The Weill Music Institute at Carnegie Hall announced today that four choirs—from Mableton, Georgia; Hawthorne, New Jersey; New York, New York; and Shoreline, Washington—have been selected to participate in its sixth annual National High School Choral Festival. Established in 2002, the Festival annually features choirs from across the nation, selected by audition, to come together and work with Dr. Craig Jessop, Music Department Head at Utah State University and former Music Director of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, extensively rehearsing a choral masterpiece in preparation for a performance in Carnegie Hall’s prestigious Stern Auditorium/Perelman Stage with the Orchestra of St. Luke’s and professional soloists. Each choir also performs its own selected repertoire under the direction of their own conductor.

The repertoire selected for this year’s Festival is Sir Michael Tippett’s A Child of Our Time, which will be performed at Carnegie Hall on Friday, March 20 at 8:00 p.m., as part of its three-week festival, Honor! A Celebration of the African American Cultural Legacy, curated by renowned soprano Jessye Norman. In a special festival-related bonus for this year’s participating choirs, students will also perform excerpts of Tippett’s piece in two concerts at Harlem’s world-famous Apollo Theater: a program for middle school students on Friday, March 20 at 11:00 a.m. and in the program “A Celebration of the Spiritual and Gospel Music” on Sunday, March 22 at 5:00 p.m.

The four choirs—Mableton’s Pebblebrook High School Performing Arts Chamber Choir, Hawthorne’s North Jersey Homeschool Association Chorale, New York’s Songs of Solomon: An Inspirational Ensemble, and Shoreline’s Shorewood High School Aeolian Choir—were selected by recorded audition from among 80 applicant groups across 26 states throughout the US. The final concert on March 20 is the capstone of a yearlong program, which includes rehearsals for each choir with Dr. Jessop in their hometowns as well as for five days in New York City prior to the final concert. The program also includes a Professional Development weekend for the choir directors in the fall, when they'll fly to New York City to work with Dr. Jessop and Carnegie Hall staff.

One of the most deeply moving and spiritually uplifting contemporary choral works of the 20th century, A Child of Our Time utilizes the African American Spiritual in much the same way that Bach employed chorales in his great choral compositions. Sir Michael Tippett wrote the 1941 three-part oratorio A Child of Our Time after Herschel Grynspan, a 17-year-old Polish Jewish activist, shot and killed a German official in 1938—an event that the Nazi party used as an excuse for the violence that ensued during Kristallnacht (“The Night of Broken Glass”). Themes of injustice, oppression, and acceptance are present in the work and still ring true with audiences today.

The four choirs selected to participate this year:

The Pebblebrook High School Performing Arts Chamber Choir (Mableton, GA)—Led by George Case, the Performing Arts Chamber Choir is comprised of the most advanced vocal students at the Cobb County Center for Excellence in the Performing Arts in Mableton, Georgia (CCCEPA). The Chamber Choir performs works from all periods of classical music with a strong emphasis on 20th- and 21st-century compositions and a focus on choral/orchestral masterworks. Recently performed works have included Orff’s Carmina Burana with members of the Atlanta Symphony, Mozart's Requiem with the Cobb Symphony Orchestra, and Schubert's Mass in G. The Chamber Choir performs regularly throughout the greater Atlanta area with groups such as the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, Cobb Symphony Orchestra, and CANTUS and has been featured at the 2006 ACDA Southern Division Conference and four GMEA conferences. The Cobb County Center for Excellence in the Performing Arts at Pebblebrook High School was founded in 1988 for students with exceptional talent in the arts as a magnet program in Atlanta's Cobb County School District. Students are actively involved in extracurricular performances and are given the opportunity to work with top professionals in the arts from the Atlanta area and throughout the United States.

The North Jersey Homeschool Association Chorale (Hawthorne, NJ)—Led by Beth Prins, The NJHSA is one of four auditioned ensembles of the North Jersey Homeschool Association. The Chorale has been recognized through the years for its contribution to the community and commitment to musical excellence. They are three-time national winners of the American Association of Christian Schools competitions, recipients of the Outstanding Achievement Award at the NJACDA State Choral Festival, and first-place winners for Chamber Choir and Men’s Choir divisions along with the Adjudicator’s Award, Outstanding Choral Group Award, and Sweepstakes trophy at Heritage Festivals in New York City. Most recently, the Chorale was invited to participate in the prestigious Heritage Gold Festival, singing in Chicago in 2007 and New York City in 2008. The Chorale was featured in the festival’s encore concert in Avery Fisher Hall at Lincoln Center as one of the top scoring groups in Men’s Chorus and Concert Choir divisions. They have had the privilege of performing under the direction of Weston Noble, Doreen Rao, Elena Sharkova, and Christopher Aspaas. The NJHSA Chorale has toured throughout several states, performing up to 30 concerts a year. Members are selected on the basis of musical ability, personal faith in God, and a desire to serve their community.

Songs of Solomon: An Inspirational Ensemble (New York, NY)—Led by Chantel Renee Wright, an Inspirational Ensemble, Inc., was founded in 2001 for youth who desired to express their artistic self through all forms of inspirational music. Comprised of youth of all ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds, the ensemble has performed all over the country. The Ensemble has performed with Elton John at Radio City Music Hall, sang with opera’s great Jessye Norman at the Greenbrier Country Club and performed with American Idol winners in two appearances in Macy’s 4th of July Celebration broadcast on NBC. The Songs of Solomon choirs have performed the Bach Magnificat at Carnegie Hall, closed a concert for Ashford and Simpson at the Apollo, and performed at Madison Square Garden. It held its debut concert at Aaron Davis Hall featuring recording artists Twinkie Clark, Lorraine Stancil, and Melonie Daniels. The Ensemble was the 2003 winner of the McDonald’s Gospelfest and placed first in the Pathmark Gospel Choir Competition. A select group of students had the honor of performing for President Clinton as he rendered a commencement address. Most of all, the choir is committed to spread the Good News.

The Shorewood High School Aeolian Choir (Shoreline, WA)—Led by John Hendrix, the Aeolian Choir, an auditioned choir of mostly juniors and seniors, is one of three choirs at Shorewood High School in Shoreline, Washington. The choir rehearses three days per week in a block schedule, and prepares and performs choral music representing a variety of styles, including folk and multi-cultural music of classical and popular styles. Besides performing at home and in the community, the Aeolian Choir has traveled and represented the Shoreline community up and down the West Coast from Southern California to British Columbia.

Dr. Craig Jessop
Dr. Craig Jessop returns for a sixth year to lead The Carnegie Hall National High School Choral Festival. Dr. Jessop currently holds the position of Music Department Head at Utah State University, and previously was the Music Director and Conductor of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir from 1999–2008, after serving as the Choir’s Associate Director. He holds a Bachelor of Music degree from Utah State University, a Master of Arts degree from Brigham Young University, and a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from Stanford University. Previously, Dr. Jessop was a lieutenant colonel in the United States Air Force music programs, where he served as Director of the USAF Singing Sergeants in Washington, D.C. from 1980 to 1987; as commander and conductor of the Band of the United States Air Forces in Europe from 1987 to 1991 at Ramstein Air Base, Germany; and as commander and conductor of the Air Combat Command Heartland of America Band from 1991 to 1995. He has also been Music Director of the Maryland Choral Society, the Rhineland-Pfalz International Choir of Germany, and the Omaha Symphonic Chorus.

Honor! A Celebration of the African American Cultural Legacy
Presented by Carnegie Hall, Honor! A Celebration of the African American Cultural Legacy festival salutes the enduring vitality, influence, and creativity of African American culture through a collection of concerts and special events curated by internationally renowned soprano Jessye Norman. This Carnegie Hall festival, presented March 4–23, 2009, is designed to celebrate African American music and its influence worldwide, and, in particular, to pay tribute to pioneering African American artists who forged the path for succeeding generations. Through partnerships with New York cultural institutions, including the legendary Apollo Theater, Honor! engages diverse audiences and provides a showcase for African American music in its many genres: classical, gospel, Spirituals, contemporary popular music, blues, and jazz, offering close to 20 events, including concerts, recitals, lectures, panel discussions, exhibitions, and educational programs at Carnegie Hall, Apollo Theater, The Cathedral of St. John the Divine, and other venues throughout New York City. Additional Weill Music Institute activities during the Honor! festival will include a series of Carnegie Hall Neighborhood Concerts and a specially created yearlong curriculum that focuses on the meaningful connections between the tradition of African American song forms and U.S. history for its Perelman American Roots program for middle school music and social studies students.

The Weill Music Institute at Carnegie Hall
The Weill Music Institute creates wide-reaching music education programs that play a central role in Carnegie Hall’s commitment to making great music accessible to as many people as possible. With its access to the world’s greatest artists and latest technologies, The Weill Music Institute is uniquely positioned to inspire the next generation of music lovers, nurture tomorrow’s musical talent, and contribute to the evolution of music education itself. Its educational programs are woven into the fabric of the Carnegie Hall concert season, serving over 115,000 children, students, teachers, parents, young music professionals, and adults in New York City metropolitan area, across the United States, and around the world annually. The Weill Music Institute’s school-based programs alone reach over 50,000 New York City and area public school students each year.

The Weill Music Institute’s Family Concerts at Carnegie Hall and free Neighborhood Concerts in all five boroughs bring music to thousands within the greater New York City community each year. School-based programs provide sequential, in-depth music education curriculum for pre-school through kindergarten-age children (The McGraw-Hill Companies CarnegieKids); grades 1–2 (Musical Explorers), grades 3–5 (LinkUP!), middle school (Perelman American Roots), and high school (Citi Global Encounters and Global Encounters: Cultural Exchange). Professional Training Workshops connect emerging young musicians with internationally renowned artists. The Academy—a program of Carnegie Hall, The Juilliard School, and The Weill Music Institute in partnership with the New York City Department of Education—provides extensive performance opportunities and intensive music education training in an innovative two-year fellowship for post-graduate musicians. The Weill Music Institute also brings its educational programs to national and international audiences, using web-based and distance-learning technology.

Program Information
Friday, March 20, 2009 at 8:00 p.m.
Stern Auditorium/Perelman Stage
CARNEGIE HALL NATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL CHORAL FESTIVAL
Honor! A Celebration of the African American Cultural Legacy Curated by Jessye Norman

Orchestra of St. Luke's
Craig Jessop, Conductor

North Jersey Homeschool Association Chorale
Hawthorne, New Jersey
Beth Prins, Conductor

Pebblebrook High School Chamber Choir
Mableton, Georgia
George Case, Conductor

Shorewood High School Aeolian Choir
Shoreline, Washington
John Hendrix, Conductor

Songs of Solomon: An Inspirational Ensemble
New York, New York
Chantel Wright, Conductor

MICHAEL TIPPETT A Child of Our Time

This performance of Sir Michael Tippett’s A Child of Our Time will feature select high school choirs chosen by competition with peer groups nationwide. The featured work uses the Spiritual in much the same way that J. S. Bach employed the chorale in his great choral compositions.


The Carnegie Hall National High School Choral Festival is made possible, in part, by an endowment fund for choral music established by S. Donald Sussman in memory of Judith Arron and Robert Shaw.

Major funding for Honor! A Celebration of the African American Cultural Legacy has been provided by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, The Horace W. Goldsmith Foundation, The Alice Tully Foundation, The Rockefeller Foundation's New York City Cultural Innovation Fund, and the A. L. and Jennie L. Luria Foundation.

The opening performance of Honor! is sponsored by Bank of America.


Tickets: $10

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Sunday, March 22, 2009 at 5:00 p.m.
Apollo Theater
A CELEBRATION OF THE SPIRITUAL AND GOSPEL MUSIC
Honor! A Celebration of the African American Cultural Legacy Curated by Jessye Norman

Carnegie Hall and the Apollo Theater team up to present a concert of Spirituals and gospel music. The program will trace the development of the Spiritual, from its African roots, to solo vocal performances and choral arrangements. Following intermission, choirs from around New York City will join forces for a joyous celebration of gospel music.

Tickets: $45

For more information, please call: 212-531-5305 or visit apollotheater.org

Tickets are available at the Apollo Theater Box Office, TicketMaster 212-307-7171, or apollotheater.org. For further information call 212-531-5305.

Major funding for Honor! A Celebration of the African American Cultural Legacy has been provided by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, The Horace W. Goldsmith Foundation, The Alice Tully Foundation, The Rockefeller Foundation's New York City Cultural Innovation Fund, and the A. L. and Jennie L. Luria Foundation.

The opening performance of Honor! is sponsored by Bank of America.

Bank of America is the Proud Season Sponsor of Carnegie Hall.