Orcas: Third annual yuletide baroque concert Dec. 28

Emmanuel Episcopal Church is pleased to once again host harpsichordist George Shangrow and flutist Jeffrey Cohan performing a selection of seasonal Baroque music on Sunday, Dec. 28 at 6 p.m. They will be joined this year by special guest soprano Linda Tsatsanis.

Planned for the performance are Georg Philipp Telemann’s cantata “Was gleicht dem Adel wahrer Christen,” which he wrote for the very day of the concert, the Sunday after Christmas. Also planned is Telemann’s cantata for the second Sunday before Christmas “The Brightness of this Clear Day” (Vor des lichten Tages Schein), as well as excerpts from the Christmas Oratorio by J.S. Bach and baroque noels by other composers.

Cohan and Shangrow have performed throughout Europe and the U.S. for 35 years, premiering works written for them by many Northwest composers. Cohan has performed as soloist in 25 countries, and can “play many superstar flutists one might name under the table,” according to the New York Times. Shangrow is Music Director and founder of Orchestra Seattle and the Seattle Chamber Singers. He has conducted world premieres of six operas and numerous orchestral works, has been Director of the Seattle Conservatory of Music, and is a regular lecturer for the Orcas Island Chamber Music Festival, among many others.

Joining Cohan and Shangrow this year is Canadian-born soprano Tsatsanis, who enjoys an active and diverse career spanning the concert hall, the opera stage, and movie and television appearances, with early music performance a specialty. She has soloed with such groups as Seattle Baroque Orchestra, Seattle Choral Company, Auburn Symphony, and the Seattle Early Music Guild. She performs regularly with the Tudor Choir, Cappella Romana and the Seattle Opera Chorus, and has recently been featured at the Boston, Indianapolis and Bloomington Early Music Festivals. She can also be heard on numerous recordings, and will be releasing an album with Origin Classical in February 2009.

Admission to this always-popular concert is free, although donations will be gladly accepted to assist the Music Committee at Emmanuel, which funds an annual scholarship for a young Orcas musician to attend music camp.

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