Maria van Kalken, director of the Old North Festival Chorus and Minister of Music at Old North Church, has announced plans for the annual Lenten Choral Concert and extended a warm and enthusiastic welcome to attend.
Celebrating her 36th season as director of the Festival Chorus, van Kalken has planned a beautiful choral concert to take place on April 13 at 7:30 p.m. Members of the Old North Senior Choir, soloists, singers from the Old North Festival Chorus, and the Old North Festival Orchestra will present this one-hour concert in the sanctuary at Old North Church in Marblehead.
This event marks the beginning of Holy Week and was established to offer members of the Marblehead community a program of musical reflection by candlelight.
Over the years, the ensemble has more than doubled from the original 40 singers to more than 80, presenting challenging and extraordinary musical programs. Soloists for this performance include: Holly Cameron, soprano; Rebecca Kenneally, mezzo-soprano; Kevin Hayden, tenor; and Andrew Scoglio, baritone.
The choral centerpiece of the Lenten Concert will feature Dan Forrest’s ‘Requiem for the Living,’ which was originally programmed in 2020 but abruptly halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In the composer’s own words, this is to be performed “just as much for the living and their own struggle with pain and sorrow as for the dead.”
The Old North annual Lenten Choral Concert is free and open to the public, though a free-will offering will be gratefully accepted. For more information, visit oldnorthfestivalchorus.org.
