Saturday, May 4, 2024 • 7:30 p.m.
First Free Methodist Church (3200 3rd Ave W)
Harmonia Orchestra & Chorus
William White, conductor
Marques L.A. Garrett, conductor
Kimberly Jones, soprano
Cheryse McLeod Lewis, mezzo-soprano
Namarea Randolph-Yosea, tenor
Nicholas Davis, baritone
The Sound of the Northwest
Program
Samuel Coleridge-Taylor (1875—1912)
“La caprice de Nannette” from Petite suite de concert, Op. 77
Antonín Dvořák (1841–1904)
Largo from Symphony No. 9, Op. 95
— intermission —
R. Nathaniel Dett (1882–1943)
The Ordering of Moses [Northwest premiere]
About the Concert
The Ordering of Moses is one of the truly great American oratorios, a richly scored work for soloists, choir and orchestra, built around African-American spirituals.
About the Guest Artists
Soprano Kimberly E. Jones is an alumna of the Ryan Opera Center with Lyric Opera of Chicago. Her performances with Lyric include Margru in the world premiere of Anthony Davis’ Amistad, Olga in Fedora, Princess Xenia in Boris Godunov, Pedro in Don Quichotte, and the spitfire Despina in student matinee performances of Così fan tutte. She portrayed the cunning Laetitia in The Old Maid and the Thief with the Ryan Opera Center and appeared in Lyric’s “Opera in the Neighborhood,” with performances including Rosina in The Barber of Seville and the title role of Cenerentola. She has also appeared at Grant Park as Zerlina (Don Giovanni) and Adele (Die Fledermaus), and on WFMT’s Live from Studio One. Appearances outside of Chicago have included Clara in Houston Grand Opera’s international production of Porgy and Bess, for which she was nominated for an NAACP Award for Best Supporting Actress. Ms. Jones soloed in Philip Glass’ Symphony No. 5 at the Gewandhaus, in Leipzig, under the direction of Dennis Russell Davies, and was one of four Ryan Opera Center artists showcased in a series of concerts at the Châtelet in Paris. She captivated audiences in her Alice Tully Hall debut with the Little Orchestra Society and appeared with Leon Williams at the Bruno Walter Auditorium at Lincoln Center for an evening of Porgy and Bess solos and duets. The recipient of numerous awards, Ms. Jones is on the voice faculty at Roosevelt University and DePaul University.
- Learn more: kimberlyejonessoprano.com
South Sudanese–American tenor Namarea Randolph-Yosea completed his Bachelor of Music at Western Washington University in 2019 and in 2022 earned a Master of Music in Vocal Performance at the University of Houston under the tutelage of Melanie Sonnenberg. On the concert stage, he was recently featured as soloist in Bach’s BWV 141 with the Mercury Chamber Orchestra, and in Adolphus Hailstork’s cantata I Will Lift Up Mine Eyes with Choral Arts Northwest. He has sung the Mozart Requiem with the WWU Symphony and Margaret Bonds’ The Ballad of the Brown King with Seattle Choral Company, as well as Bach’s Magnificat and the Evangelist in Bach’s Christmas Oratorio with Kirkland Choral Society. On the operatic stage, Mr. Randolph-Yosea recently sang Ernesto in Donizetti’s Don Pasquale with Union Avenue Opera, in which he wowed audiences with his “velvet smooth and sweet, sweet, sweet” instrument (Broadway World). He was selected for the 2023 Gerdine Young Artist program at Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, singing the role of Cephus in Treemonisha, participated in the inaugural OTSL New Works Collective, performing the role of X in Madison Lodge, and was selected as an apprentice artist at Des Moines Metro Opera for its 50th anniversary season.