Rose of the Compass joins with the Cathedral Choir of St. John the Divine to present Venice, City of Light, the final performance of the Cathedral’s 2022-23 season of Great Music in a Great Space concerts, on Tuesday, May 16, 2023 at 7:30pm at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, 1047 Amsterdam Avenue (at 112th Street).
Created by artistic directors Nina Stern and Kent Tritle, the program celebrates Venice as the great cultural crossroads from medieval times to the 20th century. The presence of Jewish, Turkish and Armenian communities is explored alongside the musical creativity which emanated from the Basilica of San Marco, illustrating the cultural splendor of the luminous city of the lagoon.
Performers include Ara Dinkjian, oud; Tamer Pinarbasi, kanun; Glen Velez, percussion; Arthur Fiacco, cello; Nina Stern, recorders and chalumeau; Daniel Ficarri, organ; and Tracy Cowart, mezzo-soprano. Kent Tritle conducts the Cathedral Choir.
The performance will take place in person in the Cathedral’s magnificent Chapel of St. James. Student Rush tickets will be available the day of at the box office. One free ticket per student ID. For tickets and more information, visit the Cathedral’s website.
About the Artists:
Nina Stern has carved a unique and extraordinarily diverse career for herself as a world-class recorder player and classical clarinetist. Stern performs widely as a soloist and a principal player with prominent orchestras such as The New York Philharmonic, Orchestra of Saint Luke’s, Metropolitan Opera, New York City Opera, Opera Lafayette, and American Classical Orchestra. She has recorded for Erato, Harmonia Mundi, Sony Classics, Newport Classics, Wildboar, Telarc and Smithsonian labels. Stern’s latest projects include performances of traditional music of Eastern Europe, Armenia, and the Middle East as a soloist and with the ensembles Rose of the Compass and East of the River. She was appointed to the faculty of Juilliard’s Historical Performance program in 2012 and has served on the faculties of the Mannes College of Music – where she directed the Historical Performance Program from 1989 to 1996 – at the Civica Scuola di Musica (Milan, Italy), Oberlin Conservatory, and the Five Colleges in Massachusetts. Stern is the founder and artistic director of S’Cool Sounds, an award-winning, music education organization with the mission of using the power of music to inspire, educate, and connect children and communities in New York City and abroad. She serves as Director of Community Engagement for the Boston Early Music Festival.
Kent Tritle is one of America’s leading choral conductors. Called “the brightest star in New York’s choral music world” by The New York Times, he is Director of Cathedral Music and Organist at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York City; Music Director of the Oratorio Society of New York, the acclaimed 200-voice volunteer chorus; and Music Director of Musica Sacra, New York’s longest continuously performing professional chorus. In addition, Kent is Director of Choral Activities at the Manhattan School of Music and is a member of the graduate faculty of The Juilliard School. An acclaimed organ virtuoso, he is also the organist of the New York Philharmonic and on the organ faculty of the Manhattan School of Music.
For further information:
Isadora Wilkenfeld, Cathedral
(212) 316-7468 / iwilkenfeld@
