Date: Sunday, December 1st @ 4 p.m. Muhlenberg High School Auditorium
Directed by Dr. Graham Bier RCS Music Director
Soloists: Clara Rottsolk, Soprano; Matheus Coura, Alto; Daniel Taylor, Tenor; Travis Lucas, Bass
Guests: Muhlenberg High School Camerata Choir, under the direction of William Snelling
Accompanied by: RCS Orchestra
Under the direction of RCS Music Director, Dr. Graham Bier, Reading Choral Society (RCS) will present Handel’s Messiah. RCS will be joined in this performance by Muhlenberg Camerata High School Choir, soloists: Clara Rottsolk, Soprano; Matheus Coura, Alto; Daniel Taylor, Tenor; and Travis Lucas, Bass. (bios and photos are attached). The accompaniment will be a nineteen-piece orchestra.
This will be at least the 63rd time that the Reading Choral Society has undertaken the Christmas portion of Handel’s Messiah. By our records, Reading Choral Society first sang the Messiah choruses in December 1897. The audience will be invited to sing along on the Hallelujah chorus only.
Founded in 1875, the Reading Choral Society has a long and proud tradition of presenting vocal music, particularly symphonic choir masterworks, but also exploring and interpreting other genres. Under the energetic and nurturing leadership of Dr. Bier, our twelfth Music Director, the organization seeks to continue to pursue its mission to perform, foster, and advance choral music with a balance between honoring our heritage and looking to the future. Its educational programs now encompass regular performances with invited local high school and college choirs. While continuing the tradition of programming master choral works, the Society has expanded its repertory to include the more frequent performance and commissioning of new music and the exploration of more “popular” literature, like folksongs, spirituals, and musical theater. The Reading Choral Society is comprised now, as it has always been, of dedicated semiprofessional singers from all walks of life with no minimum or maximum age. Determined to present the highest caliber musical performances possible, the Society rehearses weekly in a professional atmosphere, fulfilling the lives of its members by immersing them in great music, and through RCS performances enriching and enlivening the musical life of the greater Reading community.
Tickets: $15 in advance / $20 at door; Students $10 Tickets may be ordered online or call the RCS office 610.898.1939
Soloists:
Clara Rottsalk, Soprano – “Pure and shining” (Cleveland Plain Dealer) soprano Clara Rottsolk has been lauded by The New York Times for her “clear, appealing voice and expressive conviction” and by The Philadelphia Inquirer for the “opulent tone [with which] every phrase has such a communicative emotional presence.” In a repertoire extending from the Renaissance to the contemporary, her solo appearances with orchestras and chamber ensembles have taken her across the United States, the Middle East, Japan and South America. She specializes in historically informed performance practice, singing with ensembles including American Bach Soloists, Tempesta di Mare, Seattle Baroque Orchestra, Les Délices, Pacific MusicWorks, St. Thomas Church 5th Avenue, Virginia Symphony, Atlanta Baroque, Santa Fe Pro Musica, Baltimore Chamber Orchestra, Piffaro—The Renaissance Wind Band, Colorado Bach Ensemble, Trinity Wall Street Choir, Seraphic Fire, New Mexico Symphonic Chorus, ARTEK, and the Masterwork Chorus under the direction of conductors including Joshua Rifkin, Bruno Weil, Paul Goodwin, Jeffrey Thomas, John Scott, David Effron, and Andrew Megill. Her recordings inclucde Myths and Allegories, French Baroque cantatas with Les Délices and “supple and stylish… and unflaggingly attractive” (Gramophone Magazine) Scarlatti Cantatas with Tempesta di Mare on the Chandos-Chaconne label. Last winter a new recording compositions by Rachel Matthews, including three songs set to Elizabeth Bishop’s poetry was released. A native of Seattle, Ms. Rottsolk earned her music degrees at Rice University and Westminster Choir College, and was awarded for musical excellence by the Metropolitan Opera National Council (Northwest Region). Currently she is based in Philadelphia.
Matheus Coura, Alto – Brazilian-American countertenor Matheus Coura is quickly gaining attention as a passionate performer of Baroque and Modern repertoire. For the 201819 season, Coura performed arias from Handel’s Giulio Cesare, Rinaldo, and Tolomeo in the premiere of Yuri Possokhov’s “…two united in a single soul…” with the San Francisco Ballet; Teucro in the critically acclaimed revival of Giovanni Porta’s Ifigenia in Aulide with Ars Minerva, Andronico in Handel’s Tamerlano with SFCM Baroque, Alto Soloist in excerpts of Elgar’s Sea Pictures with Palms Presbyterian Orchestra, outreach performances with Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra, and as cover alto soloist in Messiah with American Bach Soloists. Last season marked Coura’s operatic debut in the countertenor repertoire as Bertarido in Handel’s Rodelinda. with SFCM Baroque Orchestra. Recent oratorio appearances include alto soloist in Bach’s Mass in B minor, Matthias Weckman’s Weine nicht with the American Bach Soloists Academy, and Israeltish Man in Judas Maccabaeus with VCM Baroque. For the 2020 season, Coura will perform the title Role in Handel’s Ottone with SFCM Baroque, his third role written for Handel’s star alto castrato, Senesino. Matheus currently holds a Master’s Degree from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, and this Fall will be the first professional studies diploma candidate in Historically Informed Performance Practice from the same institution.
Daniel Taylor, Tenor – Noted for his “solid, ringing tenor that was rich and intense,” and as a “mellifluous talent you should watch for” by Opera Today, Daniel Taylor is establishing himself with a voice of power, sensitivity, and musicianship, garnered from a wealth of experience across a wide variety of disciplines. Having been a member of the chorus at Opera Philadelphia since 2012, he has also sung roles for the company, including being a part of the process of workshopping and premiering a number of new operas, such as Missy Mazzoli’s Breaking the Waves, Kevin Puts’ Elizabeth Cree, and Lembit Beecher’s riveting Sky on Swings where he sang alongside the legendary Frederica von Stade. He has also been a part of works and workshops by other composers including Rene Orth, David Hertzberg, Jennifer Higdon, and more. Aside from Opera Philadelphia, he has performed operatic works with a number of organizations including The New York Philharmonic, Curtis Opera Theater, Beth Morrison Projects, Poor Richard’s Opera, Opera Libera, Children’s Opera Box, and Temple University Opera Theater. Outside of opera, Daniel is a member of the two-time Grammy award winning new music chamber choir, The Crossing, having sung a number of solos with the group in works by composers such as Benjamin C. S. Boyle, Gavin Bryars, and Thomas Lloyd. With a MM in vocal performance from Temple University, and a BM in cello performance from the Peabody Conservatory, he also performed extensively as a cellist and early musician on baroque cello and viola da gamba.
Travis Lucas, Baritone – Philadelphia native Travis Lucas, baritone, has graduated from the University of Delaware with a M.M. degree in Vocal Performance in May of 2017. In the summer of 2016, Travis attended the CoOperative Summer Program for young artists where he studied with vocal coaches from the Julliard School, Westminster Choir College, and the Metropolitan Opera. In the summer of 2018 he had the wonderful opportunity to sing the role of Don Alfonso in Mozart’s Cosi fan tutte with the Utah Vocal Arts Academy as a Principal Artist. In November 2018 he sang Antonio as well as cover Count Almaviva in Wilmington Concert Opera’s production of Le nozze di Figaro. Recently Travis participated as an Apprentice Artist with Sarasota Opera for their Diamond Season from JanuaryMarch 2019. In August 2019 he had the wonderful opportunity of singing the title role in Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi with Opera Susquehanna and is currently singing the role of Marcello in Puccini’s La bohème with Portland Opera.
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