Society is deferred to a future date. The most common planned gift is a bequest, which allows you to make a significant contribution that may not be possible during your lifetime, and protects your family, loved ones, and the organization you care about.
The Rochester Oratorio Society Notable Guild recognizes those loyal and generous music lovers who have chosen to include the Rochester Oratorio Society in their bequests or other long-range charitable giving plans. By including ROS in your will and becoming a member of the Notable Guild, you are giving the joy and inspiration of great choral ensemble music to Rochester’s future generations.
To inform the Rochester Oratorio Society of your gift, or for additional information, please request our endowment brochure, call us at (585) 473-2234, or learn more at: https://rossings.org/support-ros/planned-giving/
The Nathaniel Dett Chorale
The multi-faceted vocalists of The Nathaniel Dett Chorale perform all styles and genres of music as appropriate to the traditions of Africa and its Diasporas. The Chorale’s mission is to build bridges of understanding, appreciation, and acceptance between communities of people through the medium of Afrocentric choral music.
Founder D. Brainerd Blyden-Taylor named The Nathaniel Dett Chorale after internationally-renowned African Canadian composer R. Nathaniel Dett (1882-1943) to draw attention to Dett’s legacy, to the breadth of Afrocentric choral music, and to be a professional choral ensemble where persons of African heritage can be well represented. Currently in its 24th Season, The Nathaniel Dett Chorale was recently named Artist in Residence at The Harriet Tubman Institute for Research on Africa and its Diasporas at York University.
Dr. D. Brainerd Blyden-Taylor
D. Brainerd Blyden-Taylor is the Founder, Artistic Director and Conductor of The Nathaniel Dett Chorale, Canada’s first professional chamber choir dedicated to the creation, preservation, and performance of Afrocentric choral music of all genres. Mr. Blyden Taylor has worked extensively as an educator at the university, public school and community levels; and was awarded the degree Doctor of Laws (honoris causa) from York University, Toronto for his service to education. He is in demand as a guest conductor, clinician, adjudicator, and lecturer, both nationally and internationally. Mr. Blyden-Taylor is also an active and dedicated church musician.
THE NATHANIEL DETT CHORALE
Sopranos
Anaïs Kelsey-Verdecchia
Ineza Mugisha
Jewel Scott
Alison Ryan
Karen Weigold
Altos
Jenna Cowans
Alexandra Garrison
Sarah Mole
Ianjai Mounsey-Ndemo
Anika Venkatesh
Tenors
Jacob Abrahamse
Nicholas Gough
Arieh Sacke
Tyrese Walters
Adam Wicks
Basses
Martin Gomes
Andrew Gunpath
Jeremy Nasmith
Aidan Reimer
Dérrell Woods
The Roberts Chorale
The Roberts Chorale is the premier vocal ensemble of Roberts Wesleyan University in Rochester, New York, devoted to the study and performance of high-quality choral music from diverse styles, musical eras, languages, and cultures. Bonded by a passion for compelling musical performance and a desire for meaningful Christian fellowship, the Chorale is an ensemble of talented singer-artists who combine their gifts to cultivate excellence in choral singing, affirming the ensemble’s mission statement to “express ourselves humbly and honestly through song” and “find joy in all we do.”
The Chorale took its first international tour and released its first recordings on LP under director Gregory Goida. During the 33-year tenure of his successor, Robert Shewan, the Chorale released multiple recordings on the Albany label and performed frequently with the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra. The proud heritage of choral singing at Roberts Wesleyan College (now University) was further fostered by subsequent Chorale directors Nelson Hill, Stephen Caracciolo, Jeffery McGhee, Jamie Spillane, and David Chin. Under its current director, Adam Potter, the Chorale continues to serve the college and community through frequent on- and off-campus performances, recording projects, collaborations with the Roberts Wesleyan College–Community Orchestra, joint concerts with other ensembles in the region, biennial domestic performance tours, quadrennial international performance tours, and innovative programming and partnerships.
The Chorale’s recent repertoire has included Choral Fantasy (Beethoven), Polovetsian Dance & Chorus (Borodin), Et in Terra Pax (Finzi), Messiah and “Zadok the Priest” (Handel), Mass in C (Mozart), Fantasia on Christmas Carols (Vaughan Williams), The Ordering of Moses (Dett), and the New York State premiere of LUX: The Dawn from On High (Forrest). In addition to major works and classical music, the Chorale delights in inviting its audiences into a spirit of worship through the singing of new music, well-crafted hymn settings, music from the Global South, gospel music, and spirituals.
Adam Potter
Adam Potter is Director of Choral Activities and Associate Professor of Music at Roberts Wesleyan University in Rochester. At RWU, he conducts The Roberts Chorale, Coro di Voci Treble Choir, and Redhawk Voices Tenor–Bass Chorus, administers the college choral program, mentors choral music education majors, and teaches coursework in conducting, vocal music methods, and music education. He earned a Ph.D. in choral conducting and music education from the Florida State University College of Music. He is also an active church musician, currently at Rochester Christian Reformed Church. During the summers, he conducts choirs and teaches voice and music theory at the Csehy Summer School of Music in Langhorne, Pennsylvania. Dr. Potter is a sought-after guest conductor and clinician for honor choirs, choral-orchestral performances, and high schools and colleges, as well as an active adjudicator of choral performance festivals. He has also been a guest lecturer at the Kenya Conservatoire of Music and a guest artist with the Nairobi Chamber Chorus in conjunction with the AVoice4Peace worldwide peace awareness project. His research interests include sight-singing pedagogy, voice building in the choral rehearsal, and applications of the servant-leadership model to conducting music ensembles. He is an active member of the American Choral Directors Association and is also a member of Pi Kappa Lambda, the American honor society for musicians.
THE ROBERTS CHORALE
Dr. Adam Potter, conductor | Mr. Parker Story, pianist
Lauren Zielinski, president | Nicholas V. Lopez, vice president
Isabelle Grace Nokland, secretary | Garrett Whitmeyer, treasurer
AnnaMae Humbert & Jacob Z. Rychlicki, chaplains
Maria C. Foti, publicity chair | Shawn Drumma, social director
Carrie Ribbing, non-music major representative | Amethyst Gabriella Scherer, new member representative
Ruth Michel, librarian
Soprano 1
Victoria Ann Heffner ’26
BS Music Therapy
Somerset, N.J.
Murphy McDermott ’25
BS Vocal Performance
Appleton, N.Y.
Ruth Haldeman Metzler ’22
BS Choral Music Education
Carthage, N.Y.
Emily Sylvester ’24 †
BS Choral Music Education
Rochester, N.Y.
Soprano 2
Lauryn Beyer ’26
BS Music Therapy
Hilton, N.Y.
Maria C. Foti ’23
BS Choral Music Education
Oswego, N.Y.
Cecilia Guerra ’25
BS Vocal Performance
Portland, Maine
Lauren Zielinski ’24 ‡
BS Choral Music Education
Hamburg, N.Y.
Alto 1
Tonia Demosthene ’25
BS Music Therapy
Stony Point, N.Y.
Emma Lutz ’24 †
BS Choral Music Education
Hamburg, N.Y.
Carrie Ribbing ’23
BS Nursing
West Henrietta, N.Y.
Mya Rodwell ’24
BA Psychology
Rochester, N.Y.
Lanee Turner ’26
BS Instrumental Music Education
Lakeland, Fla.
Alto 2
AnnaMae Humbert ’24
BS Nursing
North Rose, N.Y.
Julia LeVan ’23 ‡
BA Music (Voice)
Charleston, S.C.
Ruth Michel ’24
BS Choral Music Education
Lansdale, Pa.
Isabelle Grace Nokland ’24
BS Nursing
Montgomery, N.Y.
Amethyst Gabriella Scherer ’24
BS Music Therapy
Panama City, Fla.
Tenor 1
Jackson Doran ’25
BS Music Therapy
Lockport, N.Y.
John “Jack” Mitchell ’25 †
BS Instrumental Music Education
Rochester, N.Y.
Garrett Whitmeyer ’23
BS Cross-Disciplinary Studies
Canastota, N.Y.
Tenor 2
Shawn Drumma ’24
BS Nursing
Perry, N.Y.
Jack Fecik ’26 ‡
BS Piano Performance
Penfield, N.Y.
Christoffer R. Snel ’23
BS Forensic Science
Afton, N.Y.
Baritone
Nicholas V. Lopez ’24 †
BS Choral Music Education
Syracuse, N.Y.
Arturo Durah Mejia ’26
BS Early Childhood Education
Bronx, N.Y.
Jacob Mellott ’26
BS Choral Music Education
Spencerport, N.Y.
Dante Mergenthaler ’25
BS Adolescent History Education
Herkimer, N.Y.
Jacob Z. Rychlicki ’24
BS Physical Education
Caledonia, N.Y.
Bass
David Douglass ’26
BA Psychology
Cheektowaga, N.Y.
Ethan Kane ’22
BA Music (Guitar)
Greece, N.Y.
Abe Selby ’25
BA Communication
Freeland, Pa.
William Shiner ’26
RIT Dual Enrollment (Mechanical Engineering)
Pittsburgh, Pa.
Peter Trim ’23 ‡
BS Euphonium Performance
Lodi, N.Y.
† Section Leader
‡ Assistant Section Leader
Patrons
This listing acknowledges donations received January 1, 2022 to September 30, 2022.
Thank you for your support!
Production Sponsor ($1000 and above)
Jane Capellupo
Carol Elliott
Mark & Linda Hopkins
Karen Kral
Elise Rosenfeld
Jon & Kathy Schumacher
Enterprise Sponsor ($250 – $499)
Kathleen Barbehenn
Suzanne Gouvernet
Kathleen & Russ Green
Roc Insurance Services, Inc.
Mr. and Mrs. Christian Haller
Adrian & Jennifer Horn
Jeffrey Moran & Barbara Quine-Moran
Rollie Townell
Lauri VanHise
Patron Sponsor ($100 – $249)
Anonymous
Susan Basu
Robert Booher
Donna Budgeon
Katherine Ciesinski
W.J. Clicquennoi
Mary Ellen & Timothy Coleman
Mary DeMarsh
Maryellen Giese
Shari Holzer
Karin Kaminker
Rose-Marie B. Klipstein
Jo Ann Lampman
Daniel & Pamela McInerney
Virginia Payne
David & Susan Prener
Jon & Kathy Schumacher
Eric Townell
Monica Tyne
Vicky Wadsworth
Program Sponsor ($500 – $999)
K. Sue Geier
Sandy & Richard Moncrief
Mary Ann Nazzaro
John Ninfo II
Thomas & Jeanne Verhulst
Ben & Kristen Willmott
Virginia Wohltmann
Betty Wells & Jeffrey Wright
Rehearsal Sponsor ($50 – $99)
Kathleen Cloonan
Mary Ellen Coleman
Robert Crystal
Mary Anne Guariglia
Diane & Ed Hoener
Carole Huther
Jack & Paula Mansur
Dorothy Needler
Gary Rossi
Patricia Sanborn
Nancy Schreiber
Ms. Kate Shannon
Sarah Stage
Music Sponsor ($10 – $49)
Dianne Bailey
Karen Dey
Sarah Engel
Scott Griswold
Linda Haynes
Pru Kirkpatrick
Ruth Mance
Ms. Leta Mueller
Ms. Rosemary Zuck Mummert
Joan O’Brien
Patricia Van Dussen
Lewis B. Ward-Baker
Susan Woodhouse
In Honor Of
Elise Rosenfeld, given by David & Andrea Golub
In Memory of
Ann Parsons, given by Sharon Dickman
David & Elizabeth Husung, given by Roy Husung
Arvid Lakeberg, given by Jack & Paula Mansur
Katie McNally, given by Frederick Merk
Esko Townell, given by Rollie Townell
Sponsors
Made possible thanks to support from the William & Sheila Konar Foundation; The Rochester Area Community Foundation; The Max and Marian Farash Charitable Foundation; Monroe County; and media sponsor WXXI Classical. This project is made possible in part by Vision and Action Grants from HumanitiesNY, and with funding from the Decentralization Grant program, a regrant program of the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the NY State Legislature and Kathleen C. Hochul, Governor, and administered by the Genesee Valley Council on the Arts.
