As the warmth and wonder of springtime gradually returns to the beautiful Pacific Northwest, we welcome you: To Life! To Love!
Our program begins with modern pieces in contrasting styles. First, “Measure Me, Sky!” bursts with praise for human potential and a rewarding life. We then turn to romantic love—first with the poetry of Shelley in “Love’s Philosophy,” and then a song cycle of three twentieth-century madrigals that ingeniously interprets time-honored texts from Shakespeare.
The centerpiece of today’s program is the first collection of love song waltzes by Johannes Brahms. Imagine a group of friends—including singers and a pair of pianists—gathering together in a 19th-century home parlor. Publishers discovered that sheet music for amateur musicians could sell well, and the Liebeslieder-Walzer helped bring Brahms both fame and some measure of fortune (we think you’ll hear why as we perform these gems for you today).
A return to contrasting musical idioms concludes the concert. The biblical text of “Set Me As a Seal” leads to “I Would Be True,” in which deceptively simple ideals form the framework for personal strength and fulfillment. “This Little Light of Mine” celebrates Divine love shared with the world, and in “My Flame the Song” life itself becomes a song received from those who have gone before and then carried onward.
Thank you for sharing music and community with us today. We hope you find, as we have, that “the human voice, our flame the song” can be “a healing song of life.”
Mark your calendars!
Northwest Repertory Singers 24th Season Performances
Saturday, December 7, 2024 at 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, December 8, 2024 at 3:00 p.m.
Saturday, May 17, 2025 at 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, May 18, 2025 at 3:00 p.m.
Christ Episcopal Church, Tacoma
Please vist nwrs.org as the concerts approach
to confirm details and for ticket information