Dessoff Choirs Announces 2022-23 Season Featuring US Premieres, Sondheim Revue, and More

The Dessoff Choirs announced its 2022-23 season. This season opens November 5th with a long overdue exploration of the first published Black composer Vicente Lusitano (1520-1561) paired with the exquisite Duruflé Requiem with mezzo-soprano Lucia Bradford and organist David Enlow. In what has become an annual holiday tradition, Dessoff presents a Messiah Sing and a pair of festive concerts in December followed by a Stephen Sondheim celebration and a production of Bach's St. John Passion with period instruments and an all-star cast of soloists. Complete details are below.

Sandwiched between concerts is a Spring 2023 album release of Credo & Simon Bore the Cross on the AVIE label by composer Margaret Bonds (1913-1972), a significant figure in the fight for civil rights. This marks the second in a pair of Dessoff albums of Bonds's works. The first was the world premiere recording of Margaret Bonds: The Ballad of the Brown King & Selected Songs (AVIE Records, 2019).

"Our commitment to social justice, equity, and the choral art continues this season," explains Malcolm J. Merriweather, Dessoff's music director. "We begin with the North American premieres of music by the first known published Black composer, Vicente Lusitano, and end with an intergenerational performance of Bach's St. John Passion in English in the heart of Harlem. You won't want to miss any of these concerts!"

About The Dessoff Choirs
The Dessoff Choirs, one of the leading choruses in New York City, is an independent chorus with an established reputation for pioneering performances of choral works from the Renaissance era through the 21st century. Since its founding in 1924, Dessoff's concerts, professional collaborations, community outreach, and educational initiatives are dedicated to stimulating public interest in and appreciation of choral music as an art form that enhances the culture and life of our times.

With repertoire ranging over a wide variety of eras and styles, Dessoff's musical acumen and flexibility has been recognized with invitations from major orchestras for oratorios and
orchestral works. Past performances include Britten's War Requiem and Mahler's Symphony No. 8 with Lorin Maazel in his final performances as Music Director with the New York Philharmonic.

Over the course of its nearly 100-year history, Dessoff has presented many world premieres, including works by Virgil Thomson, George Perle, Paul Moravec, and Ricky Ian Gordon; the first American performance in nearly 100 years of Montemezzi's opera La Nave with Teatro Grattacielo; and the American premieres of Philip Glass's Symphony No. 5 and Sir John Tavener's all-night vigil, The Veil of the Temple.

Dessoff's recent discography includes MARGARET BONDS: THE BALLAD OF THE BROWN KING AND SELECTED SONGS, a debut recording of Margaret Bonds's crowning achievement, which was cited as a "Best Classical Recording of 2019" by WQXR-FM Radio; REFLECTIONS, featuring music by Convery, Corigliano, Moravec, and Rorem; and GLORIES ON GLORIES, a collection of American song featuring composers from Billings to Ives.

The Dessoff Choirs is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council and by funds from the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature. Please visit dessoff.org for more information.