The annual concert of the New Britain Chorale will feature the performance of the large-scale choral and orchestral masterpiece by Antonin Dvorak.

About the New Britain Chorale:

The New Britain Chorale was founded in 1971 by Lorraine Revelle under the auspices of the New Britain Area Conference of Churches (NEWBRACC).  Its first concerts were held at St. Mary’s Church.  A six-year hiatus (1974-1979) was ended with the Chorale performing in 1980.  Since that date the Chorale has provided the people of the greater New Britain area with 19 successive programs, with Holy Cross Church as one of its venues, and has been at the First Lutheran Church since 2001.  The mission of the Chorale is to address the spiritual needs of the community through music.

The Chorale is unique in that it is open to all singers who desire the experience of singing the music of “the Masters” in a large group setting, and with orchestral accompaniment.  The chorale is a non-audition community choir open to all singers who enjoy the experience of singing the music of “the Masters”.

To visit The New Britain Chorale's Web-site 
click here

Masterpieces of Sacred Music • 

April 4 • First Lutheran Church of Reformation
              77 Franklin Square,  New Britain

April 18 • St. Paul's Church, 
                485 Alling Street, Kensington

Mozart: 
- Ave Verum Corpus
- Lacrimosa (From Requiem)
- Et incarnatus est (From Mass in c-minor)

Dvorak: Mass in D, Op. 86/B. 153

New Britain Chorale, Connecticut Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra

Free Admission

Soloists:

Stella Dayrit Roden, soprano, is recognized in southern New England as a vocal artist of both classical and contemporary music.  She has performed as a featured soloist with the Hartford Symphony Orchestra, New Britain Symphony, The Connecticut Virtuosi and numerous Connecticut chorales.  Most recently she performed Handel's Messiah with The Concert Choir of Northeastern Connecticut together with the Hartford Symphony Orchestra.  Ms. Roden's stage roles range from 'Violetta' in Verdi's La Traviata and 'Pamina' in Mozart's Die Zauberflöte, to Gilmer in Godspell and 'Eleanor of Aquitaine' in the one-woman opera Flower and Hawk by Carlisle Floyd.  Her broad musical achievements also include premiere performances of contemporary music for Connecticut Composers, Inc.  Ms. Dayrit Roden sang the soprano solo in the New Britain Chorale’s 2003 performance of Rossini’s Stabat Mater.

Currently, a doctoral student at the University of Connecticut, School of Music and part-time faculty for the Women's Studies Program, Ms. Roden holds a Master of Music degree in vocal performance from the New England Conservatory in Boston, a Bachelor of Music Education from James Madison University, Harrisonburg, VA.  She has a number of awards from the National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS), and was a finalist in the 2002 Austin Lyric Young Artist's Voice Competition and 2002 NATSAA New England Regional Competition.   This is Ms. Dayrit Roden’s second appearance with the New Britain Chorale.

Mary Connelly Pereira has been active in the Plainville Choral Society as both soloist and chorister.  She was the Soprano soloist for the Mozart Requiem with PCS and had the role of the Mother in Amahl and the Night Visitors.  Ms. Connelly Pereira has sung with the Greater New Britain Opera Company having the role of the Page in Verdi’s Rigoletto and the Mother in Puccini’s Madama Butterfly.  She has also sung with the Manitoba (Canada) Opera Chorus, the Connecticut Opera Chorus, Simsbury Light Opera and the New Britain Music Club.  Ms. Connelly Pereira made her debut with the New Britain Chorale last year singing the alto solo in Mentzel’s Mass No.1 in honor of Our Lady of Loretto and the alto solo in the World Premier of Katherine Jarzebowski’s Holocaust III: The Release.  She is a cantor and soloist at Stanislaus Church in Meriden.  This is Mary Connelly Pereira’s second appearance with the New Britain Chorale.

 Aaron Estes, native of Kansas City, Missouri, is an established performer in  theatre, musical theatre, and opera.  While pursuing his Masters Degree at McGill University in Montreal, Aaron sang such roles as Hoffmann in Les Contes d'Hoffmann, Eisenstein in Die Fledermaus, and The Director in Six Characters in Search of an Author.  Past performances include the Duke of Mantua in Rigoletto and Elder Gleaton in Carlisle Floyd's Susannah with Lake George Opera, as well as the cover of Don Jose in Opera Columbus' November 2003 production of Carmen. Aaron recently participated in the Albany Symphony's production and recording of Michael Torke's Strawberry Fields.  Upcoming projects include role of Don Jose in Carmen with Lyric Opera of Connecticut.  This is Mr. Rotaru’s first performance with the New Britain Chorale.

 Laurentiu Rotaru, bass - baritone, is a native of Romania. He lives in Hartford, is a student at Central Connecticut State University, where he is majoring in music performance, and is a bass leader and soloist for the South Congregational Church of Glastonbury. He performed as Il Comandatore in the opera Don Giovanni by Mozart, as Mr. Jenks in the opera The Tender Land by Aaron Copland, and as Dr. Grenvil in the opera  La Traviata by Giuseppe Verdi. In 2001 he performed live for the Festival "Tinere Talente" of Ramnicul Valcea-Romania with the Philharmonic Orchestra "Ion Dumitrescu", and in 2002 at the Romanian Festival in New York. He has toured USA and Canada, performing as a soloist of a choir composed of students and graduates of the Theological Institute of Bucharest.  He started his intensive music training at The Conservatory of Bucharest - Romania and he performed for one year at The National Opera of Bucharest. He also was a soloist of the "divine Harmony" choir of Bucharest, touring Romania, Greece, and Italy. On February 28, 2004 he participated at The National Association of Teachers of Singing competition—Connecticut Chapter, Advanced Division - where he won the Second Prize. His repertoire is unusually extensive and includes works composed by classic, romantic and modern authors.  This is Mr. Rotaru’s first performance with the New Britain Chorale.