As a celebration of bringing joy and music to the community, the Hinesburg Artist Series will present its 25th Anniversary St. Patrick’s Day concert. This performance will feature the beautiful Requiem for the Living, by Dan Forrest. The South County Chorus and Hinesburg Artist Series Orchestra will perform with guest artists soprano Cristina Escobedo, tenor Cameron Brownell, baritone Gary Moreau and cellist Jiwon Lee under the direction of Rufus Patrick. Performances will be at 2 p.m. and again at 4:30 p.m. on Sunday, March 17, at St. Jude Catholic Church in Hinesburg.
“This concert promises to be one of our most inspiring performances,” said Rufus Patrick, HAS Music Director and founder of the organization.
“The Requiem is incredibly moving, and we are very excited to share the joy of this spectacular music.”
The chorus and orchestra will also present A Song of Peace, May the Road Rise to Meet You, and Spirit Suite II, arranged by Mark Hayes. The HAS Orchestra will play Irish Suite, Part 2, and the HAS ensembles will perform a group of Irish music including Kesh Jig, Star of the County Down, and Coleraine Jigs.
“We are so fortunate to have this opportunity to come together to make music like this in Hinesburg,” said soprano Karen Farnsworth, who has been singing with the Hinesburg Artist Series for all of its 26 years. “We really feel a special connection with so many loyal audience members, and are always excited to see others discover the high quality we bring to a local performance.”
The Hinesburg Artist Series welcomes guest artist soprano Cristina Escobedo. She will be singing with the chorus and performing Te quiero digiste by Maria Grever and The Silver Aria from The Ballad of Baby Doe by Douglas Moore. Tenor Cameron Brownell will also be singing with the chorus and performing Simple Song from the Mass by Leonard Bernstein. Cellist Jiwon Lee is a returning guest soloist, and she will be performing a stunning arrangement of Be Thou My Vision arranged by Gary Lanier.
Tickets for the concert are $25 (free for children under 12) and available at the door or at the HAS website, hinesburgartistseries.org.
Meet the Guest Artists
Soprano Cristina Escobedo was born in Lima, Peru. Her first exposure to classical music was at the age of eight at the National Children’s Choir, where she was part of multiple performances for six years including festivals, operas, oratorios and a European tour through Italy and Switzerland. In 2019 Cristina was admitted at the Universidad Nacional de Musica of Peru where she started her vocal studies under the guidance of the well-known Peruvian soprano Maria Eloisa Aguirre. In 2021, Cristina won the 4th Prize in one of the most important singing competitions of Peru held by Radio Filarmonia. Recent performances include a Mozart Arias concert at The Unadilla theater, soprano soloist in The Messiah by Handel with the Vermont Philharmonic and her debut at Carnegie Hall this past January. Now, Cristina is getting ready to sing the role of “Anina” in La Traviata by Giuseppe Verdi with the Vienna Opera Academy in July.
Tenor Cameron Brownell is honored to be making his debut with the Hinesburg Artist Series. He is the Vocal Music Teacher at Champlain Valley Union High School and the Music Director at Charlotte Congregational Church. He is also the Assistant Conductor of Solaris Vocal Ensemble, led by Dr. Dawn Willis. Cameron holds degrees in Music Education/Voice Performance from SUNY Potsdam, The Crane School of Music and a Masters in Sacred Music from The University of Notre Dame.
Cellist Jiwon Lee is currently maintaining an active schedule as a soloist, chamber musician, and teacher in the U.S. and South Korea. Lee earned her Bachelor of Music degree at Ewha Women’s University in Seoul, Korea, and was the winner of various competitions, including the Korea Herald Competition, Seoul Arts Competition, and American Fine Arts Festival Competition.
The Hinesburg Artist Series is supported in part by the Vermont Arts Council and the National Endowment for the Arts.