New York Kantorei Free Music Store 1972

The New York Kantorei performs at St. Michael’s Episcopal Church on West 99th and Amsterdam as part of WBAI’s Free Music Store. Chorus and orchestra conducted by Barbara Lingelbach.

This week we present a musical treat, a concert from December 17, 1972, from the WBAI Free Music Store series, free public weekly concerts organized by Eric Salzman, former Music Director of WBAI in New York City.

Starting in March 1969, the concerts were at WBAI’s studios, a de-consecrated church on East 62nd Street.

It was a new kind of concert experience for New Yorkers, one that broke the mold of museum and music-hall concerts by boasting, among other things, free admission although audience donations paid the performers, refreshments and floor seating. The church’s excellent acoustics and eclectic schedule of musical acts packed the house, and included folk singers, chamber musicians, electronic composers, country fiddling, Brazilian percussionists, and even spoken word poets.

The series shared a group of award-winning engineers and producers, including two-time GRAMMY award winner David Rapkin, Ed Woodard, and Eric Salzman.

The Kantorei performs:

A fanfare for Diebenkorn by Eric Richards, performed by Frank Hosticka, trumpet, Jack Sholder, trumpet, and Ed Morgenstern, trumpet;

Prelude and fugue in D major by Johann Sebastian Bach, performed by Paul-Martin Maki, organ;

A carol, Joyful hearts to heaven raise; Singet frisch und wohlgemut by Hugo Distler; Alleluia, excita domine potentiam by Heinrich Isaac;

Vergine bella by Guillaume Dufay, performed by Rosalind Rees, soprano, Ruth Leach, viola da gamba, and Michael Southwell, recorder;

A medley of O magnum mysterium by Peter Maxwell Davies, Tom’s Luis de Victoria and Francis Poulenc, arranged for unaccompanied chorus;

Other soloists include Douglas Perry, tenor, and Harris Poor, bass. Recorded in stereo by Judy Sherman and Steve Rathe for WBAI’s Music Department. Hosted by Candy Cohen.


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