Seraphic Fire and the University of Miami have had deep connections over the past twenty years: many of Seraphic Fire's original members were graduate students at the Frost School of Music in 2003, when the organization was founded.
"Seraphic Fire and the Frost School of Music currently have several apprenticeship programs for singers, choral conductors, composers, and music educators, and this concert—also featuring the music of three Frost School-affiliated composers such as Shawn Crouch, Sydney Guillaume, and David Vess—seemed like the perfect opportunity to highlight these connections," says Seraphic Fire's Conductor and Artistic Director, Patrick Dupre Quigley.
In looking to the past and the future, Seraphic Fire's First | Last 20th Anniversary Concert Series, the Miami-based chamber choir, will present seven programs containing the oldest and newest pieces in their repertoire. William Billing's Invocation was the first work performed by Seraphic Fire, and the first line of this American hymn—"Majestic God, our Muse inspire, and fill us with Seraphic fire"—is the source for the ensemble's name. The celebration will take place in multiple venues.
As part of the program, Seraphic Fire will be joined by the Frost School of Music's Ensemble Ibis for Shawn Crouch's The Road from Hiroshima, the first piece of music commissioned and premiered by Seraphic Fire.
"I first heard of Marc Kaminsky's moving poems about life before and after the bombing of Hiroshima over a coffee in New Haven, Connecticut, with Patrick Dupré Quigley, where he and I were both attending the Yale School of Music," explains Frost School of Music Conductor and Associate Professor of Professional Practice, Shawn Crouch.
"Patrick recited for me Kaminsky's poem, which describes the moment after the bomb exploded, leaving only the people's shoes just moments before standing on the train station platform. These are moving, gripping accounts of nuclear destruction, and over that coffee, we decided to collaborate on something involving Kaminsky's words. A few years later, Patrick commissioned me to write The Road from Hiroshima, A Requiem for their first commission for the then newly formed Seraphic Fire. This was the beginning of a long relationship with Seraphic Fire that has profoundly impacted my life in so many ways. I am honored to have Hiroshima performed again as part of its 20th anniversary. I am profoundly grateful for Patrick Quigley's friendship and artistic trust in commissioning many works from me for Seraphic Fire over these past 20 years."
Representing Seraphic Fire's newest projects are three world-premiere performances of works by Alvaro Bermudez, Sydney Guillaume, and Tawnie Olson. "The ensemble's first performance of Thomas Tallis' massive 40-voice motet Spem in alium is the icing on the birthday cake of this celebration of 20 years of glorious music," says Amanda Quist, director of Choral Activities at Frost School of Music, University of Miami.
"We have created an apprenticeship program [Ensemble Artist Program] for eight of our singers each year to collaborate in at least one major performance with Seraphic Fire. Additionally, our students are given the opportunity to observe rehearsals and attend concerts," adds Quist. "We also have a position for a Graduate Assistant conductor with the group, and this year, that position is held by Frost Choral Studies DMA candidate Wesley Roy."
Roy, along with Alex Colaizzi, who sings with them professionally, will be joined by the Ensemble Artist Program, which consists of Scott AuCoin, Jamie Bunce, Julia Pinn, Julia Izquierdo, Chris Alfonso, Kyle Largey, Sam Scheibe, David Caldarella, and Nicole Plummer.
The program was commissioned by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and Barlow Endowment for Music Composition at Brigham Young University. The performances of Spem in Alium are made possible with the generous support of Daniel Perron and Jonathan Hogg.
The program includes:
- Shawn Crouch: The Road from Hiroshima
- Sydney Guillaume: New Commission
- Alvaro Bermudez: Danzas del Silencio
- Tawnie Olson: Beloved of the Sky
- Thomas Tallis: Spem in Alium
