SPRING CONCERT SCHEDULE
Saturday, April 27, 2013 at 7 PM
Sunday, April 28, 2013 at 3 PM
Cristo Rey Church
1120 Canyon Road, Santa Fe, NM 87505

• • • • •

Canticum Novum Chorus & Orchestra is a unique musical ensemble based in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Now in its ninth season, Canticum Novum distinguishes itself from the other fine musical organizations in Santa Fe by performing lesser-known but superb works from the vast treasure trove of music for chamber orchestra and chorus. These "unjustly neglected masterpieces" include works by marvelous Latin American baroque composers as well as less-familiar works by such well-known composers as Bach, Vivaldi, Handel, Mozart, Mendelssohn, and Brahms. Every concert includes both choral-orchestral and instrumental-only works.

Canticum Novum's innovative programming has gained a devoted following of enthusiastic fans. It also caught the attention of a Santa Fe New Mexican critic, who wrote, "The music tends to be enticing, out of the ordinary, and not heard anywhere else around." Likewise a critic for the Albuquerque Journal has written, "Canticum Novum devotes itself to producing masterful works beyond the usual played-to-death classical repertoire, and for that especially they deserve particular support. This is an ensemble well worth one's attention."

In its first eight seasons, Canticum Novum treated Santa Fe audiences to a total of forty-four concerts of more than twenty different programs. The ensemble recruits the finest regional singers and instrumentalists, and all of its concerts include outstanding vocal and instrumental soloists. Each concert performance is preceded by an informative and entertaining lecture, giving the audience some biographical, historical, and musicological background to the pieces on the program. These lectures have also become very popular.

Canticum Novum is led by artistic director and conductor Kenneth Knight, who has had a distinguished career leading many choral and instrumental groups in California and New Mexico. (His resume appears on the About Us page on this website.)

The name Canticum Novum means New Song and comes from the first verse of Psalm 96, which in Latin reads, "Cantate Domino canticum novum. (Sing to the Lord a new song.)" However, the group is not primarily religious in nature (although much of its repertoire was originally written for the church), nor is it a gospel choir, nor does it specialize in "new music." The name was chosen by Canticum Novum's founders because of its exotic appeal and its reference to singing.