News Release

Phoenix Chorale performs "Amazing Grace"
with special guests, Fire Ridge
the 2008 Arizona Bluegrass Band Champs
The April 25-26 and May 3 concerts around the Valley
close the Chorale's 50th Anniversary Season

(April 9, 2009) –  The Phoenix Chorale closes their 50th Anniversary Season on April 25-26 and May 3 with a bold and beautiful musical trip from Appalachia to the Great Plains with a little bit of Americana – including shapenotes, spirituals, and hymns.  Led by Artistic Director Charles Bruffy, the concerts feature Southern gospel favorites including “I Saw the Light,” “I’ll Fly Away,” “Angel Band,” as well as several renditions of “Amazing Grace” and more.  Special guests include composer and pianist Ola Gjeilo and the 2008 Arizona Bluegrass Band Champs, Fire Ridge.

“So often we celebrate the musical heritage and traditions of other cultures,” said Charles Bruffy.  “This year we decided to bring it home and celebrate our American heritage with the down-home sounds of bluegrass, spirituals and America’s most famous hymn, Amazing Grace.  We are also honoring the Chorale’s founders, Drs. Hal and Timona Pittman, with these concerts.  Dr. Hal Pittman is a descendant of John Newton, the writer of Amazing Grace.”

General admission tickets are priced at $25; Senior tickets and Sun City Concert tickets are $20; and advance Student tickets are $10.  Tickets can be purchased online at www.phoenixchorale.org or by calling the Phoenix Chorale at (602) 253-2224.

25 & Under FREE: the Phoenix Chorale continues its new ticketing program for anyone aged 25 and under to attend Phoenix Chorale concerts for FREE. These seats are available starting 10 minutes before each performance and are subject to availability. A ticketed parent or legal guardian must accompany patrons under 16 years of age.  Proof of age may be requested.

The Phoenix Chorale is sponsored in part through grants and funding from Cathedral Arts, Arizona Commission on the Arts, the City of Phoenix’s Office of Arts and Culture, the National Endowment for the Arts, and Quail Distributing.

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“Amazing Grace”
PHOENIX CHORALE
Charles Bruffy, conductor
with special guests Ola Gjeilo, piano and bluegrass band Fire Ridge

April 25, 2009 – Saturday evening at 7:30 p.m.
Trinity Episcopal Cathedral (100 West Roosevelt Street, Phoenix)

April 25, 2009 – Sunday afternoon at 3:00 p.m.
Camelback Bible Church (3900 East Stanford Drive, Paradise Valley)

May 3, 2008 – Sunday afternoon at 3:00 p.m.
American Lutheran Church (17200 Del Webb Boulevard, Sun City)

Tickets:
$25 General Admission
$20 Seniors (65+) and Sun City Concerts
$10 Students
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About Ola Gjeilo:  The music of Manhattan-based Norwegian composer and pianist Ola Gjeilo (b. 1978) has been performed and recorded in more than 25 countries worldwide in venues including New York’s Carnegie Hall and Alice Tully Hall, Los Angeles’ Disney Hall, Miami’s Knight Concert Hall, the Copenhagen Opera House, and the National Galleries in London and in Washington D.C.  His music has been featured on PBS in America, and on all the major Scandinavian TV channels. Gjeilo has been commissioned by several ensembles, musicians and others worldwide, such as Barbara Bonney (New England Songs, 2005), Solveig Kringelborn, Phoenix Chorale, St. Olaf College and others.  His choral music has also been performed by other elite choirs including the Kansas City Chorale, VocalEssence, and the Swedish Broadcasing Corporation’s Radiokoren.  Ola’s first solo piano recording, Stone Rose, was released in 2007 and is available in stores worldwide.  Here he performs his own lyrical music in the crossroades between classical and jazz, sometimes also supported by cello, violin, and flugelhorn.  After studying for his Bachelor’s Degree at the Norwegian Academy College of Music in London and the Juilliard School in New York, he completed his Master’s Degree in composition at Juilliard in 2006.  Ola’s publishers include Walton Music (US) and Musikk-Huset (Norway).  Walton became the exclusive publisher of Ola Gjeilo’s choral music in 2007.

About Fire Ridge: Fire Ridge is an award winning bluegrass band that plays a unique blend of traditional, contemporary and original music. Based in Prescott, Arizona, the group has been together since 2005 and plays various venues throughout the state. Fire Ridge continues to gain a solid reputation for a lively stage show and for performing top notch music. During their shows you’ll find them working their tight vocal harmonies around a single microphone, captivating the crowd with their dynamic energy. Fire Ridge won the prestigious Arizona State Bluegrass Band competition in November 2006 and 2008 at the Wickenburg Bluegrass Festival and 3rd place in the 2008 RockyGrass Band Competition. The band consists of four outstanding musicians who have honed their talents over many years and share their love for bluegrass music every time they step out onto the stage.

About the Phoenix Chorale: The Grammy Award-winning Phoenix Chorale is regarded as one of the finest professional choral ensembles in America and is equally dedicated to the creation and performance of new music, which it intermingles with more traditional concert literature.  Audiences around the world have been treated to the sounds of the Chorale through live performances across the United States and in Canada, and in live broadcasts and recordings on radio stations across the globe.  In 2004, the Phoenix Chorale became the first North American choir to release an album on Chandos Records, one of the largest independent classical record labels in the world.  The Phoenix Chorale’s newest solo recording, Spotless Rose, was released in September 2008, and was nominated for ‘Best Classical Album’ and won a Grammy for ‘Best Small Ensemble Performance.’  In 2008, the Phoenix Chorale’s recording Grechaninov: Passion Week, was nominated for four Grammy Awards, including ‘Best Classical Album of the Year,’ ‘Best Choral Performance,’ ‘Best Surround Sound Album,’ and won a Grammy for ‘Best Engineered Album, Classical.’ Grechaninov: Passion Week is the Phoenix Chorale’s second joint-recording in a series of albums on the Chandos Record label with the Kansas City Chorale, also led by Artistic Director Charles Bruffy.  Two other joint-recordings have been released on Chandos Records, Eternal Rest (2005) and Rheinberger: Sacred Choral Works (2007), which was nominated for two Grammy Awards, ‘Best Choral Performance,’ and ‘Best Surround Sound Album.’  In its 50-year history, the Phoenix Chorale’s conductors have included Millicent Wesley (the Chorale’s first conductor from 1958), Wallace Hornibrook, Dan Durand, Vance George, Anders Öhrwall, Jon Washburn, and Charles Bruffy.  More information at www.phoenixchorale.org.

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Media Contacts:	Jen Rogers, Director of Marketing & Communications
	480-204-0101, jen@phoenixchorale.org