The University of California, Santa Barbara’s Santa Barbara Chamber Choir will perform for citizens of the valley at 7:30 p.m. May 31 at old Mission Santa Iñes, with a performance of “LAUDI: Songs of Praise,” before the group heads off for its European tour.

The choir specializes in virtuosic masterpieces, sung a cappella.

Choir conductor Michel Marc Gervais will lead the choir in the music of Josquin des Prez, who acquired the reputation as the greatest composer of the age. Also included in the concert are Renaissance motets by Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina, Peter Philips and Francisco Guerrero; and 19th and 20th century sacred works by Felix Mendelssohn, Anton Bruckner and Trond Kverno.

The conductor said the works of Mendelssohn, using a double chorus, are particularly challenging.

“Our chorus is all students, but their talent level is extremely high,” Gervais said. “They are undoubtedly the best ensemble in the county. The repertoire that will be presented is not normally performed because it is so very vocally challenging and it is very difficult music.”

Gervais is a resident of Santa Ynez. He said it was his idea to perform at the mission. This will be the third concert the choir has performed at the mission for free.

“We have launched a collaboration with the mission,” Gervais said. “It has gone marvelously. We love performing there. The ambience is fantastic, the personnel are really wonderful. It is such a lovely place to sing.”

Mission personnel are equally pleased the group will be performing there.

“Their music is amazing. Everything is sung a capella,” said Sheila Benedict, parish administrator at the mission. “There is no question that the choir conductor, Michel, has worked with them extensively, all of them. The acoustics are great at the mission, and we feel privileged to host them. The acoustics are great here. I am really hoping they want to continue to perform here year after year. I would welcome them in a minute.”

Gervais moved from Paris to the valley about six years ago. “I love living here,” he said.

This summer, the 34-member choir will tour the Tuscany region of Italy. The choir will perform two different concert programs over 16 days, spanning five centuries of sacred choral music, from the Renaissance to the 20th century, in seven concerts at the cities of Siena, Rome Florence, Chianti, Ville De Corsano, Pienza and Montalcino.

The choir has collaborated with Ericson Chamber Choir in Stockholm, Madrigalchor Kiel in Germany, the Santa Barbara Chamber Orchestra, the Santa Barbara Symphony and the Asia-America Symphony Orchestra. It was also featured in a three-hour Swedish television documentary on the legendary choral master Eric Ericson.

The choir, which has recorded seven CDs, has taken two concert tours of California and four European tours, serving as choir-in-residence at the International Conducting Academy in France.

For more information, call (805) 893-7001 or visit www.musicucsb.edu.

 

 

Museum celebrates renovation

The community is invited to a brief ceremony celebrating the completion of renovations on the Old Mission Santa Inés Museum at 2 p.m. May 31, at 1760 Mission Drive in Solvang.

Renovation began in January. Museum rooms were redesigned, repainted and repaired.

After the brief ceremony, there will be a reception in the mission garden. For more information, or to RSVP for this free event, contact Sheila Benedict at (805) 688-4815.