Coro Allegro is a classical music choral group based in Boston, Massachusetts, drawing its members from the LGBT community. It was founded in 1990.
Profile and performances
editCoro Allegro was founded specifically to be a chorus of both gay men and lesbians who share a passion for music, and it remains the only organization in Boston committed to bringing exciting classical repertoire to the LGBTQ+ community. The chorus also succeeds in bringing classical music to a wider audience. In its first twenty years, its numbers grew from just twenty singers to more than sixty.[1]
The chorus regularly collaborates with other musical ensembles.[2] Among its most notable collaborations have been performances of Mendelssohn’s Elijah in 1999 with the Boston Cecilia and the Handel and Haydn Society under the direction of Christopher Hogwood;[3] of Robert Kapilow’s baseball cantata, a setting of Casey at the Bat for chorus, in 2001 with Musica Viva in collaboration choreographer Daniel Pelzig;[4] of Brahms’ German Requiem in 2003 with Boston Cecilia under the baton of Donald Teeters; and of both Poulenc's Gloria and Bernstein's Chichester Psalms in 2004 with Boston Cecilia.
Coro Allegro participates in the quadrennial GALA Choruses Festival.[5] It has also traveled to participate in the following music festivals:
Premieres and commissions
editDuring its history Coro Allegro has presented 23 world premieres, including 14 works commissioned by or for Coro Allegro, plus three American premieres and five Boston premieres.
- Kenneth Fuchs' Three Songs on Robert Frost Texts, 1994
- Kenneth Fuchs' In the Clearing, 1995
- Daniel Pinkham's The White Raven, 1996
- Ruth Lomon's Requiem for soprano and chorus accompanied by brass and woodwinds, 1997[6]
- Patricia Van Ness's The Voice of the Tenth Muse, 1998
- Charles Fussell’s Infinite Fraternity, May 16, 2003 at Sanders Theatre[7]
- David Brunner's The Wheel, 2004
- Patricia Van Ness's Requiem for baritone, chorus, two violins, viola, cello, bass and oboe, October 31, 2004[8]
- Robert Stern’s “Shofar,” November 5, 2006 at Sanders Theatre[9]
- Fred Onovwerosuoke's “A Triptych of American Voices: A Cantata of the People,” Sunday, March 24, 2019 at Sanders Theatre[10]
Pinkham Award
editSince 2008, Coro Allegro has chosen the recipient of the Daniel Pinkham Award, given annually in memory of the acclaimed and beloved Boston composer and conductor. Daniel Pinkham. The award is given annually in recognition of outstanding contributions to classical music and to the LGBTQ+ community. Award recipients are:
- Sanford Sylvan, 2008[11]
- Bishop Gene Robinson, 2009[12]
- Fenwick Smith, 2010
- Patricia Van Ness, 2011
- Donald Teeters, 2012
- David Hodgkins, 2013
- Laury Gutierrez, 2014
- Lorna Cooke Devaron, 2015
- Janson Wu, 2016
- Catherine Peterson, 2017
- Robin Godfrey, 2018
- Darryl Hollister, 2019
Collaborations
editThe chorus regularly collaborates with other musical ensembles.[13] Among its most notable collaborations have been performances of Mendelssohn’s Elijah in 1999 with the Boston Cecilia and the Handel and Haydn Society under the direction of Christopher Hogwood;[14] of Robert Kapilow’s baseball cantata, a setting of Casey at the Bat for chorus, in 2001 with Boston Musica Viva in collaboration with choreographer Daniel Pelzig for the Celebrity Series of Boston;[15] of Brahms’ German Requiem in 2003 with Boston Cecilia under the baton of Donald Teeters; of both Poulenc's Gloria and Bernstein's Chichester Psalms in 2004 with Boston Cecilia, the premiere of Leaving Limerick in the Rain by Pablo Ortiz with the Terezin Music Foundation at Liberation: A Concert Honoring the 70th Anniversary of the Liberation of the Nazi Camps in Boston Symphony Hall, two performances with The Heritage Chorale of New Haven of William Grant Still's And They Lynched Him on a Tree, the last in 2019, and performances in Boston Common and at the Hatch Shell at the Esplanade with the Boston Landmarks Orchestra. Coro Allegro has also collaborated the Back Bay Ringers, the Boston City Singers, the Boston Gay Men’s Chorus, Chorus Pro Musica, City on a Hill Charter School Chorus, La Donna Musicale, Pro Arte Chamber Orchestra, Rumbarroco, Toronto Children’s Chorus, and the United Parish Chancel Choir.
GALA Choruses festivals
editCoro Allegro participates in the quadrennial GALA Choruses festival.[16]
References
edit- ^ Arts Boston: Coro Allegro, accessed December 1, 2009
- ^ Boston Globe, "Cecilia, Coro Allegro Find Balance With Brahms ," March 19, 2003
- ^ Boston Globe, "Elijah Affirms One's Faith in H & H," October 21, 2000
- ^ Boson Globe, "This Casey Doesn't Strike Out", May 14, 2001
- ^ GALA Choruses: GALA Choruses Member Choruses Archived 2010-04-18 at the Wayback Machine, accessed December 15, 2009
- ^ Boston Secession: Composer in Residence, accessed December 16, 2009
- ^ "Charles Fussell" in International Who's Who in Classical Music 2003 (Routledge, 2003))
- ^ Blue Lantern Press: Patricia Van Ness
- ^ Boston Musical Intelligencer: "Shofar Highlights Concert with Coro Allegro at Sanders", accessed December 15, 2009
- ^ Boston Musical Intelligencer: "America/We Need to Talk", accessed November 16, 2019
- ^ Boston Globe: "An award for Sylvan," Feb. 22, 2008, accessed December 15, 2009
- ^ Bay Windows: "Coro Allegro to honor gay bishop," April 2, 2009, accessed December 15, 2009
- ^ Boston Globe, "Cecilia, Coro Allegro Find Balance With Brahms ," March 19, 2003
- ^ Boston Globe, "Elijah Affirms One's Faith in H & H," October 21, 2000
- ^ Boson Globe, "This Casey Doesn't Strike Out", May 14, 2001
- ^ GALA Choruses: GALA Choruses Member Choruses Archived April 18, 2010, at the Wayback Machine, accessed December 15, 2009
