Singing into spring, The Assabet Valley Mastersingers will present Songs of Ecstasy featuring For a Breath of Ecstasy by Michael J. Trotta and Carmina Burana by Carl Orff. The concert will be held at Algonquin Regional High School, 79 Barlett Street, on Sunday, March 20 at 3:30 p.m. Dr. Robert P. Eaton will conduct the ensemble and soloists accompanied by two pianos, an oboe and five percussionists.
Each of the movements of For a Breath of Ecstasy chronicles poet Sara Teasdale’s search for solace amidst life’s many storms. .Composer Trotta’s tapestry of different vocal forces set against the backdrop of an oboe, played by Joe Halko and the piano with Judy Yauckoes, reveals moments of yearning, love, joy, and peace. Carl Orff’s Carmina Burana, called a “dramatic cantata”, is performed here as a concert work. It is based upon twenty-five 13th century poems written by itinerant scholars, minstrels, and runaway monks. The theme running through the work is that of the wheel of Fortune, the goddess of fate who rules our lives. The poems touch on all aspects of life, the defects of the church, state and manners; complaints on the power of money and the decline of moral values; the sensual joys of food, drink, and physical love.
Tickets may be purchased online or at the door. The price is $25 for general admission; $20 for seniors and students. All concert attendees are required to present proofs of vaccination. Masks are required with social distancing by attendee unit (family, friends with them).
It is an AVM core value to be responsible and community-minded. As such AVM will follow all public health guidelines provided by Federal, state, and local health departments and those of our concert venues. Please check our website for the most up to date information.
AVM’s programs are supported in part by grants from the Massachusetts Cultural Council and the Cultural Councils of Ashland, Boylston, Grafton, Marlborough, Northborough, Shrewsbury, Southborough, West Boylston, and Westborough. AVM is also supported in part by grants from the Avidia Charitable Foundation; from Southborough Community Fund, a fund of the Foundation for MetroWest.