For Immediate Release: March 22, 2008
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THE ESOTERICS CELEBRATES ITS 15TH ANNIVERSARY WITH A CHORAL EXTRAVAGANZA With four semi-choruses, three world premieres, and 15 years worth of music, QUINDECIMA promises an evening that will delight long-time fans and entice newcomers to The Esoterics experience PLUS! Check out a new feature at www.TheEsoterics.org: EsoCasts! QUINDECIMA ~ April 12 - 13 and 19 - 20 |
SEATTLE - In the early nineties, Eric Banks faced a challenge shared by everyone earning a choral conducting degree at the University of Washington: he needed singers to perform in the required recitals. Having performed with several choral groups in Seattle, Eric selectively recruited a group of talented and highly committed singers capable of tackling the challenging music he programmed for these performances. One such recruit was alto Merideth Burness.
"When I met Eric in 1990, we were both singing in The Pacific Northwest Chamber Chorus," says Burness. "I was in the audience [at his 1992 Master's recital] and heard his program of works from many musical eras. What I was most impressed by was his ambition. Even then, Eric took on seemingly impossible tasks." In 1993, when Banks asked Burness to be part of his DMA recital, she eagerly consented and became part an ensemble that would later that year become the incorporated non-profit entity called The Esoterics.
Burness is one of six founding members of the group who will be performing in QUINDECIMA, a concert celebrating The Esoterics' crystal anniversary. Over the past 15 years, under Banks' direction, the group has sustained its strong commitment to promoting contemporary a cappella choral music. Whether premiering new works by living composers or unearthing more obscure works from the last century, The Esoterics continues to take on all of the "seemingly impossible tasks" assigned by its founding director.
Founding tenor Jim Peterson comments, "What has changed dramatically over the last 15 years is the caliber and prominence of The Esoterics as a choral ensemble. Eric's choice of music and text makes us grapple with the highest levels of choral artistry, singing technique, and examination of our lives through the exquisite poetry we consistently present. I am so proud to have seen our growth from a very good community choir to a truly international-level organization that pushes the choral art to its most vigorous expression!"
The Esoterics has come a long way since its inception, competing internationally on three different occasions, releasing CDs that have garnered excellent reviews from The Gramophone and The American Record Guide, and thrice receiving the ASCAP and Chorus America Award for Adventurous Programming in Music. In 2008, the group continues to grow and forge new territory, both musically and organizationally.
This year marks an important addition to The Esoterics, as ÆDONIS, the group's all-male counterpart chorus, officially becomes part of the organization. The 16-member ensemble has recently been incorporated into the bylaws of The Esoterics, with a specific mission to perform and promote the works of gay composers throughout history.
In QUINDECIMA, The Esoterics will premiere three works by the winners of POLYPHONOS, its annual composition competition that awards a commission and travel funds to one American composer, one international composer, and one young composer (under age 30). Apropos to the anniversary event, the POLYPHONOS awardees were asked to compose
pieces based on the concept of "marking time." In I saw eternity, international winner Leonard Enns (Waterloo, Ontario, Canada) sets a poem by Henry Vaughn; Nathan Stumpff (Liberty, ME), the national awardee, has chosen Walt Whitman's O me! O life! for his commission. Baudelaire's L'invitation au voyage is the inspiration for young composer winner Scott Perkins' (Rochester, NY) composition, in which he sets the English translation of this poem by Richard Wilbur.
With the 2008 POLYPHONOS compositions representing choral music at its most contemporary, The Esoterics reprises its history in QUINDECIMA, performing one piece written in each year since the ensemble began. This program features only works of living composers, including works by the Washington state composers David Asplin (In nature's charm), Bern Herbolsheimer (Love letters), John Muehleisen (Perplexed music), Donald Skirvin (O lady), and Linda Waterfall (Guang); pieces by national composers Mark Adamo (Supreme virtue), Dominick Argento (Sonnet LXIV), Abbie Betinis (Bar xizam), William Hawley (Meeting at night), Stephen Paulus (Meditations of Li Po), and Martha Sullivan (Laudes Domini); and music from abroad by Vanraj Bhatia (Hymn of creation), and Jaakko Mäntyjärvi (Psalm 150 in Kent Treble Bob Minor).
For this ambitious program (two intermissions will be provided), Banks has split The Esoterics into three 24-voice ensembles, with many singers performing in more than one group; in addition, ÆDONIS will perform three pieces. Rehearsals have increased from the usual schedule of two nights per week (three hours each night) to three nights per week. For Banks, who also directs ÆDONIS, QUINDECIMA has led to a grueling rehearsal schedule of four nights a week.
"It is completely crazy-pants," says Banks, using one of his signature phrases, "but it is absolutely worth it. I am so proud of how far the group has come and excited about where the group is going - and I am really happy that so many singers get to be a part of this experience. I think this event will be important because we're singing the works of living composers - and several of them will be in attendance."
The Esoterics will host a 15th-anniversary celebration and composers' reception after the performance on Saturday, April 19th at St. Joseph's Catholic Church.
Please join The Esoterics for this unforgettable documentation of choral innovation in the great Pacific Northwest!
The dates and venues for QUINDECIMA are:
Saturday • 12 April • 8 pm • Tacoma
Trinity Lutheran Church • 12115 Park Ave S
Sunday • 13 April • 7 pm • Lynnwood
Trinity Lutheran Church • 6215 196th St SW
Saturday • 19 April • 8 pm • Seattle
St Joseph's Catholic Church • 732 18th Ave E
Sunday • 20 April • 3 pm • West Seattle
Holy Rosary Catholic Church • 4139 42nd Ave SW
Tickets are $20 at the door, $18 in advance, $15 for students,
seniors, the un(der)employed, and the differently-abled. Discounts are available
for groups of five or more at $12 per person. Active singers of any choral group
may attend for only $10. Advance tickets are available online at
EXTRA! As a leader in the field of contemporary choral music, The Esoterics is proud to present EsoCasts. These brief audio recordings provide expanded information about The Esoterics' upcoming concerts, recordings, and projects. For fans of contemporary choral music, these informal conversations with The Esoterics' founding director, Eric Banks, members of the ensemble, and other choral composers will keep you up-to-date on cutting edge choral work. For The Esoterics' fans, EsoCasts lend unique insight into the goings-on behind the scenes of Seattle's most innovative choir. Available now! Hear interviews with local composers Linda Waterfall and Don Skirvin whose pieces, Guang and O lady, respectively, will be part of the QUINDECIMA program: http://www.theesoterics.org/esocast/Default.aspx
The Esoterics has presented dozens of local and international premieres, and has tackled the most challenging works of 20th and 21st century choral repertoire. Now celebrating its fifteenth anniversary season with founding director Eric Banks, the ensemble has drawn national and international praise for presenting the many styles that comprise contemporary choral music. In 2001, 2003, and 2006, The Esoterics' commitment to innovative concert repertoire was nationally recognized when ASCAP and Chorus America granted the ensemble its coveted Award for Adventurous Programming of Contemporary Music. The ensemble was also honored to be selected as the only North American chorus to compete at the 2000 International Choral Festival in Cork, Ireland, the 2001 International Choral Festival in Tolosa, Spain, and the 2006 Harald Andersén International Choir Competition in Helsinki, Finland.
If you have additional questions about Quindecima or The Esoterics (media contact only), please contact Bayta Maring ().