UPCOMING EVENTS

Lee Gwozdz and the Cathedral Festival Brass and Percussion will dazzle attendees with ceremonial music of the Baroque Period to the haunting movie film scores of today. Highlights from this surround sound experience will be J.S. Bach's famous Toccata in D Minor to selections from Andrew Lloyd Webber's Phantom of the Opera. This inaugural concert of the Cathedral Concert Series 26th Season will feature members from the Cathedral Festival Orchestra Brass and Percussion Sections including: 7 Trumpets, 4 French Horns, 3 Trombones, 3 Tubas, 4 Kettle Drums, Bass Drum and Percussion, will feature music of the late Renaissance to Contemporary Music. Attendees will hear repertoire, originally meant for Church Worship, but now associated with horror films.

Come to Kingsville for the Annual King Ranch Breakfast, visit downtown Kingsville and the King Ranch Shop then conclude with the King Ranch Holiday Spectacular 2009 with Lee Gwozdz, the Kingsville Symphony Orchestra and the Corpus Christi Cathedral Choirs! This exciting program will reflect the season of Thanksgiving and the Joy and Peace of the Holiday Season that your entire family will enjoy! ONLY 900 seats available! ONLY ONE performance! For tickets call 361-593-2803 or 800-333-5032.

This unique celebration of Guadalupe features music by the renowned San Antonio Vocal Arts Ensemble, complemented by the Cathedral Choirs and dancers with actors from Texas A&M- Corpus Christi. The Miracle of Guadalupe occurred in 1531, when the devout Nahua Indian Juan Diego saw a vision: a dark-haired, dark-skinned young woman surrounded by rays of resplendent light. She told him she was the mother of the true God and was there to love, help, and protect him and all those who placed their trust in her. According to sacred tradition, the apparitions took place from December 9th through the 12th, outside Tenochtitlan on the hillside of Tepeyac. The events of December, 1531, including the appearance of the Virgin's image on Juan Diego's cloak, or tilma, are miraculous.

This performances will marry Aztec and the colonial Spanish musical styles that fused during the colonial period - the dawning of the American Hispanic culture. The music comes from cathedral archives throughout Latin America, and has been transcribed from the original manuscripts. SAVAE uses ancient Mexican percussion instruments, as well as re productions of pre-Columbian flutes. Instruments include the Aztec double flute, clay flute, small ocarina, log drum, tall drum, small clay drum, stones, rainstick, and an assortment of rattles and shakers. The rhythmic patterns used are adapted from Canticos mexicanos, written in the 16th century by the native drummer Don Francisco Plácido.

Each year this production changes and becomes even more spectacular - drawing capacity crowds from all over the Coastal Bend. Over 200 Singers, dancers, musicians - even sheep, angels, shepherds and wisemen will melt your hearts as you become a part of the pageantry of the Birth of the Savior. Celebrating the Feast of the Epiphany (the arrival of the Magi paying homage to the God-child), this event, under the direction of Lee Gwozdz, Guadalupe Rivera, Jr. and Chrisi Carter, will feature members of the Cathedral Choirs and members from the Cathedral Festival Orchestra. A Concert Series Special that culminates the Holiday Season in the Coastal Bend - Seating passes will go fast for this one!

Recognized as one of America's finest professional male vocal ensembles, Cantus enjoys a vigorous schedule of national tours, concerts in its home of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, educational programs, and recording. The Washington Post hails the ensemble's sound as having both "exalting finesse" and "expressive power," and refers to their music-making as "spontaneous grace." The ensemble, co-founded by Artistic Director Erick Lichte, is known for adventurous programming spanning many periods and genres, including chant, Renaissance music, contemporary works, art song, folk, spirituals, world music, and pop. Cantus has toured throughout Canada and Europe. In the United States, the group has sung to great acclaim at many nationally recognized festivals and venues, including Library of Congress, San Francisco Performances, and the Oregon Bach Festival. Cantus has appeared as a special guest with the Minnesota Orchestra, and has a long-standing performing relationship with the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra. Their numerous recordings have garnered critical acclaim from Stereophile, Gramophone, Classics Today, and National Public Radio. Frequently heard on public radio stations nationwide, Cantus is regularly featured on American Public Media's Performance Today.

Come and Dance with the Stars! The World Famous, Glenn Miller Orchestra, is the most popular and sought after big band in the world today for both concert and swing dance engagements. With its unique jazz sound, the Glenn Miller Orchestra is one of the greatest bands of all time. The present Glenn Miller Orchestra was formed in 1956 and has been touring since then, playing an average of 300 live dates a year all around the world.

For the past 25 years, hundreds of singers from throughout the Coastal Bend have been members of the Cathedral Choirs, many of whom began singing in the Children's Choir Ministry. This concert will feature members of the Cathedral Music Ministry, both past and present, who will perform a major work under the Direction of Lee Gwozdz. Accompanying this Silver Anniversary Gala Concert will be the Cathedral Festival Orchestra made up of the best musicians from the symphony orchestras throughout south Texas.

Grammy®-nominated conductor Craig Hella Johnson leads 100 voices of the Conspirare Symphonic Choir and Victoria Bach Festival Chorus in an inspiring concert of dramatic vocal works.

Duruflé's Requiem is a testament of faith, comfort, and tranquility. In contrast, MacMillian's Cantos Sagrados is intensely dramatic, taking inspiration from poems on political repression in South America. This eulogy for the disappeared is a work of terrifying majesty, sweeping from tumultuous cries to tender lamentation. Timeless and contemporary, these choral masterworks celebrate the victory of the human spirit. Renowned as one of the most influential voices in choral conducting in the United States, Craig Hella Johnson brings a depth of knowledge, artistic sensitivity and imagination to his programs. As founder and Artistic Director of Conspirare, Johnson has assembled some of the finest singers in the country to create a world-class, award-winning ensemble committed to creating dynamic choral art.

Gerre Hancock, one of America's most highly acclaimed concert organists and choral directors, is Professor of Organ and Sacred Music at The University of Texas at Austin, where he and Dr. Judith Hancock are directing the Organ Performance and Sacred Music Center programs. Previously, Dr. Hancock held the position of Organist and Master of Choristers at Saint Thomas Church Fifth Avenue in New York City where, for more than thirty years, he set a new standard for church music in America.