Robert Paterson News

The World Premiere of Michael Shapiro’s VOICES is set to take place at New York City's famed Central Synagogue, Thursday, November 10, 2022. This performance will feature Daniel Mutlu, the Senior Cantor of Central Synagogue, Ember Choral Arts, and the American Modern Ensemble, conducted by Deborah Simpkin King. 

Two world premieres – A Nation of Others, a new oratorio for six soloists, chorus and orchestra by Paul Moravec and Mark Campbell with the Oratorio Society of New York at Carnegie Hall that brings to life one day of immigrants’ arrival at Ellis Island in 1921 (November 15, 2022); and a setting of the Stabat Mater for organ, soloists, chorus, and orchestra by David Briggs at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine (March 8, 2023) – are highlights of the 2022-23 season of Kent Tritle.

The World Premiere of Michael Shapiro’s VOICES is set to take place at New York City's famed Central Synagogue, Thursday, November 10, 2022

The Oratorio Society of New York, led by Music Director Kent Tritle, announces its 2022-23 season with three concerts in Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage at Carnegie Hall. The 22-23 season includes a newly commissioned world premiere; the 148th year of its performances of Handel's Messiah, a venerable New York holiday tradition; and Bach's Mass in B Minor, a standout in Baroque choral works.

Having planned a full, pre-pandemic-scale season for 2021-22, Kent Tritle, who is Director of Cathedral Music and Organist at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, Music Director of both the Oratorio Society of New York and Musica Sacra, and Director of Choral Activities at the Manhattan School of Music, led or performed in a dozen concerts in the season’s first half, with only one event being canceled.

Kent’s spring concert schedule has undergone a few shuffles, but is going ahead largely as planned, featuring Mendelssohn’s Elijah with the Oratorio Society of New York and soloists Susanna Phillips, Lucia Bradford, Isaiah Bell, and Justin Austin at Carnegie Hall (May 9) and more.

Opera Memphis will make its long-awaited return to Playhouse on the Square this March with a titilating double bill entitled Pygmalion 2.0. Exploring themes of desire, control, frustration, and perfection, this production pairs Donizetti’s Pygmalion with Robert Paterson and David Cote’s provocative rom-com, The Companion.

The Opera Memphis Handorf Company Artist program will welcome three exciting new talents to Memphis this February. Since the inaugural 2018 roster of young artists completed their tenure, the HCA program has continued to serve as a training program for rising talent from across the country, welcoming a half dozen artists to this impactful, community-oriented program.

Through the generous sponsorship of the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, The American Opera Project (AOP) has been awarded a $270,000 Grant to support the 2021-23 cycle of renowned training program, Composers & the Voice (C&V).

Musica Sacra, New York's elite professional chorus, returns to the concert stage in 2021-22 led by Kent Tritle – in his 15th season as Music Director – with a season of three concerts with orchestra, each of which spotlights a facet of the group's identity.

This year, 6 composers and 3 librettists have been selected to receive fellowships, including composers Gabrielle Herbst, J.E. Hernández, Raquel Acevedo Klein, Paul Pinto, Tidtaya Sinutoke and Ania Vu, and librettists Jeesun Choi, Isabella Dawis, and Troy Defour.

Ember Choral Arts, formerly known as Schola Cantorum on Hudson, founded in 1995 by Artistic Director Dr. Deborah Simpkin King, announces their 2021-2022 concert series entitled “Can We Talk?”

This September, The American Opera Project, one of America’s leading homes for the creation of original lyric theater, kicks off its 33rd season with premiere music from five distinctive new operas at an outdoor concert in its home neighborhood of Fort Greene, Brooklyn.

Kent Tritle's 2021-22 season schedule features a full slate of events: he leads five concerts at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine with the Cathedral Choir, four with Oratorio Society of New York, four with Musica Sacra, and three with groups at the Manhattan School of Music.

Opera Memphis has announced performances of In Real Life, a collection of operatic monologues for soprano, baritone, and chamber ensemble by composer Robert Paterson and librettist David Cote. Performances will be held on Friday, May 21 and Saturday, May 22 at the Clark Opera Memphis Center (6745 Wolf River Blvd) at 8pm.

The American Opera Project announces the return of its Composers & the Voice program for its 2021-2023 seasons. Created and led by Composers & the Voice Artistic Director Steven Osgood, six composers and up to three librettists will be selected for two-year fellowships to explore the fundamentals of writing for the voice and lyric theater.

American Modern Ensemble presented a 28-piece string orchestra performance filmed outside on October 2020, led by Maestro David Rosenmeyer in an unforgettable musical gift to New York City featuring music by Tchaikovsky, Paterson, and Grieg.

Chamber Music Society of Detroit at Oakland University Series presents Shuai Wang, piano, Thursday, October 1 at 8 p.m.. Livestreamed and free via CameraMusic

American Modern Ensemble (AME) emerges from the pandemic silence with a performance about a modern ritual that has confounded Millennials and Boomers alike, online dating. Composer Robert Paterson and librettist David Cote present two song cycles that explore the narratives of those looking to find true love in digital space a?" a chamber musical for the a?oeTinderellaa?? in all of us.

This list includes books like Wicked: The Grimmerie and Hamilton: The Revolution, as well as a Broadway cookbook, a book about Broadway art, the collected lyrics and Stephen Sondheim, and more!