Cappella Romana Inc.

Filing Period

Jul 1, 2009 to Jun 30, 2010

Signed

May 16, 2011

Return Version

2009v1.7

Gross Receipts

$259,158

Mission

Major Activities

Activity 2

The third series concerts in January, 2010, in Portland and Seattle, featured music from the Byzantine tradition for Christmas and Theophany (Epiphany). A nine-member ensemble of specialized Byzantine cantors drawn from across North America and from Greece performed the program, whose interpretations were informed and directed by Dr. Achilleas Chaldaiakis from Athens, Greece, an internationally recognized Byzantine chant scholar and expert. Chaldaiakis is Professor at the Department of Music Studies of the University of Athens, and director of the professional chant choir, The Masters of the Psaltic Art. This was Cappella Romana's first program of virtuoso chant in Greek from the Received Tradition as currently performed in Greek Orthodox churches around the world (rather than music of the more ancient Medieval traditions). The program was performed entirely from Byzantine Notation, a musical notational system that indicates musical intervals by a series of independent signs or neumes, along with additional signs to designate rhythmic divisions and ornamental figures. Particularly notable were rarely heard chants for the feast of Christmas, including ecstatic verses sung with Psalms in the service of the Royal Hours, which were originally performed in the presence of the Byzantine Emperors. Of this program, the Seattle Gay News wrote of this program: "the chorus' expert performances [were] strongly felt yet not showy, sober yet approaching the sublime."In February 2010, Cappella favorite Ivan Moody--composer, conductor and Orthodox priest--returned to the Pacific Northwest to conduct a mixed choir of Cappella Romana in a Serbian program featuring the Requiem for a cappella choir by renowned Serbian composer Stevan Hristic. Perhaps the most famous Serbian composer of the first half of the 20th century, Stevan Hristic brought a cosmopolitan view to Serbian cultural life, both as founder of the Belgrade Philharmonic Orchestra and director of the Belgrade Opera after completing his education abroad in central Europe. His music taps his Serbian roots, especially in his moving choral masterpiece Opelo, or Requiem. This program featured two North American premieres: the Te Deum by Rajko Maksimovic, whose Ja na Tvoj poziv touched Cappella Romana audiences so profoundly in 2006, and Seven Hymns for Saint Sava by Ivan Moody. Moody is best known to Cappella Romana audiences for his largest work to date, The Akathistos Hymn, written for the ensemble in 1998/9 and subsequently released on CD. The Oregonian called this program "an enthralling evening . The singing was sumptuous and the closing valediction--a brief, glorious efflorescence on the words 'vecnaja pamjat' (eternal memory)--arrestingly beautiful."In March 2010, Cappella Romana again presented a guest ensemble in its series, the Yale Russian Chorus led by Mark Bailey. Founded in 1953, the Yale Russian Chorus is recognized as one of the world's premier ensembles for Slavic music. For their program in Cappella Romana's series, the group performed a selection of ancient chants and romantic choral works by Bortniansky, Tchaikovsky, and Rimsky-Korsakov, performed both in Portland and Seattle. Both shows were sold to near capacity (92%). In May, 2010, the ensemble performed a concert of Byzantine chants at the second Ascending Voice Festival at Pepperdine University. This festival focuses on music stemming from Christian traditions that maintain the practice of a cappella singing, that is, singing without instruments. Following this festival, the ensemble was engaged for a three-concert tour on the Oregon coast, featuring music the Byzantine tradition. The ensemble was met with completely sold-out houses in Newport, Pacific City, and Manzanita/Neotsu with concerts on the three days of Memorial Day weekend.

Activity 3

Cappella Romana released its thirteenth recording in 2009-10, the Divine Liturgy by Greek American composer Peter Michaelides, which Gramophone magainze called "an ideal performance." The American Record Guide called it "a fascinating discovery... quite remarkable... a fascinating blend of traditional style and neoclassical effect, recalling the astringent simplicity of Igor Stravinsky's few (and rarely heard) short Orthodox choral works. ... Performance quality is outstanding... Pristine sound, excellent notes, and full texts complete thismost rewarding package." In January 2010, the ensemble completeda week-long residency of recording sessions for a future release, of never-before recorded liturgical music by Californian Tikey Zes. The single disc will comprise music from Zes's 1991/1996 setting of the Divine Liturgy, sung entirely in Byzantine Greek, for chorus and organ accompaniment. The ensemble was engaged for several outreach events in 2009-10, including performances for three fundraising events for Cappella Romana, two weddings (one Greek style and one Slavic style), a performance for a Greek festival in Beaverton, and at a Syrian Christian cultural festival in Gresham, Oregon. These events provided an excellent opportunity for Cappella Romana to be showcased in a friendly non-concert environment in order to pursue our mission of exploring music of the Christian East and West.Aggregate audiences amounted to approximately 9,000 in our series and on tour, plus approximately 100,000 in radio audiences, in North America and in Europe.

Filer

EIN

93-1124501