The Boston Cecilia is a
choral
A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which ...
society in
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
,
. Founded in 1876, the ensemble has enjoyed historic relationships with the
Boston Symphony Orchestra
The Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO) is an American orchestra based in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the second-oldest of the five major American symphony orchestras commonly referred to as the " Big Five". Founded by Henry Lee Higginson in 1881, ...
and famous conductors and composers, such as
Arthur Fiedler
Arthur Fiedler (December 17, 1894 – July 10, 1979) was an American conductor known for his association with both the Boston Symphony and Boston Pops orchestras. With a combination of musicianship and showmanship, he made the Boston Pops one o ...
,
Igor Stravinsky
Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky (6 April 1971) was a Russian composer, pianist and conductor, later of French (from 1934) and American (from 1945) citizenship. He is widely considered one of the most important and influential composers of the ...
, and
Antonín Dvořák
Antonín Leopold Dvořák ( ; ; 8 September 1841 – 1 May 1904) was a Czechs, Czech composer. Dvořák frequently employed rhythms and other aspects of the folk music of Moravian traditional music, Moravia and his native Bohemia, following t ...
. Today, the ensemble is noted for its
historical-style performances, and specializes in the
oratorios
An oratorio () is a large musical composition for orchestra, choir, and soloists. Like most operas, an oratorio includes the use of a choir, soloists, an instrumental ensemble, various distinguishable characters, and arias. However, opera is mus ...
of
George Frideric Handel
George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel (; baptised , ; 23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-British Baroque music, Baroque composer well known for his opera#Baroque era, operas, oratorios, anthems, concerto grosso, concerti grossi, ...
as well as premieres by prominent Boston composers.
After 44 years, Donald Teeters retired as music director after the 2011–2012 season. The 2012–2013 season had performances conducted by guest conductors Dan Perkins, Amy Lieberman, and Nicholas White. In April 2013, Nicholas White was announced as the new artistic director.
In January 2017, Nicholas White announced his decision to step down as artistic director. George Case led the group from 2017 to 2020. As of 2020, the music director is Michael Barrett.
In addition to its local performances, Cecilia has recorded two albums for the Newport Classic label, and one album for the label Naxos.
Scott Wheeler: The Construction of Boston
on Naxosdirect.com
References
External links
Official web siteDiscography
at Discogs
Discogs (short for discographies) is a database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. While the site was originally created with a goal of becoming the la ...
Culture of Boston
Choral societies
Musical groups established in 1876
1876 establishments in Massachusetts
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