Please join us this Friday and Saturday for the next two episodes of CCMONSTAGE Online, our new ongoing series of digital concerts and performances.
Tonight’s installment features the CCM Chamber Choir performing an eclectic program of nine musical selections dating from the Renaissance to the 21st century. The program will stream from 7:30-8:30 p.m. EDT.
Tomorrow night’s installment features the CCM Ballet Ensemble performing a mixed repertoire dance concert. The program will stream from 7:30-9 p.m. EDT.
If the video does not start autoplaying on your viewing device, please refresh the web page and then click the play button on the video player. If you have any trouble with CCM’s streams, visit our website for additional viewing options.
Each performance will be available for on-demand viewing shortly after the premiere stream concludes.
Video production by MasseyGreenAVP, LLC. This digital performance series is made possible by support from CCMONSTAGE Online Broadcast Sponsors CCMpower and ArtsWave, and CCMONSTAGE Online Production Sponsors Dr. & Mrs. Carl G. Fischer.
The UC College-Conservatory of Music’s virtual concert series continues with a powerful performance by the CCM Chamber Choir.
CCM’s “stars of tomorrow” are back on stage, and you get the best seats in the house! The next episode of CCMONSTAGEOnline debuts at 7:30 p.m. EDT on Friday, March 19, 2021. The premiere will stream simultaneously on CCM’s website, YouTube channel and Facebook page.
“The isolation generated by the pandemic is at the heart of Together/Apart,” says Miller. “Strengthening our world by staying apart is a new concept for many of us and one that we both resist and embrace.”
Comprised of nine musical selections dating from the Renaissance to the 21st century, Together/Apart‘s eclectic program takes viewers on an emotional journey that reflects on the impact of COVID-19. Works by Thomas Morley, Claudio Monteverdi and J.S. Bach are featured alongside contemporary pieces like David Lang’s “I Am Walking” and The Wailin’ Jennys’ “One Voice.” The performance is also a collaborative effort with CCM’s Department of Theatre Design and Production, and also features lighting and projections by student designer Emily Rooks.
“Engaging with music allows us to recognize the significance of this isolation,” says Miller. “Together/Apart seeks to provide a musical landscape, reflecting this shared experience. Sometimes music is the only thing that makes sense.”
Like other episodes in CCM’s new virtual performance series, Together/Apart also features commentary from CCM students. All episodes of CCMONSTAGEOnline can be digitally streamed for free. After the premiere broadcast, each installment in this ongoing series will remain available for on-demand viewing on CCM’s website, YouTube channel and Facebook page.
In addition to the performances recorded in CCM’s Corbett Auditorium, portions of Together/Apart were also recorded at Cincinnati’s Old St. Mary’s Church. Video production by MasseyGreenAVP, LLC. This digital performance series is made possible by support from CCMONSTAGE Online Broadcast Sponsors CCMpower and ArtsWave, and CCMONSTAGE Online Production Sponsors Dr. & Mrs. Carl G. Fischer.
Streaming Premiere
7:30 p.m. EDT Friday, March 19, 2021
Performance Repertoire
David Lang: “I Am Walking” from Death Speaks
Thomas Morley: Nolo mortem peccatoris
Claudio Monteverdi: Ohimè, dov’è il mio ben (from Book VII Madrigals)
Robert White: Domine quis habitabit (III)
Paweł Łukaszewski: Responsoria Tenebrae: V. Ecce quomodo moritur
Johann Sebastian Bach: Komm, Jesu, komm
Ruth Moody, arr. Marcelline Moody: One Voice
Nathan Jones: I Would Live in Your Love
Ola Gjeilo: Ubi Caritas
Performers and Creative Team
CCM Chamber Choir
Joe Miller, music director and conductor Joseph Taff, graduate assistant conductor Shane Thomas, Jr., graduate assistant conductor
Soprano
Tori Adams Jisoo Bae Tanya Harris Jennifer Jun Rachel Kobernick Maya McGuire Melodie Spencer
Matt Coffey Andrew Cunningham Corbin DeSpain Jarrett Hazelton Aaron McKone Greg Miller Shane Thomas, Jr.
Bass
Matt Lee Jay Mobley Andrew Nash Erik Nordstrom Nathan Schludecker Joseph Taff Emilio Vasquez
Instrumentalists and Soloists
“I Am Walking” from Death Speaks
Tanya Harris, soprano Shane Thomas, Jr., tenor Melodie Spencer, violin Jay Mobley, guitar Thomas Heidenreich, piano
Ohimè, dov’è il mio ben (from Book VII Madrigals)
Melodie Spencer, soprano Reed Demangone, countertenor Christopher Wilke, theorbo
Komm, Jesu, komm
Christopher Wilke, baroque guitar Thomas Heidenreich, organ Joshua Bermudez, cello Zachary Reich, bass
One Voice
Tori Adams, soprano Maya McGuire, soprano Kate Gardin, mezzo-soprano Matt Coffey and Joseph Taff, guitar
Ubi Caritas
Shane Thomas, Jr., conductor Joe Miller, piano
Stage Management
Meghan Emanuel, primary stage manager Morgan Piper, assistant stage manager
Lighting Design
Emily Rooks
Additional Theatre Design and Production Support
Sharon Huizinga, Lighting Design and Technology Faculty Member Michele Kay, Theatre Design and Production Chair
Piano Technicians
Rebekah Whitacre Eric Wolfley
Video Production
MasseyGreenAVP, llc Director – Matt Green Producer/Editor – Austin Maynard
Camera Operators
John Tapogna Glenn Hartong Stacy Doose
Audio Engineers
Simón Sotelo Joel Crawford (on Thomas Morley’s Nolo mortem peccatoris and Robert White’s Domine Quis Habitabit III)
Senior Director of Performance Operations
Rayburn Dobson
CCMONSTAGE Online Series Concept Developed and Managed by
Curt Whitacre
CCM Digital Content Team
Kenneth D. Allen Clarence M. Brown Kevin Burke Rebecca Butts Rayburn Dobson Mikki Graff Melissa Neeley-Nicolini Simón Sotelo Curt Whitacre
About the Series
CCMONSTAGEOnline is a series of free digital concerts and performing arts presentations showcasing the unparalleled artistry and expertise of CCM’s students, faculty and staff. Enjoy a sneak peek at a few of our upcoming episodes:
UC College-Conservatory of Music Dean Stanley E. Romanstein has announced the addition of choral conductor Joe Miller, DMA, to the college’s roster of distinguished faculty members. A leading authority in the field of choral conducting, Miller is also a two-time graduate of CCM (MM, ‘92; DMA, ‘97). His appointment as professor and director of CCM’s lauded Choral Studies program begins on Aug. 15, 2020, pending approval of the University’s Board of Trustees.
Since 2006, Miller has served as conductor of two of the most renowned choral ensembles in the US: the Westminster Choir and the Westminster Symphonic Choir. He has also served as director of choral activities at Westminster Choir College of Rider University. In addition to his responsibilities at Westminster, Miller has been artistic director of choral activities for the renowned Spoleto Festival USA in Charleston, South Carolina, since 2007. He has also served as conductor of the Philadelphia Orchestra Symphonic Choir since 2016.
“CCM has a distinguished history of choral performance and conductor training, and our alumni occupy leadership positions throughout the world,” said Romanstein. “Joe Miller has worked with the world’s leading ensembles, conductors and artists and I am proud to welcome him back to CCM as a colleague. Joe has a firm grasp of the immense opportunities available to 21st century artists and he will serve as a worthy successor to our illustrious colleague Professor Earl Rivers, who retires this spring after a nearly 50-year tenure at CCM.”
“As an alumnus, I owe much to this great institution,” said Miller. “My education at CCM has provided deep roots that have enabled me to grow a diverse and wide-reaching career, and I am honored to help lead the next chapter of this fine institution. I am excited to partner with my new CCM colleagues to find new ways to connect the dots between our ever-changing technology-minded world and our need for shared human experiences.”
Miller’s appointment concludes a national search that began when Earl Rivers, CCM’s long-time director of choral studies, announced his plans to retire at the end of the 2019-20 academic year. “I am grateful to our search committee chair Mark Gibson and committee members L. Brett Scott, GwendolynColeman, RobynLana, Marie-FranceLefebvreand Daniel Weeks for their work finding CCM’s next great ensembles and conducting professor,” said Romanstein.
About Joe Miller
Miller’s recent seasons leading the Westminster Choir have included concert tours in Beijing, China and in Spain, as well as participation in the World Symposium on Choral Music in Barcelona and groundbreaking performances of Julia Wolfe’s Pulitzer Prize winning Anthracite Fields at the historic Roebling WireWorks as part of Westminster’s Transforming Space project.
After viewing a staged performance of Joby Talbot’s demanding Path of Miracles at the 2019 Spoleto Festival USA, D.C. Theatre Scene wrote, “Joe Miller is a fearless artist. His bold leadership and trust in these young singers enabled his choristers to forego the ‘stand and deliver,’ score-bound habits of their genre and ‘walk with him’ on this special journey. Not only did the singers need to memorize their parts, no mean feat, but follow his baton’s bid from any part of the auditorium and sing in any body position. Miller constantly challenged them in the process and inspired them to work confidently, well outside their comfort zone.”
The New York Times described the Westminster Choir’s 2014 Festival performance of John Adams’ El Niño as “superb” and wrote, “Meticulously prepared … the chorus was remarkable for its precision, unanimity and power.” The Wall Street Journal praised the same performance, crediting “the fine Westminster Choir and the Spoleto Festival USA Orchestra, under the direction of Joe Miller.” The Post and Courier wrote about their performance of Bach’s St. Matthew Passion, “This was an evening of near-flawless execution and many moments of ravishing beauty and power. It will go down as a highlight (maybe even THE highlight) of this year’s festival, and, I think, as the work with which Joe Miller established his credentials to lead an extended choral/orchestral masterwork, not just recreating Bach’s music but also putting his own interpretive stamp on the whole.”
Miller has made four recordings with the Westminster Choir. American Record Guide wrote about the choir’s newest CD, Frank Martin:Mass for Double Choir, “This is gorgeous singing … with perfect blend, intonation, diction, ensemble and musicality.” The Heart’s Reflection: Music of Daniel Elder was hailed by Minnesota Public Radio’s Classical Notes as “simply astounding.” Miller’s debut recording with the ensemble, Flower of Beauty, received four stars from Choir & Organ magazine and earned critical praise from American Record Guide, which described the Westminster Choir as “the gold standard for academic choirs in America.”
As conductor of the Westminster Symphonic Choir, Miller has collaborated with some of the world’s leading orchestras and conductors, earning him critical praise. The New York Timeswrote about Symphonic Choir’s performance of Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 with the Cleveland Orchestra, “Joe Miller’s Westminster Symphonic Choir was subtle when asked and powerful when turned loose.” Recent seasons have included performances with the Philharmoniker Berliner and Sir Simon Rattle; The Philadelphia Orchestra and Yannick Nézet-Séguin; and the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela and Gustavo Dudamel.
Prior to his time at Westminster Choir College, Miller served on the faculty of Western Michigan University, California State University and Whitman College. He is the 2016 recipient of the Maynard Klein Award for Distinguished Service to Choral Music, which is presented by ACDA-Michigan in recognition of artistic excellence and a lifetime of leadership in the field of choral music.
Miller received his DMA in Choral Conducting with a cognate in Voice from CCM in 1997. He received his MM in Choral Conducting from CCM in 1992. In 1987, he graduated cum laude from the University of Tennessee with a BS in Music Education and Voice.
About CCM Choral Studies
Recognized by US News and World Report as one of this country’s leading conducting programs, CCM’s Department of Choral Studies is widely known for its excellence in training conductors for successful, lifelong careers in the choral arts.
CCM’s Master of Music and Doctor of Music Arts programs provide professional-level experiences in rehearsals and performances, developing musicianship and technique, and acquiring knowledge of styles, performance practices and repertoire.
MM and DMA graduates of CCM’s Choral Studies programs are conducting and administrating highly successful professional, collegiate, symphonic, secondary, children’s and church choir programs throughout the world.
For more information about CCM, please visit us online at ccm.uc.edu.
Since 2006, Miller has served as conductor of two of the most renowned choral ensembles in the US: the Westminster Choir and the Westminster Symphonic Choir. He has also served as director of choral activities at Westminster Choir College of Rider University. In addition to his responsibilities at Westminster, Miller has been artistic director of choral activities for the renowned Spoleto Festival USA in Charleston, South Carolina, since 2007. He has also served as conductor of the Philadelphia Orchestra Symphonic Choir since 2016.