On February 23, the Hartford Chorale Chamber Singers presented “Our American Heritage,” a concert celebrating choral Americana. The performance included music by Barnett, Bernstein, Burleigh, Copland, Graham, Hogan, Smallwood, and Whalum. Douglas-Jayd Burn accompanied, and he and I performed a flashy 4-hand arrangement of the overture to “Candide”!

Then, on March 2, I conducted a choir of tremendously talented middle schoolers in the Northern Regionals music festival at Harbur Middle School. The program included Stephan Barnacle’s South African Trilogy and “O My Luve’s Like a Red, Red Rose,” composed by Marc Kaplan and me. It was a joy to make music with these very energetic and musical kids!

Finally, on Saturday, March 9, I attended the premiere of my latest choral work, “I Long to See,” performed by the Young New Yorkers’ Chorus, under the direction of Michael Kerschner. Stay tuned for a recording from their beautiful performance!!

Pictured (L to R): Michael Kerschner, Jocelyn Hagen, Colin Britt, Joshua Fishbein

Our long-awaited sequel to the “Call me Maybe” video has finally arrived! The 3Penny Chorus and Orchestra recorded our newest choral/orchestral cover, this time of the 1984 British pop anthem, “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” On Dec. 10, 80 volunteer singers and players gathered together in New Haven CT to rehearse and record our classical treatment of Midge Ure and Bob Geldof’s classic anthem.

Like the original version, which was written to raise awareness and funds for the 1983 famine in Ethiopia, our cover also aims to raise money for charity. Visit our page with Action Against Hunger here:

http://support.actionagainsthunger.org/goto/3penny

Special thanks to everyone who helped make this video possible, especially Sachin Ramabhadran for his terrific work editing the video, and to our friends at Yale Divinity School, the Institute of Sacred Music, and the Yale School of Music! Happy holidays, everyone!

Looking for more choral music for the holiday season? Two of my Christmas/Advent pieces, “There is No Rose” and “Come, Thou Redeemer of the Earth,” are now available for purchase through the Evoking Sound series from GIA Publications!! Visit the links below to order:

There is no Rose (2007)

Come, Thou Redeemer of the Earth (2010)

My setting of the Chanukah piece “Al Hanisim” for SATB Choir and Piano or Chamber Orchestra is also available for purchase, through Colin Britt publications. Visit the Order page to get more information!

On Sept. 21, 2012, the newly founded 3Penny Chorus and Orchestra, conducted by Arianne Abela, was invited to perform our arrangement of “Call Me Maybe” on The Today Show! We had an absolute blast, and were treated to guest performances by the hosts!

On Sept. 3, 2012, 60 talented singers and instrumentalists gathered together to record a choral/orchestral cover version of the pop song of the summer, Carly Rae Jepsen’s hit “Call Me Maybe.” Arianne Abela conducted the 3Penny Chorus and Orchestra, a volunteer pick-up ensemble in New Haven. The video features audio editing by Derek Greten-Harrison and video editing by Krista Abela. We had a blast putting this together, and we’re amazed at the enthusiastic reaction the video has gotten online! Thanks to all of these wonderful performers and editors for making this possible!!

Thanks to Hofstra University Chorale and conductor David Fryling for their beautiful performance of “Afternoon on a Hill”!

Starting next week at Finger Lakes Musical Theatre Festival, cool down with a refreshingly new and entertaining show!

Billionaire Vegan$, a new musical, hits the stage in The Pitch at the Finger Lakes Musical Theatre Festival on Thursday-Saturday, July 26-28. Writers Linda Britt (book and lyrics) and Colin Britt (music), along with actress Victoria Thornsbury, will “pitch” a condensed version of the show to audiences in Auburn, New York, as part of the inaugural season of The PITCH.

Local Seattle TV station K-E-L-P news team breaks the story of Eton Veele, the billionaire owner of the Burgers and More restaurant chain, whose sinister plan involves milkshakes with a secret formula that turns meat-eaters into vegetarians. The plot thickens (like the milkshakes) when the secret formula, Dabomba, turns out to have even more sinister side effects. Veele is arrested but escapes, and soon he, the other Vegans, and roving reporter Julie and weatherman Donald, are spotted in the beef capital of the world, Argentina, where they visit tango bars and the pampas.

Musical numbers include “Mastermind,” “Dabomba,” “The Men We Used to Be,” “Vegan with a Beef,” “Meat: It’s a Four-Letter Word,” and the touching ballad “If You Could Only Love (A Carnivore).” Listen here to a sample of some of the songs from the show:

Book and lyrics by Linda Britt, Music by Colin Britt, “Billionaire Vegans” is a truly original show that will keep you laughing and your toes tapping.

For more information, contact: billionairevegans@gmail.com.

This July, Friday the 13th is your lucky day as the beloved Johnny Burke Musical “Swinging On a Star” is brought to life at Playhouse on Park!

The popular revue with music and lyrics by Johnny Burke is a dazzling, toe-tapping, finger-snapping delight featuring over 40 American standards. Classics like “Pennies from Heaven”, “Imagination” and of course, the Academy Award winning “Swinging on a Star”, are woven together to create a feel-good entertainer that will leave a smile on the face and a song in the heart of any theatre fan.

Directed and choreographed by Playhouse on Park Co-Founder and Co-Artistic Director, Darlene Zoller, with Musical Direction by Colin Britt, “Swinging on a Star” takes you everywhere from a 1920’s speakeasy to Paramount Pictures Movie Studio with the help of number of Connecticut talents. Rounding out the cast are Hillary Ekwall, Amanda Forker, Kevin Barlowski, Scott Scaffidi, Jenna Levitt, Marissa Famiglietti, and Dakota Dutcher along with dancers, MacKenzie Friedmann, Spencer Pond, and Shannon Farrell.

The shows run begins with preview performances on Wednesday, July 11th and Thursday, the 12th, and opens officially on Friday, July 13th. The Opening Night performance will be preceded by a complimentary wine and cheese reception for patrons to enjoy from 7:00pm to 8:00pm and a Talk Back with the cast and director will follow the Sunday June 17th, 2012 matinee.

In addition, keeping in step with musicality of the show, a BYOB, open mic led by music director, Britt, will follow the Saturday, July 21st performance. This bonus FREE event begins 10-15 minutes after curtain call and is open to the public; though tipping the band is recommended. Feel free to bring your own music or choose from ours and join in the fun as a performer or audience member.

“Swinging On A Star” runs July 11th through July 29th (with a additional matinee on Wednesday, July 18th at 2pm) at West Hartford’s award winning professional theatre, Playhouse on Park, 244 Park Road. Tickets range in price from $22.50 – $32.50 (Students, Seniors, Let’s Go Arts members save $2.50 per ticket) and can be purchased in person or over the phone at the box office 860-523-5900 ext. 10, Tuesday to Friday (10am – 6pm); Saturday (10am – 2pm) and 2 hours before curtain; or online at www.PlayhouseOnPark.org. Preview show tickets are available for $15.00! For more information regarding our upcoming 2012-13 season, complete bios, special dining offers, and ticket deals, please visit the website or call us at the box office.

The Hartford Chorale Chamber Singers, under the music direction of Colin Britt, is pleased to announce its upcoming program, European Choral Gems, featuring Brahms’ Liebeslieder Waltzes (op. 52) and music by Duruflé, Fauré, Finzi, Palestrina, and Vaughan Williams. The concert features Douglas-Jayd Burn and Fonyue Donn on piano. The program will be presented on Friday, May 11 at 7:30 pm at Marquand Chapel, 409 Prospect St, New Haven, and on Friday, May 18 at 7:30pm at Center Church, 60 Gold Street, Hartford. The New Haven performance is free; in Hartford, tickets are $15 general admission, seniors/students $10 and will be available at the door.

A review in the Journal Inquirer described a recent Hartford Chorale Chamber Singers performance: “…An extraordinary thing happened. A concert that became a meeting of hearts and minds…all was notable, overdue, and admirable…the singing was rousing.” The Hartford Chorale Chamber Singers are all members of the Hartford Chorale (Richard Coffey, Music Director), selected through audition, and committed to reaching beyond the setting of the traditional concert hall to entertain, educate and inspire a variety of new audiences. Through high quality choral performances, the Chamber Singers also enhance and extend the community outreach and education mission of the Hartford Chorale itself.

For more information, contact the Hartford Chorale office at 860-547-1982 or e-mail us at the.hartford.chorale@onecommail.com.

And in New Haven, the Notre Dame High School Chorus and Concert Band each performed one of my works as part of their composer-in-residence program. I’ve been working with both the chorus and band on a pair of commissions, the first being a choral setting of Psalm 23 that was premiered in December, and the second a band arrangement of the spirituals “Let us Break Bread Together” and “Were You There.” The latter received its premiere at this concert under the direction of David Roach, and my setting of Psalm 23 was reprised by the chorus, under the direction of my friend and Yale classmate Arianne Abela. Both pieces sounded absolutely beautiful. It’s been a joy collaborating with these gifted students and their innovative and inspirational teachers–I’ve learned a great deal in working with them, and I’ve enjoyed watching the students bring these pieces to life. What a wonderful opportunity for both the students and the composer!

Thanks to all the performers or those who have graciously supported these wonderful ensembles and directors!! Without you, this music would be nothing more than notes on a page.