by Daniel Hathaway
Contrapunctus Early Music, a vocal project launched in Cleveland by British countertenor David Acres, has been absent from the local musical scene for four years now.
The high-voice chorus of sopranos, altos, and countertenors will reanimate itself this weekend to join The King’s Counterpoint from Charleston, S.C. in a joint performance on Friday, March 25 at 7:30 pm at St. John’s Cathedral in downtown Cleveland.
In February 2018, before Contrapunctus’ last concert here, Acres told this publication that his involvement with King’s Counterpoint had kept him so busy that Cleveland had temporarily fallen off the calendar.
“A series of Baroque Messiahs and the inaugural concert in our exploration of Handel’s Oratorios, commencing with Judas Maccabaeus — both with members of the North Carolina Baroque Orchestra, a critically acclaimed performance in the Piccolo Spoleto Series and an invite to return, together with over 16 performances in South Carolina, have stopped us from returning to Cleveland to explore more high-voice repertoire with Contrapunctus.” [Read more…]
Imagine a concert that highlights underperformed music from an underexamined region and an underrated historical era. Not only does the program chart logical thematic paths through that repertoire, but it also changes up group configurations often enough to keep the audience attentive.
At the midpoint of its 51st season, The West Shore Chorale will sing a program on the Helen D. Schubert concert series at St. John’s Cathedral on Friday, March 1 at 7:30 pm. John Drotleff, who has conducted the Rocky River-based chorus since 1984, will lead his singers and an instrumental ensemble in music by Mozart, David Conte, and Bernstein.
Contrapunctus Early Music,
The Helen D. Schubert Concert Series at St. John’s Cathedral in downtown Cleveland has presented a number of fine European chamber choirs over the years, but this fall, music director Gregory Heislman is bringing in talent closer to home.
On Friday evening, October 17, a standing-room only crowd gathered in the sanctuary of Saint John’s Cathedral to hear the magnificent Cleveland Orchestra and Chorus under the direction of Franz Welser-Möst in a free concert that featured Bach’s Missa Brevis, BWV 232. 