ATLANTA, February 1, 2023 — The Atlanta Baroque Orchestra is delighted to announce its first collaboration with Kinnara, a dynamic professional chamber choir, for their spring concert series Double Header. This performance unites orchestra and voice in a thought-provoking and powerful program on March 3rd-5th in Atlanta, Roswell, and Marietta, Georgia.
Asked about the collaboration, Kinnara Artistic Director J.D. Burnett says, “Kinnara has long admired the impressive work of our colleagues at the ABO and the stylish performances that have marked their near quarter-century in Atlanta. Performing Baroque music with this special ensemble broadens our offerings, displays the considerable vocal talent of our versatile roster of singers, and deepens our connection to this beautiful city of Atlanta – a city that loves good music!”
ABO Artistic Director Julie Andrijeski makes note of the program, “The selections for our concert illuminate the current winter season of darkness that will soon blossom with the light and colors of spring. Built around a Lenten theme, the music is alternately contemplative and powerfully striking. The varied voices of these composers create a program that is exciting, visceral, and deeply felt.”
Double Header highlights the music of Buxtehude, J.C. Bach, Zelenka, Telemann, and J.S. Bach. Dieterich Buxtehude’s set of cantatas, Membra Jesu nostri, reflect upon specific parts of Jesus’s body as he hangs on the cross. Johann Christoph Bach’s cantata “Herr, wende dich” (Lord, turn to me) beseeches God to grant mercy and ends with a stunning chorale lavishly ornamented by two violins. Jan Dismas Zelenka’s Miserere immediately demands the listeners’ attention with dark, pulsating strings and oboes. Georg Philipp Telemann’s Concerto in E minor includes an achingly plaintive oboe solo in its first movement, featuring ABO favorite Kathryn Montoya. The program then culminates in J.S. Bach’s funeral motet “Komm, Jesu, Komm” for double chorus, a lamentation filled with longing for peace with Christ.
The series’ name Double Header is a subtle nod to the ABO’s AllStar Season inspiration. The Orchestra is an ensemble of vibrant musicians and individual superstars who play seamlessly as a team. With double ensembles, double Bachs, and a double motet, this concert provides double the pleasure!
Double Header marks the first time the Atlanta Baroque Orchestra has partnered with Kinnara in concert. The combined ensemble will perform Double Header on 7:30pm on March 3rd in Atlanta, 3:00pm on March 4th in Roswell, and 3:00pm on March 5th in Marietta. Tickets may be purchased online in advance; a limited quantity will be available at the door. Prices range from $15-$50.
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About the Atlanta Baroque Orchestra
The Atlanta Baroque Orchestra (ABO) is recognized as a premier ensemble in the selection, curation and performance of early music. A mainstay of the metro-Atlanta cultural scene since 1998, the ABO is the longest-running Baroque orchestra in the Southeast, having presented an impressive array of more than 250 works (ca. 1600-1800) throughout the region. ABO’s mission is to celebrate the vitality of early music, and to engage audiences through the energy of live performance and exquisite artistry. The Orchestra includes professional, historically-informed musicians who collaborate with various arts and cultural institutions across the United States. For more information, visit atlantabaroque.org.
About Kinnara
Heralded as “luxurious, lush, and verdant” (New York Classical Review), and “breathtakingly beautiful” (Arts ATL), Kinnara is one of America’s premier professional chamber choirs. Under the direction of J.D. Burnett, who also serves as Director of Choral Activities at the University of Texas at Austin, the ensemble performs a wide variety of standard choral repertoire from all eras. Lauded as “a jewel that combines appealing, varied programming with sterling musical qualities and direct, memorable artistic communication.” (Choral Journal), Kinnara’s debut album, Provenance, is distributed internationally by Naxos Records. For more information, visit kinnara.org.
For Media Inquiries:
Tavish Daly
admin@atlantabaroque.org
(315) 414-7952
