Y-S Master Chorale spring concerts set this weekend

"Life — Love — Eternity" is the theme for the Yuba-Sutter Master Chorale's spring concert series, set for Saturday in Yuba City and Sunday in Marysville.

"We are doing several major works, which is always very special," said Joaquina Johnson, conductor of the Master Chorale.

"We have a wonderful chamber quartet playing for us," Johnson said, including Helen Graham and Anna Polykov on violin, David Thorp on viola and Rebekah Hood on cello. The quartet joins the women of the chorale for Giovanni Battista Pergolesi's "Stabat Mater," featuring soprano soloists Eliza Skeffington and Karen Trefzger and mezzo soprano soloists Joyce Campbell and Krissy Dodge.

"'Stabat Mater' is one of the great choral works for women in Latin," Johnson said. It's performed "both with the full chorus, solos and duets. It's a beautiful work, very inviting, and I know the audience will love it. The women's section of the chorale is very, very fine this year, and I'm excited about them performing it — and so are they.

"Our other major work is the Rutter 'Requiem,'" Johnson continued. "John Rutter is so well known throughout the world for his choral works — a wonderful composer/conductor. The 'Requiem' is interesting in that it is not just the straight text from a requiem as you would think it, like the Mozart 'Requiem,' for example. It has different sections. One of the sections is the psalm 'The Lord is My Shepherd.' Another section is 'Out of the Deep.' And then we'll have something traditional, like the 'Lux Aeterna' out of the Mass. And then we'll have the 'Pie Jesu.'

"We're going to do this with chamber orchestra — wonderful players. Especially superb is the oboe player Chris Sunahara, whom I've had perform with us before," Johnson said. In addition to Sunahara, the ensemble includes Hood on cello, Candace Livolsi on harp, Marian Metson on organ, Monique Rance on flute and Graham Thompson on percussion.

"Of course, we're delighted because we have Marian Metson playing organ for us. She is quite stunning," Johnson said.

Also on the program are "Let Their Celestial Concerts All Unite" by George Frederick Handel; "Donde Hay," a Spanish proverb, by Paul F. Page; and two pieces by Z. Randall Stroope: "I Carry Your Heart With Me," based on the poem by E.E. Cummings, and "Homeland," based on the "Jupiter" theme from "The Planets" by Gustav Holst.

"This is a very exciting, inviting concert, and I know the audience is going to love it," Johnson said. "We look forward to having you at our concert."

CONTACT Susan Benitez at 749-4773.