Colin Britt

University Choir (photo cred. John Lee)

Well, the fall and winter certainly flew by! There’s a lot to share, so I’ll try to keep it brief:

• I began the final year of coursework for my doctorate at Rutgers, and was incredibly fortunate to conduct the Kirkpatrick Choir, some fabulous soloists, and a terrific period instrument orchestra in a performance of Bach’s Cantata 173 (“Erhöhtes Fleisch und Blut”) in November.
• I continued my work as a conductor and singer with C4 (The Choral Composer/Conductor Collective) and conducted two pieces on their fall concert, as well as one on their upcoming second CD.
• The Rutgers University Glee Club premiered my setting of “Quem vidistis, pastores” in Pittsburgh, followed by performances in Michigan and at the annual Christmas in Carol and Song series at Rutgers. I was also thrilled to sing for one of my former conducting students, Melanie Chambers, who conducted the Gardner “Tomorrow Shall Be My Dancing Day” at the final performance!
• We rolled out our inaugural season of Cathedral Arts Live at Grace Church Van Vorst, beginning with a festive performance for Day of the Dead in October, two fabulous live bands in November, and an innovative Evening of Duets (featuring musicians, dancers, and spoken word) in January.
  

  Colin Britt, Nick Cutroneo, and Annalisa Ledson (photo cred. Rosemary McLaughlin)

• The Riverside Choral Society, under the direction of my brilliant teacher Patrick Gardner, performed my choral-orchestral work “The House of Clouds” to a full house at the Church of the Heavenly Rest in New York City. A special delight was hearing mezzo-soprano Debi Wong sing the solo which was written for her 5 years ago!

• And, finally, the 100-voice University Choir, which I’m privileged to conduct at Rutgers, gave a stellar performance in December at the Nicholas Music Center. On the program were all contemporary works by living composers, including works by Abbie Betinis, Christopher Marshall, Harry Einhorn, Meredith Monk, Richard Smallwood, and the premiere of a trilogy of Emily Dickinson settings I wrote for the ensemble.

This spring, I’m looking forward to performing with the Rutgers University Kirkpatrick Choir AND with C4 at the ACDA Eastern Division conference in Boston. I will also be presenting my lecture recital at Rutgers on the choral works of Brahms and how his collection of early music influenced their composition. And, of course, both the Rutgers Kirkpatrick Choir and the Glee Club will be giving many performances throughout the spring. Stay tuned!