Can opposites attract to create beauty? H+H brings this question to life with Handel’s L’Allegro, il Penseroso ed il Moderato, his creative musical setting of the poetry of John Milton. Handel’s most celebrated masterpiece before Messiah, this stunning ode to the human spirit explores the joyful extrovert and the contemplative introvert hidden within us all. No matter how you see the world, Handel’s music beautifully captures each persona, moving us to embrace one another’s similarities and differences. Bring your mirror image and commune with this vivid music.

Performed by

Jonathan Cohen, conductor
Joélle Harvey, soprano
Paul Appleby, tenor
Michael Sumuel, bass-baritone
Regie Gibson, spoken word artist
H+H Orchestra and Chorus

Can opposites attract to create beauty? H+H brings this question to life with Handel’s L’Allegro, il Penseroso ed il Moderato, his creative musical setting of the poetry of John Milton. Handel’s most celebrated masterpiece before Messiah, this stunning ode to the human spirit explores the joyful extrovert and the contemplative introvert hidden within us all. No matter how you see the world, Handel’s music beautifully captures each persona, moving us to embrace one another’s similarities and differences. Bring your mirror image and commune with this vivid music.

Performed by

Jonathan Cohen, conductor
Joélle Harvey, soprano
Paul Appleby, tenor
Michael Sumuel, bass-baritone
Regie Gibson, spoken word artist
H+H Orchestra and Chorus

Gene will be joining Bach Vespers at Wellesley Hills Congregational Church in Wellesley, MA for the first time, performing as the tenor soloist in BWV 77 with the Wellesley Hills Bach Collegium choir & period orchestra under the direction of Dr. Will Cooper

Free will offering

Music hardly gets more dramatic than Mozart’s powerful opera, Don Giovanni. The 2026 Summer Festival concludes with a concert performance of DG featuring vocal soloists, chorus, & period orchestra. Sung in Italian with projected English supertitles.

Thrill to the soaring music of the story of Puccini’s heroine of the Arts in this enduring and memorable opera, illuminating the conflicts between purity of heart, love of country, and lust for power.

Tosca, set in June 1800, in the turmoil of the Napoleonic upheaval, is a powerful story blending politics, romantic love, and devotion, combined with the insidious worm of jealousy. The action catapults Tosca into the hands of the evil Scarpia while her lover Cavaradossi is tragically pulled into the intrigue.

And this season we perform in an exciting new theater venue, the performance space at The Morgan school in Clinton, home to many other great arts programs including the George Flynn Classical Concerts. This audience-friendly theater will provide a magnificent space for this performance of Puccini’s tragic masterpiece.

Opera Theater of Connecticut’s presentation will feature beautiful period costumes and a large and rousing chorus in the famous “Te Deum”. Performances will be accompanied by Opera Theater of Connecticut’s orchestra, starring a talented professional cast.

Tosca will be presented in “concert staging”, with costumes and integral sets and props to bring a performance that focuses even more clearly on the glorious and moving music that has made Puccini’s opera a masterpiece!

The general admission tickets are $65 for adults, $60.00 for seniors, and $30.00 for children under 18.

And don’t forget that you can learn much more about the opera by attending OperaTalk, a 30-minute discussion of the opera led by Artistic Director Alan Mann. OperaTalk tickets are $5

CAST and STAFF

Floria Tosca: Rochelle Bard

Mario Cavaradossi: Daniel Juárez

Baron Scarpia: David Pittsinger

Cesare Angelotti: Andrew Martens

The Sacristan: Rod Nelman

Spoletta: Gene Stenger

Sciarrone: Michael McAvoy

The Jailer: Patrick Scully

Shepherdess: Leah Brzyski

Conductor/Music Director: Kyle Swann

Staging Director/Conceived by: Alan Mann

Thrill to the soaring music of the story of Puccini’s heroine of the Arts in this enduring and memorable opera, illuminating the conflicts between purity of heart, love of country, and lust for power.

Tosca, set in June 1800, in the turmoil of the Napoleonic upheaval, is a powerful story blending politics, romantic love, and devotion, combined with the insidious worm of jealousy. The action catapults Tosca into the hands of the evil Scarpia while her lover Cavaradossi is tragically pulled into the intrigue.

And this season we perform in an exciting new theater venue, the performance space at The Morgan school in Clinton, home to many other great arts programs including the George Flynn Classical Concerts. This audience-friendly theater will provide a magnificent space for this performance of Puccini’s tragic masterpiece.

Opera Theater of Connecticut’s presentation will feature beautiful period costumes and a large and rousing chorus in the famous “Te Deum”. Performances will be accompanied by Opera Theater of Connecticut’s orchestra, starring a talented professional cast.

Tosca will be presented in “concert staging”, with costumes and integral sets and props to bring a performance that focuses even more clearly on the glorious and moving music that has made Puccini’s opera a masterpiece!

The general admission tickets are $65 for adults, $60.00 for seniors, and $30.00 for children under 18.

And don’t forget that you can learn much more about the opera by attending OperaTalk, a 30-minute discussion of the opera led by Artistic Director Alan Mann. OperaTalk tickets are $5

CAST and STAFF

Floria Tosca: Rochelle Bard

Mario Cavaradossi: Daniel Juárez

Baron Scarpia: David Pittsinger

Cesare Angelotti: Andrew Martens

The Sacristan: Rod Nelman

Spoletta: Gene Stenger

Sciarrone: Michael McAvoy

The Jailer: Patrick Scully

Shepherdess: Leah Brzyski

Conductor/Music Director: Kyle Swann

Staging Director/Conceived by: Alan Mann

For the final program of the season, every note awakens the soul, reaffirming music’s timeless power to guide us toward joy and meaning—even when none seems to be found. Led by choral director James Burton, “Boston’s best professional chorus” (The Boston Musical Intelligencer) delivers a concert experience unlike any other in our season, showcasing the transcendent music of Bach, Brahms, Gesualdo, and more–reminding us that in music, we can rediscover hope.

Music:

Schütz: Deutsches Magnificat, SWV 494
Kuhnau: Tristis est anima mea
J.S. Bach: Komm, Jesu, Komm, BWV 229
Brahms: Warum ist das licht gegeben
Gesualdo: Miserere Mei
Scarlatti: Stabat Mater

Performed by:

James Burton, conductor
H+H Chorus

For the final program of the season, every note awakens the soul, reaffirming music’s timeless power to guide us toward joy and meaning—even when none seems to be found. Led by choral director James Burton, “Boston’s best professional chorus” (The Boston Musical Intelligencer) delivers a concert experience unlike any other in our season, showcasing the transcendent music of Bach, Brahms, Gesualdo, and more–reminding us that in music, we can rediscover hope.

Music:

Schütz: Deutsches Magnificat, SWV 494
Kuhnau: Tristis est anima mea
J.S. Bach: Komm, Jesu, Komm, BWV 229
Brahms: Warum ist das licht gegeben
Gesualdo: Miserere Mei
Scarlatti: Stabat Mater

Performed by:

James Burton, conductor
H+H Chorus

Gene will be making his debut with the Houston-based chamber ensemble, WindSync performing as the tenor soloist in Mahler’s Das Lied von der Erde (The Song of the Earth) as part of WindSync’s 2026 OnStage OffStage Chamber Music Festival.

Ellie Sutherland, mezzo-soprano

Gene Stenger, tenor

The Balourdet Quartet:

Craig Hauschildt

Ethan Ahma

Yvonne Chen

Chelsea De Souza

Austin Lewellen

The bringing together of two venerable traditions–on the one hand, two extraordinary works from the German Lutheran tradition which meditate on the release of death and the joys that await, and on the other hand, music of comfort from the Gospel tradition and where and how these two worlds intersect. BCSD is joined by Ken Anderson and the Martin Luther King Jr. Community Choir.

G.P. Telemann  
Du aber Daniel gehe hin TVWV 4:17  

J.S. Bach  
Gottes Zeit ist die allerbeste Zeit ‘Actus Tragicus’
BWV 106  

Including music from the Gospel tradition rooted in a triumphant send-off celebrating the end of earthly struggles with the Martin Luther King Community Choir.  

SOLOISTS
Margaret Carpenter Haigh, soprano  
Reginald Mobley, countertenor  
Gene Stenger, tenor  
David Tinervia, bass

This performance will mark Gene’s debut with Bach Collegium San Diego

The bringing together of two venerable traditions–on the one hand, two extraordinary works from the German Lutheran tradition which meditate on the release of death and the joys that await, and on the other hand, music of comfort from the Gospel tradition and where and how these two worlds intersect. BCSD is joined by Ken Anderson and the Martin Luther King Jr. Community Choir.

G.P. Telemann  
Du aber Daniel gehe hin TVWV 4:17  

J.S. Bach  
Gottes Zeit ist die allerbeste Zeit ‘Actus Tragicus’
BWV 106  

Including music from the Gospel tradition rooted in a triumphant send-off celebrating the end of earthly struggles with the Martin Luther King Community Choir.  

SOLOISTS
Margaret Carpenter Haigh, soprano  
Reginald Mobley, countertenor  
Gene Stenger, tenor  
David Tinervia, bass

This performance will mark Gene’s debut with Bach Collegium San Diego.

Considered to be the summation of all the composer’s works—if not his greatest—Bach’s Mass in B Minor is nothing short of a masterpiece. Full of lush harmonies and intricate orchestra line, it magnificently weaves together orchestra and vocalists to create a sublimely transcendent work.

Featuring:

Eckart Preu, conductor

Gene Stenger, tenor

ChoralArt, choir

Join the artists for a pre-concert conversation inside the hall at 6:00 PM.

This concert can be heard on Maine Public Classical on May 13, 2026 at 8:00 PM.

Considered to be the summation of all the composer’s works—if not his greatest—Bach’s Mass in B Minor is nothing short of a masterpiece. Full of lush harmonies and intricate orchestra line, it magnificently weaves together orchestra and vocalists to create a sublimely transcendent work. 

Featuring:

Eckart Preu, conductor

Gene Stenger, tenor

ChoralArt, choir

Join the artists for a pre-concert conversation inside the hall at 1:30 PM.

This concert can be heard on Maine Public Classical on May 13, 2026 at 8:00 PM.

Featuring True Concord Choir & Chamber Players

Highlights from Bernstein’s West Side Story & choral arrangements of hits from The Great American Songbook

The perfect culmination of True Concord’s season The American Dream: music from the iconic American musical West Side Story and The Great American Songbook.

Swing to The Great American Songbook, the American pop music of the 1920’s to 50’s, with sounds and songs that reflect who we were and where we came from. When you hear these songs, you know them! This is the music that is in our cultural DNA.

Featuring True Concord Choir & Chamber Players

Highlights from Bernstein’s West Side Story & choral arrangements of hits from The Great American Songbook

The perfect culmination of True Concord’s season The American Dream: music from the iconic American musical West Side Story and The Great American Songbook.

Swing to The Great American Songbook, the American pop music of the 1920’s to 50’s, with sounds and songs that reflect who we were and where we came from. When you hear these songs, you know them! This is the music that is in our cultural DNA.

Featuring True Concord Choir & Chamber Players

Highlights from Bernstein’s West Side Story & choral arrangements of hits from The Great American Songbook

The perfect culmination of True Concord’s season The American Dream: music from the iconic American musical West Side Story and The Great American Songbook.

Swing to The Great American Songbook, the American pop music of the 1920’s to 50’s, with sounds and songs that reflect who we were and where we came from. When you hear these songs, you know them! This is the music that is in our cultural DNA.

Tenor Gene Stenger as The Evangelist

BBS choral director James Bagwell leads soloists, chorus, and orchestra in two performances of the dramatic St. John Passion, Bach’s earliest surviving work in the genre and predecessor to his powerful St. Matthew Passion. These are Berkshire Bach’s first performances of St. John Passion since 1995 and promise to be major choral events in our region. Come hear the statement work that established Bach’s reputation in the Leipzig church music community at his first Easter in the city.

The program lasts 2 hrs 45 minutes and has one intermission about 30 minutes into the work where, in Bach’s time, the music paused for the church sermon.

Sunday, April 12, 2026 | 3pm
Troy Savings Bank Music Hall |Troy, NY
Tickets: 518-273-0038 • tickets.troymusichall.org
Box Office Hours:  Mon-Fri, 10am-3pm

Tenor Gene Stenger as The Evangelist

BBS choral director James Bagwell leads soloists, chorus, and orchestra in two performances of the dramatic St. John Passion, Bach’s earliest surviving work in the genre and predecessor to his powerful St. Matthew Passion. These are Berkshire Bach’s first performances of St. John Passion since 1995 and promise to be major choral events in our region. Come hear the statement work that established Bach’s reputation in the Leipzig church music community at his first Easter in the city.

The program lasts 2 hrs 45 minutes and has one intermission about 30 minutes into the work where, in Bach’s time, the music paused for the church sermon.

Saturday, April 11, 2026 | 3pm
BerkshireBach.org/events
First Congregational Church | Great Barrington, MA

Join the Rockefeller Chapel Choir and Motet Choir, directed by James Kallembach, and a professional baroque orchestra with soloists Gene Stenger as the Evangelist, Sumner Thompson as Jesus, Ryne Cherry as Pilate, and aria soloists Ashley Brewer, Michaël Hudetz, Jeannette Lee, and Anne Rasmussen.

If you have any questions about access or to request a reasonable accommodation that will facilitate your full participation in this event such as ASL interpreting, captioned videos, Braille or electronic text, food options for individuals with dietary restrictions, etc. please contact the event organizer.

Concert Time: 7:30pm CDT (8:30pm EDT)

Campus: Hyde Park Campus

Location: Rockefeller Memorial Chapel

Cost: Tickets: $35 general admission; Students free

Join us for our annual Lent concert featuring Johann Sebastian Bach’s St. John Passion—a gripping and deeply moving account of Christ’s final hours, and one of Western music’s greatest masterpieces. Through intimate arias, urgent choruses, and some of the most beautiful chorales ever written, Bach brings the Passion story vividly to life with unmatched emotional and spiritual depth. Whether you’re hearing it for the first time or returning to a cherished favorite, this powerful work offers a profound musical gateway into the heart of Holy Week.

Gene will be joining the Fifth Avenue Chamber Choir and Orchestra under the direction of Dr. Ryan Jackson, singing the role of the Evangelist in Bach’s St. John Passion.

Both available in-person and via livestream .

Seraphic Fire’s annual candlelight concerts - Florida’s most celebrated musical experience - blend ancient music with contemporary masterpieces, creating an ethereal, immersive experience. Featuring music throughout history with thematic connections to water and nature, the finest singing ensemble set in candlelight will take your breath away. Guest conductor Arianne Abela makes her Seraphic Fire debut in this ethereal sonic feast.

Program Includes:

Super flumina babylonis - GIOVANNI PIERLUIGI DA PALESTRINA

Canticum calamitatis Maritimae - JAAKKO MÄNTYÄRVI

Seraphic Fire’s annual candlelight concerts - Florida’s most celebrated musical experience - blend ancient music with contemporary masterpieces, creating an ethereal, immersive experience. Featuring music throughout history with thematic connections to water and nature, the finest singing ensemble set in candlelight will take your breath away. Guest conductor Arianne Abela makes her Seraphic Fire debut in this ethereal sonic feast.

Program Includes:

Super flumina babylonis - GIOVANNI PIERLUIGI DA PALESTRINA

Canticum calamitatis Maritimae - JAAKKO MÄNTYÄRVI

Seraphic Fire’s annual candlelight concerts - Florida’s most celebrated musical experience - blend ancient music with contemporary masterpieces, creating an ethereal, immersive experience. Featuring music throughout history with thematic connections to water and nature, the finest singing ensemble set in candlelight will take your breath away. Guest conductor Arianne Abela makes her Seraphic Fire debut in this ethereal sonic feast.

Program Includes:

Super flumina babylonis - GIOVANNI PIERLUIGI DA PALESTRINA

Canticum calamitatis Maritimae - JAAKKO MÄNTYÄRVI

Seraphic Fire’s annual candlelight concerts - Florida’s most celebrated musical experience - blend ancient music with contemporary masterpieces, creating an ethereal, immersive experience. Featuring music throughout history with thematic connections to water and nature, the finest singing ensemble set in candlelight will take your breath away. Guest conductor Arianne Abela makes her Seraphic Fire debut in this ethereal sonic feast.

Program Includes:

Super flumina babylonis - GIOVANNI PIERLUIGI DA PALESTRINA

Canticum calamitatis Maritimae - JAAKKO MÄNTYÄRVI

Two of Bach’s powerful works usher us into the season of renewal and hope. This sonic journey through rich orchestral timbres, contemplative arias, and intense polyphony leads to celebratory strains of joy.

Gene will be performing the tenor aria “Deposuit potentes” from the Magnificat.

Two of Bach’s powerful works usher us into the season of renewal and hope. This sonic journey through rich orchestral timbres, contemplative arias, and intense polyphony leads to celebratory strains of joy.

Gene will be performing the tenor aria “Deposuit potentes” from the Magnificat.

Two of Bach’s powerful works usher us into the season of renewal and hope. This sonic journey through rich orchestral timbres, contemplative arias, and intense polyphony leads to celebratory strains of joy.

Gene will be performing the tenor aria “Deposuit potentes” from the Magnificat.

Composed in 1724, the St. John Passion is a grand and turbulent work produced at the height of Bach’s creative and expressive powers. The foreboding restlessness and tension in the opening chorus propel us into the inner world of John the Evangelist and his dramatic witness of betrayal, torment, and transfiguration in the gospel narrative.  

 Unlike the St. Matthew Passion’s broad themes, St. John explores our personal experience of suffering, anguish, fear, loss, and the enduring sustenance of hope. Amid it all, Bach’s glorious orchestration, counterpoint, and harmonic language sharpen each exquisite moment, from the severe to the sublime. 

Gene will be performing the tenor arias in the St. John Passion.

Composed in 1724, the St. John Passion is a grand and turbulent work produced at the height of Bach’s creative and expressive powers. The foreboding restlessness and tension in the opening chorus propel us into the inner world of John the Evangelist and his dramatic witness of betrayal, torment, and transfiguration in the gospel narrative.  

 Unlike the St. Matthew Passion’s broad themes, St. John explores our personal experience of suffering, anguish, fear, loss, and the enduring sustenance of hope. Amid it all, Bach’s glorious orchestration, counterpoint, and harmonic language sharpen each exquisite moment, from the severe to the sublime. 

Gene will be performing the tenor arias in the St. John Passion.

Composed in 1724, the St. John Passion is a grand and turbulent work produced at the height of Bach’s creative and expressive powers. The foreboding restlessness and tension in the opening chorus propel us into the inner world of John the Evangelist and his dramatic witness of betrayal, torment, and transfiguration in the gospel narrative.  

 Unlike the St. Matthew Passion’s broad themes, St. John explores our personal experience of suffering, anguish, fear, loss, and the enduring sustenance of hope. Amid it all, Bach’s glorious orchestration, counterpoint, and harmonic language sharpen each exquisite moment, from the severe to the sublime. 

Gene will be performing the tenor arias in the St. John Passion