Fall 2023 Music Calendar of Events
Tuesday, September 12, 7 PM
Close and Apart
Luth Concert Hall
Prior Performing Arts Center
Matthew Jaskot, composer
Susan Elizabeth Sweeney, poet
Jennifer Ashe, soprano
Brian Church, baritone
Kevin Nolan, guitar
Matt Nolan, percussion
Verdant Vibes New Music Collective
Close and Apart is a concert-length (approximately 75 minutes) song cycle that was inspired by Eric Gregory's memoir, All My Tomorrows: A Story of Tragedy, Transplant and Hope (Word Association Publishers, 2017), which evokes the playful, generous spirit of his son who died from a brain aneurysm at nineteen. In the book, Eric traces the process of donating Christopher’s organs and shows how forming friendships with the recipients helped the family heal. This piece conveys the memoir’s narrative arc while exploring themes of grief, healing, community, temporality, memory, empathy, and interconnection. The score includes musical adaptations of ten poems by Susan Elizabeth Sweeney, and synthesizes different musical traditions, including classical, New Orleans jazz, folk, and chant, among others.
Tuesday, September 26, 7pm
Holy Cross Chapel Artist Series
Katelyn Emerson, concert organist
St. Joseph Memorial Chapel
Renowned organist Katelyn Emerson performs works by Buxtehude, Rheimberger, Bhruns and Bach at the famous Taylor and Boody organ at Saint Joseph Memorial Chapel. A concert not to be missed.
Free admission
Tuesday, October 3, 12 pm
Lunchtime Concert
Matt Jaskot, piano
Florence Price's Piano Sonata in E Minor
Beehive
Prior Performing Arts Center
This lunchtime concert celebrates the music of iconic composer Florence Price, with a performance of her dynamic Piano Sonata in E Minor (1932) by pianist Matthew Jaskot. Like many of Price's works, this piece integrates melodic and rhythmic ideas from African-American spirituals and plantation dances into a traditional Romantic era aesthetic. Come hear this powerful piece, that is filled with dazzling flourishes and intriguing harmonic surprises. The performance will be approximately 30 minutes long.
Tuesday, October 17, 7pm
Holy Cross Chapel Artist Series
Ezequiel Menendez, Holy Cross
St. Joseph Memorial Chapel
Holy Cross organ professor Ezequiel Menendez, performs works by Bach, Mendelssohn and Buxtehude.
Friday, October 20, 8 pm
Family Weekend Concert
Coming Home
Holy Cross College Choir & Chamber Singers
Luth Concert Hall
Prior Performing Arts Center
Holy Cross College Choir, Chamber Singers, and friends warmly present a program of musical selections centered around the theme of “Coming Home.” The texts of the music reflect a kaleidoscopic perspective of what it means to return home, whether it is in being welcomed home, the deep longing to return to a beloved place, or finding rest in a spiritual home. Our program features Fern Hill, by John Corigliano, with poetry by Dylan Thomas; an arrangement of spirituals by Rollo Dilworth, Wie lieblich sind deine Wohnungen from the Brahms’ Requiem, opera choruses, and music from South African arranger Mpumelelo Manyathi.
Thursday, October 26, 8 pm
Mike Monaghan & Friends
Luth Concert Hall
Prior Performing Arts Center
Renowned Jazz musician Mike Monaghan and his colleagues will perform an exciting evening of jazz improvisation.
Tuesday, November 7, 12 pm
Lunchtime Concert
Joe Nelson, voice
Matt Jaskot, piano
Beehive
Prior Performing Arts Center
Come and listen to a delightful mix of Italian songs that celebrate days and nights of beauty, passion, and love. The program will include music by George Frideric Handel, Vincenzo Bellini, and Stefano Donaudy performed by Dr. Joseph V. Nelson (tenor) and Dr. Matthew Jaskot (piano). The program will be approximately 30 minutes long.
Tuesday, November 7, 7pm
Holy Cross Chapel Artist Series
Kimberly Marshall
St. Joseph Memorial Chapel
Wednesday, November 15, 8 pm
Holy Cross Orchestra
Luth Concert Hall
Prior Performing Arts Center
The Orchestra will perform the lively "Orpheus in the Underworld" Overture by Jacques Offenbach as well as works by Mozart, Ginastera, Schubert and more.
Friday, November 17, 6 pm
Chamber Music Recital
Brooks Concert Hall
Students who participate in the Chamber Music course perform the works they have studied during the semester.
Thursday, November 30, 8 pm
Holy Cross Jazz Ensemble
Luth Concert Hall
Prior Performing Arts Center
The Holy Cross Jazz Ensemble will perform American Jazz standards under the direction of Professor Mike Monaghan.
Friday, December 1, 4 PM
End of Semester Student Recitals
Brooks Concert Hall
Sunday, December 3, 1pm
Cello and Piano Recital
Julia Yang, cello
Mika Sasaki, piano
Brooks Concert Hall
Cellist Julia Yang and pianist Mika Sasaki present “Unfolding”: a recital that explores the ways composers Beethoven, Chopin, Thomas Adès and Shih-Hui Chen use temporal space to develop their unique sonic ideas. Hear how Beethoven delights as he plays with motivic development in his first sonata for cello and piano, how Chopin transforms a single theme into four distinct movements and characters to create this powerfully touching and cohesive work, and how Adès stops time with his exquisitely beautiful aural depictions of the fields and the waters. Taiwanese composer Chen similarly plays with the idea of form unfolding with a meditative movement from her work “Shui” (“Water”).
Sunday, December 3, 3 pm
Holy Cross Wind Ensemble
Luth Concert Hall
Prior Performing Arts Center
Tuesday, Dec. 5, 8 pm
Holy Cross Laptop Ensemble Federation
PAC Media Lab
A concert of sound and image performed on hacked game controllers and student-designed synthesizers.
Thursday, December 7, 8 PM
Advent Festival of Lessons & Carols
St. Joseph Memorial Chapel
Please join us for the College’s Annual Festival of Lessons and Carols for Advent. The service will take place in St. Joseph Memorial Chapel on Thursday, December 7th at 8 p.m.
Saturday, December 9, 8 pm
Gamelan Gita Sari Concert
Luth Concert Hall
Prior Performing Arts Center
Under the direction Nyoman Catra, one of Bali’s most renowned master artists of traditional dance/theatre, our Balinese dance and Gamelan students collaborate with guest artists for this fall concerts. It is always a highlight of our season and a treat for all ages. The Balinese dance concert provides an opportunity for the community to experience the awe and wonder of the sacred art of Bali.