MPR Carolers featuring Carrie Henneman Shaw, soprano
Melissa Morey, soprano; Abbie Betinis, alto
Justin Karch, tenor; Ben Henry-Moreland, bass
Bates Burt (1878-1948)
Let Christmas be Merry (1933)
When I View the Mother Holding (1937)
Alfred Burt (1920-1954)
Caroling Caroling (1954)
Ah, Bleak and Chill the Wintry Wind (1945)
Come Dear Children (1952)
Abbie Burt Betinis (b. 1980)
Behind the Clouds (2008)
Hail, Christmas Day! (2003)
Laura Caviani, jazz piano, Pete Whitman, tenor sax
Program to be selected from the following:
If I Were a Bell, by Frank Loesser
Cordoba, by Laura Caviani
Lo How A Rose, by Praetorius/Baker; arr. by Laura Caviani
Life After, by Pete Whitman
This Is My Song, (Theme from Finlandia), by Jean Sibelius; arr. by Laura Caviani
Our Little Town, by the Heath Brothers
The Mountain, by Abdullah Ibrahim
Silent Night, arr. by Laura Caviani
About the Artists:
The MPR Carolers formed in 2001 after Abbie received a call from Tom Crann of Minnesota Public Radio urging her to premiere her new Christmas carol on the air. Abbie, then a member of the Dale Warland Singers, quickly enlisted three friends from the ensemble, and the group has premiered Abbie’s new ‘Burt Family carol,’ composed in the tradition of her great uncle Alfred Burt, on MPR and American Public Media every year since. This year, the MPR Carolers welcome soloist Carrie Henneman Shaw, who joins soprano Melissa Morey, alto Abbie Betinis, tenor Justin Karch, and bass Ben Henry-Moreland.
Soprano Carrie Henneman Shaw has made her mark as a singer who brings a sense of adventure and style to the concert stage. Acclaimed as a “major musical force” (St. Paul Pioneer Press), Shaw collaborates with ensembles across the country, such as dal Niente and Sonic Inertia (both of Chicago), theNewberry Consort, the Zuchowiczi Consort of Viols (Houston), and Twin Cities-based Bach Society of Minnesota and Glorious Revolution Baroque. As a soloist, Carrie explores wide range of dramatic and virtuosic early and contemporary music, including works by Giacinto Scelsi, Augusta Read Thomas, Steven Stucky, Handel, Bach, Dowland and more. Carrie is a member of the St. Paul-based early-music group the Rose Ensemble, is a student of early-music diva Ellen Hargis and a doctoral candidate in the studio of tenor John De Haan at the University of Minnesota.
Composer Abbie Betinis has been commissioned by more than 40 music organizations including the Alchemy Project, American Suzuki Foundation, Cantus, Cornell University Chorus, and the Dale Warland Singers. A 2009 McKnight Artist Fellow, she has also received grants and awards from the American Composers Forum, American Society of Composers and Publishers (ASCAP), the Jerome Foundation, and the Minnesota Music Educators Association. National Public Radio and Public Radio International have aired her performances by the Dale Warland Singers, Philadelphia Singers and The Rose Ensemble in national broadcasts. She holds a BA from St. Olaf College, MA in music composition from the University of Minnesota and has twice attended the European American Musical Alliance summer sessions in Paris, France, where she studied harmony and counterpoint in the tradition of Nadia Boulanger. Since 2005, Betinis has been a Composer-in-Residence for The Schubert Club in St. Paul, Minnesota. She has also held residencies with The Singers—Minnesota Choral Artists and The Rose Ensemble. She lives in St. Paul.
Laura Caviani was born and raised in Minnesota, where she currently freelances in the Twin Cities, and teaches at St. Olaf and Carleton Colleges. Her 2006 CD release Going There enjoyed a long run on the JazzWeek national radio charts. Music critic Bob Protzman described it as “piano trio jazz of the highest order.” Caviani has released five CDs as bandleader, receiving notices such as “stunningly fresh” from JazzTimes magazine and “in a word, outstanding” from the Minneapolis Star. Caviani has extensively toured and recorded with Concord recording artist Karrin Allyson and has performed with many other jazz luminaries including Oleta Adams, Stan Getz, Dave Liebman, Bob Mintzer, Diane Schuur, and Toots Thielemans. In the Twin Cities, her numerous projects include Pete Whitman’s X-tet, whose CD Where's When? received a 4-star review from Downbeat Magazine. She holds degrees from both Lawrence University (BM–Theory/Composition) and The University of Michigan at Ann Arbor. (MM–Improvisation) Please visit www.lauracaviani.com
Pete Whitman has been actively composing, arranging, and performing for the past 21 years. As a jazz saxophonist he has performed with such artists as Randy Brecker, Jack McDuff, and the Woody Herman Orchestra, and currently leads his own group, Departure Point. Whitman attended North Texas State University, where he received his B.M. and M.M. Majoring in Jazz Studies and Minoring in Flute. Currently, Whitman is also teaching at McNally Smith College, a St. Paul-based music school where he heads the Woodwind and Brass Department.