Monday, September 5, 2011

Samuel Coleridge-Taylor: 'Hiawatha: The Death of Minnehaha' (16:11) by Longfellow Chorus on YouTube



[Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, Angela M. Brown, Robert Honeysucker]

This is an exciting time for people who appreciate the choral and instrumental works of Samuel Coleridge-Taylor (1875-1912). The renowned composer and conductor died 99 years ago, on September 1, 1912. A number of premieres and other performances of his many works are planned in both the U.K and the U.S. as the Centennial of his untimely death approaches. AfriClassical congratulates The Longfellow Chorus and its Director, Charles Kaufmann, on its rare performance which is now accessible via YouTube:

LongfellowChorus.com
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kyFXMoyzUIY
Uploaded September 4, 2011
“On February 26 and 27, 2010, The Longfellow Chorus and Orchestra of Portland, Maine, gave two rare performances of 'The Death of Minnehaha' (Opus 30, No. 2, 1899), the second cantata in the Hiawatha cantata trilogy by African-British composer Samuel Coleridge-Taylor (1875-1912).

“The featured soloists were soprano Angela M. Brown and baritone Robert Honeysucker. Based on the poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, 'The Death of Minnehaha' was performed in Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's childhood church in Portland, Maine. This video presents the first third of our performance of 'The Death of Minnehaha.'

“The Longfellow Chorus Orchestra reads from the original 1910 set of orchestra parts used by the Litchfield County (Connecticut) Choral Union, conducted by the composer. Parts courtesy Irving S. Gilmore Library, Yale University.”

Charles Kaufmann, Artistic Director
The Longfellow Chorus
PO Box 5133
Portland, ME 04101
http://www.longfellowchorus.com


Samuel Coleridge-Taylor (1875-1912) was an Afro-British composer and conductor featured at AfriClassical.com. The Centennial of his death will be in 2012. Major observances are being planned in the U.K. throughout that year by organizations including the Samuel Coleridge-Taylor Foundation, http://www.sctf.org.uk/. Surrey Opera announces the World Premiere performance of Samuel Coleridge-Taylor's opera Thelma, in the composer's birthplace of Croydon, on February 8, 10 and 11, 2012.

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