The Dryden Ensemble Will Perform 'Baroque Passion: Musical Meditations On Holy Week' at The Princeton Theological Seminary Chapel

The Dryden Ensemble will return with its new artistic director, Daniel Swenberg, in a program entitled "Baroque Passion: Musical Meditations on Holy Week," on Sunday, April 19th at 4:00 p.m. at the Princeton Theological Seminary Chapel, located at  64 Mercer St.,Princeton, NJ. Parking is available in the lot between Stockton and Mercer Streets, with an entrance from Library Place. Admission is free, though donations will be gratefully accepted through their website: drydenensemble.org and click on “Support the ensemble.”

The Dryden Ensemble will complete its Phoenix Season with a program of profoundly moving musical contemplations on themes of Holy Week. The program features two guests, renowned soprano Clara Rottsolk and gambist Arnie Tanimoto, who will join Dryden regulars Daniel Swenberg (artistic director/lutes), Lisa Terry (viola da gamba), and Webb Wiggins (chamber organ). Giovanni Battista Ferrandini's sacred cantata depicts scenes of the crucifixion and the interaction of Jesus and the thieves. This extraordinary cantata features the unusual ensemble of two violas da gamba and obbligato lute, soprano and organ. We chose works featuring this ensemble to create our program: a pastiche of contemplative works arranged and inspired by Bach's Passions. The program opens at the tomb with Marin Marais's devastating and moving “Tombeau de Monsieur Meliton” for two viols and Purcell's divine hymn, “O Lord, what is Man?” Selections of chorales set by Esaias Reusner alternate with Bach's “Mein Heiland, dich vergess ich nicht” from his St Mark Passion, featuring two obbligato viols and lute. The program even features a secular resurrection of sorts, as we conclude our Phoenix season with Corette's concerto for viols: Le Phénix.

Clara Rottsolk, Soprano, has been lauded by The New York Times for her “clear, appealing voice and expressive conviction.” She specializes in historically informed performance practice, singing with the American Bach Soloists, Santa Fe Pro Musica, Colorado Bach Ensemble, Trinity Wall Street Choir, and Seraphic Fire. She has performed at the Carmel Bach Festival, Philadelphia Bach Festival, and Boston Early Music Festival. A native of Seattle, Ms. Rottsolk earned music degrees at Rice University and Westminster Choir College and was awarded recognition for musical excellence by the Metropolitan Opera National Council. Currently she is based in Philadelphia and teaches voice at Swarthmore, Haverford, and Bryn Mawr Colleges.

Arnie Tanimoto, viola da gamba. Gold medalist and first-ever American laureate of the International Bach-Abel Competition (2018) Arnie Tanimoto has established himself as one of the foremost viol players in the United States. He has performed and recorded with Barthold Kuijken, Enrico Gatti, the Boston Early Music Festival, and the Smithsonian Consort of Viols. In 2017 he was awarded with a Frank Huntington Beebe Fund Fellowship and subsequently finished his studies at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis. His principal teachers include Paolo Pandolfo, Christel Thielmann, and Catharina Meints. He also holds degrees from Oberlin Conservatory and the Eastman School of Music. Arnie Tanimoto is a member of the Performance Faculty in the Department of Music at Princeton University.