Governor Baker has declared a State of Emergency to respond to COVID-19 (coronavirus) on March 10. Assabet Valley Mastersingers takes the health and well-being of its choristers, audience, and the community at large very seriously. We regret to announce that we have postponed our March 15 concert “Bridges to Unity – We Are Not Alone” until late spring or early fall. Date and location TBD. We will be contacting all of our ticket buyers shortly and hope that our wonderful supporters will stay healthy and join us again soon. Given the changing nature of the response to the coronavirus, stay safe and watch for updates from the governor your local health department. If you have questions and/or concerns regarding the postponing of the March 15 performance, please feel free to contact our General Manager at manager@avmsingers.org. We will do our very best to respond in a timely manner.
Assabet Valley Mastersingers (AVM) invite you to their next concert featuring the orchestra and soloists on Sunday, March 15 at 3:30 pm. The concert will be held at the R.R. Jay Performing Arts Center at Saint John’s High School, 378 Main Street in Shrewsbury.
AVM’s founder and Artistic Director Robert P. Eaton will conduct the ensemble and also introduce Cynthia Wong, composer of the AVM Commission Unity in Diversity at 2:30 pm prior to the concert for a half-hour.
As keystone of the “Building Bridges” theme of this AVM season, the March 15 concert carries the title of Bridges to Unity: We Are Not Alone to share calming choral thoughts against fears and challenges in the current world. The introductory a cappella selection, The Time Has Come, based on Nelson Mandela’s words: “The moment to bridge the chasms that divide us has come…”, will be followed by a song cycle touching on themes of nature and destruction, love and unity. Composer of this commissioned work, Unity in Diversity, is Cynthia Wong, a Northborough native and musician of international renown.
Award-winning composer Oliver Caplan wrote We Exist with lyrics by poet Naseem Rakha, “We exist not to divide but to join, not to blame but to build…” Joining AVM members and orchestra for We Exist will be the Algonquin Regional High School Chamber Choir, directed by Kathrine Waters.
Fourth and final selection on the March program will be Dan Forrest’s LUX: The Dawn From On High with text from ancient liturgical chant, Scripture, and modern secular love poetry portraying the hope of the dawn and glory of the sun as changing light infuses our daily lives.
Concert tickets may be purchased online or in advance at Gray’s Carpet Center, Northborough; David French Music Co., Westborough; Shrewsbury Federal Credit Union; English Gardens Florist, Southborough; Serendipity Jewelry, Art, & Whimsy, Hudson; and both Joy-Den Jewelers and Main Street Café in Marlborough. Advance sale tickets from outlets in these six towns are discounted $3 from the regular price of $25 and $20 for students and senior citizens.
Saint John’s Performance Hall is accessible to the physically challenged and large print programs will be available. For further information, please call (978) 562-9838 or reference the AVM’s website. Partial funding for the Assabet Valley Mastersingers, a non-profit organization, has been provided by Massachusetts Cultural Council; the Southborough Community Fund, a fund of the Foundation for Metro West; Avidia Charitable Foundation; Webster Five Foundation; Choral Arts New England; and local Arts Councils supported by Mass Cultural Council in Boylston, Clinton, Grafton, Hopkinton, Hudson, Marlborough, Northborough, Shrewsbury, Southborough, and Westborough. Sponsor of this AVM concert is Webster First Federal Credit Union in Boylston.