An Evening of Sacred Chant Music
Sunday, May 5, 2013 at 7:00 PM
at Immaculate Heart of Mary Church
18 Lincoln Avenue Rutland, VT ~ Free-Will Offering

Regular Rehearsal Schedule for Grace Choirs

Sanctuary Choir : Rehearsals are Wednesday evenings 7 - 9 p.m.

Tintinnabula : Rehearsals are Monday evenings 6:45 - 8:30 p.m.

Children’s Choir (grades K-6) : Rehearsals are Wednesday afternoons 4 - 5 p.m.

Joyful Noise - Teen Choir (grades 7-college) : Rehearsals are Sundays 11:45 - 12:30 p.m.

 

Previous Concerts and Events

2012-2013 Concert Series

Peace Concert with Counterpoint and Robert De Cormier

Hundreds of Vermonters join Local Non-Profit to Sing for Peace

Saturday, September 22, 2012 at 4 p.m., Grace Church Sanctuary  

Rutland Area Chorus has accepted an invitation to sing in the Fifth Annual Peace Concert. Hosted by Counterpoint, Vermont’s professional a cappella classical vocal ensemble, and the brainchild of its former director, Robert De Cormier, this annual concert draws together some of Vermont’s finest choruses to raise their voices for a just and peaceable world. The Rutland Area Chorus, with five other choirs and Counterpoint, will perform individually and then all choirs will combine under the leadership of Robert De Cormier.

Vermont’s premiere vocal ensemble Counterpoint sang out another chorus of its call for peace today when it announced its “Sing for Peace” concert. This year’s event, the fifth annual, will raise money for Volunteers for Peace, based in Burlington. “More than ever, the world needs people to work actively for peace and understanding,” said Robert De Cormier, Founder and Artistic Director Emeritus of Counterpoint. “Just as we bring our voices together in harmony here in Vermont, Volunteers for Peace is bringing people together from across the globe to make a more harmonious world.”

“We are delighted to be benefiting from this wonderful event” said Megan Brook, Executive Director of Volunteers for Peace. “Music can help us achieve our mission of advancing international understanding, sustainable community development and friendship. When we join our voices we find a common language and are inspired to work together for our planet and future. This concert will motivate us to continue our work for peace and provide crucial funding for our programs.

Produced by Counterpoint, this year’s celebration of singing and peace includes Bella Voce Women’s Chorus, the Green Mountain Chorus, the Orchard Valley Waldorf School Chorus of East Montpelier, the Rutland Area Chorus, members of the Vermont Symphony Orchestra Chorus, and Zephyrus, based in the Upper Valley. In addition to singing their own repertory focused on peace and social justice, the several hundred voices of the seven combined groups will join together in a rendition of the old American song “Peace I Ask of Thee, O River,” arranged by longtime Vermont resident Gwyneth Walker. The audience too will sing along in peace songs from Europe and South Africa.

The concert is on Saturday, September 22, at 4 p.m. at Grace Church. Admission is free, and donations to Volunteers for Peace will be collected. Media sponsors include VPR, and WCVT/WDEV.

The mission of Volunteers for Peace (www.vfp.org) is to promote international voluntary service as an effective means of intercultural education, service learning and community development. The organization provides projects where people from diverse backgrounds can work together to help overcome the need, violence and environmental challenges facing our planet, and it organizes and promotes projects where nations join together to improve life on our planet and volunteers experience a microcosm of our world.

Founded by Robert De Cormier in 2000, Counterpoint (www.counterpointchorus.com) is a nationally recognized, Vermont-based, professional vocal ensemble dedicated to performing choral chamber music and engaging with student musicians to enhance the cultural life of communities in Vermont and beyond.

For more information about this concert, please contact the Music Department at Grace Church at 802-775-4301.

Faure’s Requiem to be performed by Five Vermont College Choirs and Orchestra

Grace Church, Friday, November 9, at 7:30 p.m.  

The Vermont Collegiate Choral Consortium presents Faure’s Requiem with chamber orchestra on Friday November 9 at 7:30 p.m. at Grace Church in Rutland.  The consortium includes Castleton State College Collegiate Chorale (Sherrill Blodget, conductor), Johnson State College Chamber Singers (Bethany L. Plissey, conductor), Middlebury College Choir (Jeff Buettner, conductor), St. Michael's College Choir (Nathaniel G. Lew, conductor), and University of Vermont Concert Choir (David Neiweem, conductor).  Each ensemble will perform a selection individually, before combining to present the Requiem with chamber orchestra and soloists Suzanne Merrill, soprano, and David Neiweem, baritone. Please join us for this exiting collaboration of exquisite music!  Admission is free, with donations welcome. Additional performances will be given on Thursday, November 8 at 8 p.m. at Mead Chapel, Middlebury College and Saturday, November 10 at 8 p.m. at St. Michael's College in Colchester.

Vocal Recital by Marietta Horton Formanek

Sunday, November 11 at 4:30 p.m. at Grace Church  

Marietta Horton Formanek, accompanied by Susan Dedell, will perform a vocal concert on Sunday, November 11 at 4:30 p.m. featuring Samuel Barber's "Knoxville: Summer of 1915” with text by James Agee in memory of his father.   Also performed will be works by Bach, Haydn, Purcell, Mahler, Vaughan Williams and Richard Hundley. Admission to the concert is free.

Marietta has performed many roles with the Opera Theatre of Weston, The Friends of Music at Guilford, and The Memorial Hall Center for the Arts.  She recently sang in the Grace Church production of the Leonard Bernstein Mass as a featured soloist. Susan Dedell  studied piano with Charles Fisher and was a staff accompanist in the voice department of the University of Michigan before joining the Brattleboro Music Center piano faculty in 1983. Susan is the Director of Music at St. Michael’s Episcopal Church and is also the Artistic Director of the Brattleboro Concert Choir. In addition to teaching at the BMC, Susan teaches piano at Northfield Mount Hermon.

Handel’s Messiah

Sunday, December 2 at 3:30 and 7 PM

On Sunday, December 2, Grace Church will present the annual performances of Handel’s Messiah. The Rutland Area Chorus, soloists and orchestra will perform the concerts at 3:30 PM and 7:00 PM under the direction of Rip Jackson. Soloists are Marybeth McCaffrey of Lincoln, Amy Frostman of South Burlington, Jamie Willis of Rutland and Jeff Linebeck of Manchester.Handel’s Messiah, one of the great Baroque choral masterpieces, depicts the biblical prophecy and birth of Jesus Christ. The chorus and orchestra will also perform “We Praise Thee, O God” from Handel’s Te Deum for the Peace of Dettingen. A free will offering will be accepted and a reception will follow the 7:00 PM performance. For more information, please call the church office at 775-4301.

Lessons and Carols

Sunday, December 9 at the 10 a.m. Service  

On December 9, at the 10 a.m. service, Grace Church will celebrate the Advent and Christmas season with a service of “A Service Lessons and Carols." The Festival Choir, an expanded group of choristers including the Sanctuary Choir and other singers, will sing anthems, carols and other music depicting the prophesy and birth of Jesus Christ. They will be joined by harpist Jennifer Hoult. These choral selections will be interspersed with Advent and Christmas readings from the Bible.

A Vocal Concert by Shirley Oskamp and Friends

Sunday, December 23 at 4 p.m. at Grace Church  

Shirley Oskamp is giving a vocal recital on Sunday, December 23 at 4 p.m. in the church sanctuary. A voice student of Rip Jackson’s for more than 10 years, Shirley has been involved in several Grace Church productions including Jesus Christ Superstar , Broadway reviews and cabarets, yearly student recitals, as well as The Messiah. Shirley is putting together a program that includes opera and Broadway show tunes, popular and gospel music, with just a touch of the Holidays. She will be accompanied by Rip Jackson, and has invited several singers and musicians familiar to the Grace Church family to join her in what promises to be a wonderful celebration of sound. A reception will follow the recital, to which all are welcome. Shirley has been known in the community as the pastor of Church of the Wildwood and Tinmouth Community Church for many years. She also serves as campus chaplain for Green Mountain College in Poultney where she teaches courses such as Stories of the Spirit, Celtic Spirituality, Shamanism, and This Sacred Earth: Spirituality and the Environment. She lives in Middletown Springs with her husband Gary Lindorff, with whom she performs Folk music at local venues. Shirley has twin daughters and a stepson, who consistently support her musical endeavors.

Jazz Sunday Celebration for Martin Luther King Jr. Day

January 20, at the 10 a.m. service  

On Sunday, January 20 at the 10 a.m. service, Grace Church will celebrate and worship with a special jazz service in celebration of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. The guest musicians that day will be Onion River Jazz Band, a talented group based in Burlington that has been inspiring congregations all over Vermont with their energy and spirit. This seven-piece ensemble will play jazz arrangements of hymns as well as other powerful music. The choir will sing gospel arrangements by John Harrison in the African American tradition. Feel free to "rise up singing” if you feel the spirit! After the service, the band will play jazz music in Fellowship Hall.

History of Music Lecture/Performances given by Rip Jackson
at The Gables at East Mountain
1 Gables Place, Rutland, Vermont ~ Free Admission
Thursdays, April 11 and 25, 2013 from 1:30-3:00 PM

Youth Showcase of Talent
Grace Church’s Youth and Children’s Choirs
Sunday, March 17, 2013 at 6:30 PM ~ Free-Will Offering

The Grace Church Children’s Choir (K – grade 6) and Joyful Noise (grade 7 – college), under the direction of Rip Jackson, will present a variety show Sunday, March 17 at 6:30 p.m. These talented singers and instrumentalists will perform music from the classical, pop, sacred and Broadway genres. Both groups (over fifty kids total!) will also perform music from The Lion King, Godspell and Les Miserables with choreography by Mitch Rosengarten. A free-will offering will be accepted to benefit Jenn Wright’s Heal, Raising Our World Foundation, Inc.

Divine Songs: A Concert of Renaissance Choral Music
Featuring the music of Johannes Ockeghem (c. 1420-1497)
Performed by the professional Boston group Blue Heron
Tuesday, March 26, 2013 at 7:30 PM ~ Free-Will Offering
(5 - 6PM Masterclass free and open to the public)

Grace Church is thrilled to bring Blue Heron to Vermont! Blue Heron, directed by Vermont native Scott Metcalfe (director, medieval fiddle and harp), is one of North America’s premiere renaissance vocal ensembles. They combine a commitment to vivid live performance with the study of original source materials and historical performance practice. Blue Heron's principal repertoire interests are fifteenth-century English and Franco-Flemish polyphony. Their March Rutland, Vermont debut will explore connections and exchanges between secular song and sacred music and feature the music of Johannes Ockeghem (c. 1420-1497), one of the greatest composers of all time. His endlessly fascinating sacred music has been characterized as mystical with each song a gem of invention, comical, heart wrenching, or profound. The program includes Ockeghem’s songs Ma maistresse, Fors seullement, and Presque transi; De plus en plus by Gilles Binchois; and movements from the masses by Ockeghem based on those songs.

ABOUT THE ENSEMBLE:Blue Heron (www.blueheronchoir.org) consists of Michael Barrett, Pamela Dellal, Paul Guttry, David McFerrin, Owen McIntosh, Jason McStoots, Martin Near, Mark Sprinkle, voices; Laura Jeppesen, rebec & medieval fiddle and Scott Metcalfe, director, harp & medieval fiddle. Blue Heron has been acclaimed by The Boston Globe as "one of the Boston music community's indispensables" and hailed by Alex Ross in The New Yorker for the "expressive intensity" of its interpretations; the Boston Musical Intelligencer calls Blue Heron "a fantastic model for the fully-realized potential of early music performance in the 21st century." Combining a commitment to vivid live performance with the study of original source materials and historical performance practices, Blue Heron ranges over a wide and fascinating repertoire.

Blue Heron's first CD, featuring music by Guillaume Du Fay, was released in 2007; its second, of music from the Peterhouse partbooks by Hugh Aston, Robert Jones, and John Mason, followed in 2010. Both discs have received international critical acclaim and the Peterhouse CD made the Billboard charts. The second volume of Blue Heron's 5-CD series Music from the Peterhouse Partbooks, featuring music of Nicholas Ludford and Richard Pygott, was released in April 2012. The third in the series will appear in October 2013.Founded in 1999, Blue Heron presents subscription series in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and in New York City. The ensemble has appeared at the Boston Early Music Festival, New York's 92nd Street Y, The Cloisters, and Music Before 1800, Dumbarton Oaks in Washington, D.C., the Pittsburgh Renaissance and Baroque Society, and Monadnock Music in New Hampshire, and with the wind band Piffaro and the viol consort Parthenia in Philadelphia. Blue Heron made its West Coast debut at Festival Mozaic in San Luis Obispo, California, and returned to California in 2012 for a debut at the Berkeley Early Music Festival.

"Passionate expression and dramatic attention to text...nuanced dynamic shadings and emotive conviction"Vivien Schweitzer, The New York Times | June, 2012

"Sumptuously beautiful...sung with bravura and grace"Joshua Kosman, The San Francisco Chronicle | June, 2012

“The music of this Franco-Flemish master unspools in a dazzling maze of crisscrossing lines, magnificent in their complexity and austere beauty. Follow the patterns closely and they are mind-bending; soften the focus of your concentration and this spacious music washes over you, as entrancing as a majestic cathedral.… Under the artistic leadership of Scott Metcalfe, the performances were handsomely polished and beautifully delivered, with keen attention paid to the clarity of interplay among voices.”—Jeremy Eichler, The Boston Globe, March 13, 2007

Tom Goss, LGBT Folk Concert at Grace Church

Sunday, April 7 at 7 p.m.

Grace Church is pleased to present singer/song writer Tom Goss live in concert. He is a powerful performing artist reaching into the depths of his soul to express his perspective growing up as a gay man. His music reflects the LGBT civil rights struggles and his own path towards acceptance and love. He sings with a soaring tenor voice, accompanying himself with guitar and piano. Tom's music stands at the forefront of LGBT equality and arts. His newest music video, "Make Believe", made a splash, generating over 70,000 views in its first week, even garnering attention from the Huffington Post for its innovative use of human time lapse and animation. A touring machine, Tom has performed in 40 states and over 100 cities to tens of thousands of listeners. Instantly accessible, his music has been featured on ABC, HBO and in several independent movies. A free-will offering will be accepted to help with the costs of the concert. Please help spread the word! For more information, please call 775.4301 or visit www.gracechurchvt.org.

2011-2012 Concert Series

Handel’s Messiah
Sunday, December 4 at 3:30 and 7 PM  

On Sunday, December 4, Grace Church will present the annual performances of Handel’s Messiah. The Rutland Area Chorus, soloists and orchestra will perform the concerts at 3:30 PM and 7:00 PM under the direction of Rip Jackson.Soloists are Marybeth McCaffrey of Lincoln, Amy Frostman of South Burlington, Cameron Steinmetz of Rutland and Richard Mazzaferro of Troy, NY. Handel’s Messiah, one of the great Baroque choral masterpieces, depicts the biblical prophecy and birth of Jesus Christ. The chorus and orchestra will perform all of the Christmas Part 1, as well as  the “Hallelujah Chorus” from the Lent Part 2, and the “Worthy is the Lamb” and “Amen” from the Easter Part 3. A free will offering will be accepted and a reception will follow the 7:00 PM performance. For more information, please call the church office at 775-4301.

A Service of Lessons and Carols

Jazz Sunday - January 15  

On Sunday, January 15 at the 10 a.m. service, Grace Church will worship in a special jazz service in celebration of Martin Luther King Day.  The guest musicians that day will be Onion River Jazz Band , a talented group based in Burlington that has been inspiring congregations all over Vermont with their energy and spirit.  This seven-piece ensemble will play jazz arrangements of hymns as well as other powerful music. The choir will sing gospel arrangements by John Harrison in the African American tradition. Feel free to "rise up singing” if you feel the spirit!  After the service, the band will play jazz music in Fellowship Hall.

Four Shillings Short ~ Celtic, Folk and World Music

SUNDAY, APRIL 15 4:00 to 6:00 pm

 The Celtic/Folk/World music duo Four Shillings Short play Traditional & Original music from Ireland and Scotland, Indian Ragas, Folk Ballads, Old-Time songs, Medieval & Renaissance instrumentals and a cappella numbers on a fantastic array of instruments (over 30) including Hammered Dulcimer, Mandolin, Mandola, Bouzouki, Tinwhistles, Recorders, Medieval and Renaissance Woodwinds, North Indian Sitar, Charango, Bowed Psaltery, Banjo, Bodhran, Guitar, Percussion, vocals and even a Krumhorn. WEB SITE: www.fourshillingsshort.com

Southwest Association-Wide Earth Sunday Celebration with

Paul Winter’s Missa Gaia Earth Mass: A Mass in Celebration of Mother Earth

Sunday, April 29, 2012 at the 10:30 a.m. Worship Service in the Grace Church Sanctuary 

Sunday, April 29, Grace Church is hosting the Vermont Conference Southwest Association-wide Earth Sunday worship service at 10:30 a.m. The biblical readings, music, prayers and writings will be uplifting the miracle of God’s Creation of the Earth. The choir and soloists will sing music from Paul Winter’s Missa Gaia Earth Mass: A Mass in Celebration of Mother Earth. Integrating world music with songs from the wild to celebrate the whole earth as a sacred space, the Missa Gaia was commissioned by the Dean of the Cathedral of St. John the Divine as a contemporary ecumenical Mass. Paul Winter has “achieved a distinguished triumph in combining divergent music styles and imaginatively wedding voices, instrumentation and recorded sounds of a tundra wolf, canyon and musical wrens, harp seals, a flight of loons and singing humpback whales.”  

Grace Church and Castleton State College present

Penn State University’s Essence of Joy in Concert

Saturday, March 3 at 7:30 p.m.

Grace Church and Castleton State College welcome "Essence of Joy" from Pennsylvania State University School of Music. "Essence of Joy", directed by Dr. Tony Leach, will present an upbeat concert of African-American Spirituals and Gospel music. The concert will also feature the Grace Church Festival Choir, Castleton State College Collegiate Chorale, House Blend and Mill River HIgh School's Senior Chorus. The performance will come to a glorious finish with the combined ensembles directed by Dr. Leach. Please join us for this wonderful celebration of music! A free-will offering will be received.

"Essence of Joy" is one of ten choral ensembles at Penn State University School of Music. Organized in November 1991, the choir has performed sacred and secular music from the African and African American traditions all over the United States and in Poland, the Czech Republic, and South Africa. “Essence of Joy” has performed at the Lincoln Center and the Schomburg Museum in New York City, and has sung for many national music conferences for organizations such as the American Choral Directors Association and the National Association for Music Education. The ensemble's mission is to learn, present, and promote African and African-American sacred and secular music in an effort to entertain, inspire, affirm and unify the worldwide community.

Director and founder, Dr. Tony Leach, is an Associate Professor of Music and Music Education at the Pennsylvania State University. His choirs have performed at festivals throughout the United States and Canada and all over Europe. He frequently appears as a guest conductor for choral festivals and workshops, including the Vermont All State Music Festival in Spring 2011. He has presented seminars and workshops for professional and music organizations in America and beyond, and is also a well-known organist, piano accompanist, and composer/arranger.

New England Winds

Tuesday, March 6 at 7 p.m.

  Join the Air Force Band of Liberty’s New England Winds for an evening of delightful musical entertainment, Tuesday, March 6, at 7 p.m. at Grace Church. This outstanding musical group is currently on tour in our area from Hanscom Air Force Base, Massachusetts. They present a program featuring something for all musical tastes: popular, Broadway, patriotic, jazz and folk music, as well as pieces from the traditional woodwind quintet repertoire. The program is sponsored by Grace Church and is free and open to the public. For more information, call 802-775-4301.

Grace Church’s Youth and Children’s Choirs will present A Showcase of Talent

Saturday, March 24 at 7 p.m.

Grace Church Children’s Choir and Joyful Noise will present a variety show Saturday, March 24 at 7 p.m. Youth solo and choral singers, instrumentalists and dancers will celebrate God’s gift of the performing arts. The Children’s Choir will sing selections from The Sound of Music and Joyful Noise will sing and dance medleys from the Broadway musicals Rent and Godspell . A free-will offering will be received to benefit Jenn Wright’s HEAL the Children Foundation. For more information, please call 775-4301 or email dchart6010@aol.com. Please Note: A benefit dinner and silent auction beginning at 6 p.m. in Fellowship Hall will precede the Showcase of Talent.

Leonard Bernstein’s Mass

Paramount Theatre, Rutland VT

Friday, June 29 at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday, June 30 at 2:00 and 7:30 p.m.

Tickets $15 and $20

Directed by Rip Jackson ~ Stage Direction and Choreography by Maris Wolff

Grace Church will present Leonard Bernstein’s Mass, a setting of the Roman Catholic Mass, with additional texts by Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Schwartz. Bernstein’s Mass is a piece that relates the drama of a Celebrant whose faith is simple and pure at first, but gradually becomes unsustainable under the weight of human misery, corruption, and the trappings of his own power. Mass is an enormous piece. It calls for a large pit orchestra, two choruses plus a children’s choir, a Broadway-sized cast, a dance ensemble, marching band and a rock band. This production will be directed by Rip Jackson with collaboration from Maris Wolff (choreography and stage direction). This unique and deeply moving performance will feature the Rutland Area Chorus and Children’s Ensemble, The Vermont Dance Collective, Music Theatre soloists and a large orchestra.

Benjamin Green’s Senior Bass Recital Sunday, July 22 at 3 p.m.  

Accompaniment by Rip Jackson, piano; Licia Gambino-Hamilton, flute; and Marc Whitman, percussion  

Benjamin Green, recently graduated from Boston University with a Bachelor of Music degree, invites you to his senior recital July 22 at 3 p.m. Pieces to be performed will include Claude Bolling’s Jazz Suites, the Paganini “Moses” Variations, and Misek’s Double Bass Sonata No. 2 in E minor. Benjamin has been a member of the Grace Congregational Church for many years, participating in Joyful Noise Choir, the Sanctuary Choir, Handel’s Messiah, and most recently, Bernstein’s Mass . Benjamin is excited to give back to such a wonderful and musically vibrant congregation, and hopes to see all of you there. A free-will offering will be received to benefit Jennifer Wright’s HEAL the Children Foundation .

Natalie Brierre’s Senior Vocal Recital ~ Sunday, August 12 at 2 p.m.  

accompaniment by Rip Jackson, piano and Ben Green, bass

Natalie Brierre recently graduated from Walnut Hill School for the Arts, studying Theatre. She has been a member of Joyful Noise and participated in Miss Saigon and the Bernstein Mass. On Sunday, August 12 at 2 p.m., Natalie will be performing in a vocal recital with accompaniment by Rip Jackson, Ben Green, and other singers. She will be performing sacred, classical and musical theatre songs. It's going to be an afternoon of beautiful and entertaining music. We hope to see you all there! A free-will offering will be accepted to support Jenn Wright’s HEAL Raising Our World Foundation.

Handel’s Messiah

Lessons and Carols

A Concert of Spirituals    Sunday, March 4, 2007

Vocal Recital – Jean Mee & Brian Narkewicz     Sunday, May 6, 2007 Montpelier Area Gospel Choir Concert in Rutland    May 13, 2007 Charpentier’s Missa “Assumpta Est Maria”    Sunday, May 20, 2007 Sophia Chamberlain Vocal Recital    June 23. 2007

Village Harmony Concert    July 23, 2007