The Oratorio Society of Virginia will host its annual benefit event: “Together in Song,” a community choral workshop (10 a.m.) and concert (4 p.m.) on Saturday, March 15 at First Presbyterian Church (500 Park St., Charlottesville). Community singers are invited to register for, and participate in, the morning workshop where they will join The Oratorio Society chorus in rehearsing pieces for the 4 p.m. concert, “Music & Poetry.” Featuring Ralph Vaughan Williams’ Five Mystical Songs with guest baritone, Kevin Spooner, this program will center around choral pieces inspired by classic and contemporary poetry, celebrating the synergy of spoken and sung expression. The selections will explore the timeless connection between the musical cadence of a line and the poetic rhythm of a melody in works by a variety of composers including Rosephanye Powell, Libby Larsen, and Morten Lauridsen, and poets Pablo Neruda, Emily Dickinson, and Langston Hughes, among others. The Oratorio Society’s partner youth choir, Voces Laetae, under the direction of Will Cooke, will join the chorus for a portion of the program, along with community singers from the morning choral workshop.
The concert is a benefit event for Literacy Volunteers of Charlottesville/Albemarle (LCVA). Each year The Oratorio Society of Virginia partners with a local non-profit service organization that aligns with a vision of positive change. LCVA's dedication to empowering individuals through literacy reflects the same values of growth, enrichment, and transformation that guide our work as a performing arts organization. In 2024, The Oratorio Society was proud to support the Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Virginia and, in 2023, Habitat for Humanity of Greater Charlottesville. A portion of ticket sales will be given to LCVA, as well as donations collected at the event.
Singers interested in the workshop will need to prepare the choral works listed below, for which The Oratorio Society of Virginia will provide the music. To register to participate in the choral workshop, visit www.oratoriosociety.org.
To be rehearsed and performed with community singers:
● Five Mystical Songs by Ralph Vaughan Williams (poetry by George Herbert)
● Dirait-on by Morten Lauridsen (poetry by Rainer Maria Rilke)
For over 55 years, The Oratorio Society of Virginia has offered high quality, engaging concerts for the cultural enrichment, creative inspiration, and education of its home community of Charlottesville and the surrounding region. From classical to contemporary this all-volunteer chorus has amassed an impressive repertoire over its five decades of performances, including works by Bach, Bernstein, Britten, Hailstork, Haydn, Mozart, Rutter, Verdi, and many more. Collaborative partners include Charlottesville Opera, the UVA University Singers, Charlottesville Symphony, and Charlottesville Ballet. For more information, please visit www.oratoriosociety.org
Our 57th Season Presenting Sponsor is the Joseph and Robert Cornell Memorial Foundation. Additional funding is also provided by the Virginia Commission for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts, and the Bama Works Fund of the Dave Matthews Band. Our media sponsors are WVTF/Radio IQ and WTJU of the University of Virginia.
Tickets are $20 / Adult General Admission / $10/Student General Admission./ To reserve ADA seating, email execdir@oratoriosociety.org or include a note in your ticket purchase at checkout.
This is an affiliated event.