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Dear friends of the Binghamton Downtown Singers,
We would like to cordially invite you to our 2024 Spring Concert to share in the Love, Harmony, and Spirit we offer. Our program, featuring two works that are completely new to the Singers as well as an old favorite, is as uplifting as it is emotional; and as inspiring as it is beautiful.
It is a goal of the Downtown Singers to always challenge ourselves with our Spring Concert music. Sometimes this challenge comes in the form of singing in a foreign language or with a unique instrumentation in the orchestra. This year our challenge came in the form of new styles of music and the strong feelings that accompany singing about a disease like breast cancer. The second half of this year’s program is a modern, oratorio style work titled Sing for the Cure: A Proclamation of Hope. This piece, which utilizes the stories of real people dealing with breast cancer, takes us on a journey from diagnosis through treatment as told through the eyes of those diagnosed and those closest to them. Sing for the Cure will include narration by Tracy Davidson and will highlight members of the choir through solos and small ensembles throughout the work. There is not one member of our choir that hasn't been touched by some kind of cancer, and we honor those loved ones tonight in our program, both the survivors and those lost.
Our concert tonight is not without its moments of joy, however. We will open with The Chariot Jubilee, R. Nathaniel Dett’s arrangement of the spiritual Swing Low, Sweet Chariot, which celebrates life through its text and exuberant orchestration and features tenor soloist Tshombe Selby. This piece has quickly become a favorite of the Downtown Singers and we can’t wait to share it with you. Five Mystical Songs by Ralph Vaughan Williams, featuring baritone Timothy LeFebvre, concludes our first half and ends with the choir singing a triumphant hymn of praise. This work, performed by the choir in both 2005 and 2014 consists of 5 poems set to music by the composer.
As you may know, the Downtown Singers have been in a period of transition this year that includes working with our Interim Artistic Director for a full cycle to prepare his second concert. We and the whole Board are so proud of the dedication and perseverance the choir has shown. As a choir, we have added new members, stretched our abilities, trusted the process and given our hearts to the music we have prepared for you.
The Downtown Singers would not survive without the support of our friends. We are so thankful to our audience, friends, advertisers and grant sponsors for keeping the arts thriving in Binghamton! We do hope you’ll join us on June 8th for our concert, but also consider joining us in the fall when we resume rehearsals for The Messiah. Details can be found at www.downtownsingers.org
Sincerely,
Julie Drozdowski and Faith White
DTS Co-Presidents
Table of Contents - Spring Concert: Love, Harmony and Spirit - Sat, Jun 8 2024, 7:30pm
- Director's Corner
- Meet Our Soloists and Narrator
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Spring Concert: Love, Harmony and Spirit7:30pm, Sat, Jun 8 2024
- Event Details
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| Type of event: |
Performance |
| Start time: |
7:30pm |
| Venue: |
Sarah Jane Johnson Memorial United Methodist Church
308 Main Street
Johnson City NY 13790
Additional parking is available in the UHS parking lot behind the church for performances. |
| Description: |
The Downtown Singers are proud to announce their spring concert "Love, Harmony and Spirit" scheduled for Saturday June 8th. The concert will feature the following pieces:
"Chariot Jubilee" by R. Nathaniel Dett with Tshombe Selby, tenor soloist
“The Chariot Jubilee” was composed in 1919 after Dett, a descendant of slaves, received a commission from Howard Lyman and the Syracuse University Chorus. It is thought to be the first symphonic work based solely on a spiritual (“Swing Low, Sweet Chariot”). Selby received his Masters in Music from Binghamton University. He has performed operatic leads throughout the Northeast and is a chorus member and ensemble soloist with the Metropolitan Opera.
"Five Mystical Songs" by Ralph Vaughan Williams with Timothy LeFebvre, baritone soloist
“Five Mystical Songs” reflects Vaughan Williams interest in both Anglican liturgy and music and the mysticism of the metaphysical poets. LeFebvre’s extensive operatic and concert experience has taken him around the country, including performances locally with Tri-Cities Opera and the Downtown Singers. He, too, received his Master of Music at Binghamton University. He is Professor of Voice at Oberlin Conservatory of Music and division director of vocal studies.
"Sing for the Cure: a Proclamation of Hope" with Tracy Davidson, narrator
“Sing for the Cure” is a choral collection based on true stories of breast cancer survivors. The songs are by different composer but are united in their message of bravery and love. The piece was commissioned several years ago to benefit the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, and the foundation receives a portion of the proceeds from our purchase of the music. Davidson, an Emmy Award-winning journalist from NBC 10 News in Philadelphia, is a highly regarded resilience speaker. |
Director's Corner
| Type of post: |
Choir news item |
| Sub-type: |
Public Choir News Item |
| Posted By: |
Randy Pope |
| Status: |
Current |
| Date Posted: |
Wed, May 15 2024 |
 The Binghamton Downtown Singers are excited to bring to you our spring 2024 performance. Our concert of “ Love, Harmony, and Spirit!” promises to be a musical and emotional journey you will enjoy. Our concert opens with The Chariot Jubilee, an arrangement of a familiar spiritual by R. Nathaniel Dett, featuring tenor soloist, Tshombe Selby. Our harmonic journey then takes us to the romantic world of Ralph Vaughan Williams, and his Five Mystical Songs, featuring baritone soloist, Timothy LeFebvre. The second portion of our concert features a not-so-typical oratorio: Sing for the Cure: a Proclamation of Hope, with narrations by Tracy Davidson. This cycle of songs highlights the stories of breast cancer. From diagnosis and treatment, to humor and recovery, to pain and loss, this work takes us on a journey of love that will have an emotional impact on both the performance and audience. We hope you will be able to attend the performance!
Robert Manners - Spring 2024
Meet Our Soloists and Narrator
| Type of post: |
Choir news item |
| Sub-type: |
Public Choir News Item |
| Posted By: |
Randy Pope |
| Status: |
Current |
| Date Posted: |
Wed, May 15 2024 |
 The Binghamton Downtown Singers are pleased to introduce our soloists and narrator for our Love, Harmony, and Spirit concert June 8th at 7:30pm. We've presented some highlights of their careers below. Please see the program at our performance for their full biographies.
Tshombe Selby - Tenor Soloist
Tshombe Selby, from Manteo, N.C., is a rising operatic tenor and performing artist. Mr. Selby holds degrees from Elizabeth State University (B.M) and Binghamton University (M.M). For the last decade Tshombe has worked and studied in New York City, where he began working as an usher at the Metropolitan Opera; it is here, that his love for Opera and his musical ear was refined, and to what eventually lead him to singing on that very stage.
During the 2021-22 and 2022-23 Met Opera seasons Tshombe performed in various concerts and multiple productions including the the critically acclaimed opera, Fire Shut Up In My Bones, which recently scored a Grammy Award in 2023. In the current season of the Met opera Selby has performed In ten operas and one concert with the Met as member of the chorus and featured tenor soloist of the ensemble.
Timothy LeFebvre - Baritone Soloist
Nationally acclaimed baritone Timothy LeFebvre has wide-ranging experience from the operatic stage to the concert hall. LeFebvre’s last performance with State College Choral Society was Mendelsssohn’s Elijah in 2019. Recent performances include Dvorak’s Te Deum with Wichita Symphony Orchestra, Handel’s Messiah and Saint-Saens’ Christmas Oratorio with Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra, Vaughan Williams’ Dona Nobis Pacem with Symphoria (Syracuse, NY), Jesse Jones’ Of Daylight & Night, Liptak’s Ancient Songs, Barber’s Dover Beach, and Ravel’s Trois Poemes de Stephane Mallarmé at Oberlin Conservatory, Dett’s The Ordering of Moses at Oberlin Conservatory, Mendelssohn’s Elijah with New Dominion Chorale (Washington, DC), Brahms’ Requiem with Hamilton College, Bach’s Saint John Passion with Spoleto Festival USA.
Mr. LeFebvre is currently Professor of Voice at Oberlin Conservatory of Music, where he is also division director of vocal studies. During the summer, LeFebvre is the Young Artists Division Head for Bel Canto in Tuscany, a three-week program for singers.
Tracy Davidson - Narrator
For 30 years, 14-time Emmy Award-winning journalist Tracy Davidson has been connecting with people, both through her position as a news-anchor and as a highly coveted resilience speaker. She’s given hundreds of speeches, including a TedX focused on the price of digital distraction. At most events, Tracy bravely reveals her own life experiences and shares skills which have enabled her to overcome formidable challenges from childhood and empowered her to serve others with information and empathy.
Tracy’s mission in life is to empower women and girls, both personally and professionally. Her talks help teach women how to transform their lives by focusing their time, energy and attention, and embracing their true selves.
Tracy co-anchors NBC10 News at 4pm and NBC10 News at 5pm every day in Philadelphia. She is also the station’s Investigative Consumer Reporter, solving difficult issues for viewers. That job aligns with her personal mission to serve others.
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