Recent Concerts

Pop Goes the Orpheus

Verizon Hall, Tuesday, May 17, 2005
Conductor: John Shankweiler

“Pop Goes the Orpheus” was our spring concert, when we traced the history of popular songs from our Club’s founding in 1872 to the present. From the Tin Pan Alley ditties your grandfather hummed in the gaslight era, through the Roaring Twenties, the stirring ballads of World War II, and the Beatles, these were the songs everyone in America knew and sang. We remembered fondly not only such melodies as “After the Ball Is Over”, “Over the Rainbow”, and “This Is the Army”, but also offerred from the folkies and songs made popular by Boyz II Men.

Broadway on Broad Street

Academy of Music, Wednesday, February 23, 2005
Conductor: John Shankweiler

Our winter concert was “Broadway on Broad Street”, an entire evening of favorites, both old and new, from the Great White Way. We heard tunes from shows by Irving Berlin, George Gershwin, Frank Loesser, Cole Porter, Jerome Kern, Stephen Sondheim, and even ABBA (Mama Mia!). Our featured guest was Broadway diva and recording star Ann Crumb, who sang with the Club “Broadway Baby” and other hot selections. And this concert gave about 20 of our Singing Members a chance to shine in many solos, trios, and quartets.

Christmas Concert

Verizon Hall, Tuesday, December 21, 2004
Conductor: John Shankweiler

Verizon Hall was filled to capacity for our Christmas Concert this year as the Orpheus Club was joined by The Philadelphia Boys Choir and Chorale and The Fairmount Brass Quartet in presenting a wide-ranging banquet of Christmas music. The concert began with a quiet but dramatic 15th Century Franciscan processional with the now-famous melody (Oh come, oh come, Emmanuel) plus the original second choir countermelody, and ended with a rip-roaring 20th Century arrangement of The Sleigh. In between the concert included the new-to-Orpheus “Deck The Hall in 7/8 time”, and traditional Orpheus “Lo, how a rose e’er blooming,” first sung by OC in 1901. Our guests, The Philadelphia Boys Choir, with pure voice and thrilling intonation, sang with Orpheus in two John Rutter arrangements, and then with their Chorale doing a Henry Mancini arrangement of Jingle Bells, and “We three kings” from Carol Fantasy. The Fairmount Brass introduced the evening with their highly original Christmas Cheer medley, and accompanied all present (some 2500 strong) singing Christmas Carols to end the evening.

Spring Concert

Verizon Hall, Wednesday, May 5, 2004
Conductor: John Shankweiler

Our Spring Concert featured highlights from the 2004 Twelfth Night Revels show, and some new-to-Orpheus folk music from musical traditions we have not previously explored, such as the spell-binding Khorumi, based on a dance from the now-independent republic of Georgia, located between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, just south of Russia.

Our guests were Time For Three, a new String Trio consisting of Zachary DePue, violin, Nicolas Kendall, violin, and Ranaan Meyer, bass. What started as a trio of exciting young string musicians who played together for fun in their spare time has evolved into Time For Three, a charismatic ensemble with a reputation for having no musical boundaries and limitless enthusiasm. Simon Rattle recently said “Time For Three is the future of music....Three benevolent monsters, monsters of ability and technique surely, but also conveyers of an infectious joy that I find both touching and moving. I would recommend them not only for the entertainment value, but also for anyone looking to see how all types of American Music can develop, when life and passion such as this [are] breathed into it. Simply put, they’re a knockout.”

In a short time the three recent Curtis graduates have attracted attention in a variety of arenas. They recently performed at Paul Newman’s camp, Hole in The Wall Fandango XIV, which included Whoopi Goldberg, Alec Baldwin, Mikhail Baryshnikov, Joanne Woodward and others, about which Paul Newman said: “Time For Three is a gifted bunch. Very classy classically, plus a nifty ear for the lowdown mountain stuff. My hat is off to them.”

Additional Information about Time For Three

Mid-Winter Concert

Verizon Hall, Wednesday, February 25, 2004
Conductor: John Shankweiler

This concert included songs that George M. Cohan made popular a century ago, and seafaring chanteys that we”ve liked since Marshall Bartholomew in 1922 wrote them for us, Yale, and male choruses across the world. The Spirituals in this concert were new arrangements. Continuing our renewed custom, we featured theater songs and ballads from our informal “Round Table” repertoire, and we returned to works of Aaron Copland and Pablo Casals.

Our guests were The Blair Academy Singers, a select group of young men and women from The Blair Academy Concert Choir who were making their first appearance with the Orpheus Club. Their clear young voices were very well received by our Associate Members and their guests. This summer The Blair Academy Singers will be undertaking a major tour of Italian cities, concentrating on Rome, Florence, and Milan, with stops in Siena, Vicenza, and Venice.

Christmas Concert

Verizon Hall, Thursday, December 18, 2003
Conductor: Clyde R. Dengler, Jr.

The Christmas program featured a number of popular Orpheus Club Yuletide songs that have been tremendously successful over the years, balanced by a selection of new pieces. Our guests were the popular Westminster Brass, whose exquisite blend and fine arrangements are always a treat. This wonderful evening ended with the traditional Christmas Carols with the audience. The sound of 2200 people singing together, led by our Conductor Emeritus Clyde (“Bud”) Dengler, was a deeply moving experience.

Please call our Orpheus Club Hot Line for concert information and special requests at 610-644-9125.