Westchester Chorale Concert

Rarely heard and musically uplifting choral
classics are the focus of the December concert by the Westchester Chorale in
Larchmont. Under the baton of Douglas Kostner, the 40-person community chorus
will perform Johann Sebastian Bach’s Cantata 77 (“Du sollt Gott, deinen
Herren, lieben”)and Felix Mendelssohn's Magnificat at 4 pm December 14th at Larchmont Avenue
Church.

The Chorale will be
accompanied by full orchestra, many of whom are 'local talent,'
highly skilled musicians from the Sound Shore community. The Chorale welcomes returning
soloists Roseanne Ackerley, soprano, Shawn Marie Jeffery, alto, and Nicolas
Dávila, tenor, as well as Kreshnik Zhabjaku,
bass, who makes his Westchester debut crowning a distinguished musical career which spans two continents.

Tickets are available in advance at the Westchester Chorale website, www.westchesterchorale.org, or at
the door: $25 General Admission, $20 Seniors, $10 Students. For more
information, call (914) 237-9546, or email: info@westchesterchorale.org. The concert will take place in the chancel of the Larchmont Avenue Church at 60
Forest Park Avenue in Larchmont. The venue is wheel-chair accessible.

The Music

First performed in
1723, the opening movement of Bach’s cantata is filled with symbolic
implications masterfully woven with a solo trumpet which picks up and repeats
the melody sung by the chorus. The music builds from here to elucidate Bach's
vision of the musical and spiritual path we need to undertake to commit our
body and soul to the Almighty. Simply speaking this cantata is musical message
of advice from a wise and thoughtful adult.

By contrast,
Mendelssohn was a precocious adolescent of 13 years when he wrote his first Magnificat. Heavily influenced by his enthusiasm for the works
of Bach, Mendelssohn proceeds in this amazing piece to magnify the glory of God in seven movements of intricately intertwining melodies by chorus, soloists and orchestra.