We are making space for you to attend the American Spirituals Concert!
A surge in ticket demand has created opportunity for a matinee performance. The program advertised for 7:00 PM on November 18 is nearing capacity. To accommodate the interest shown, a matinee performance will occur at 3:30 PM. This daytime window will be ideal for students and those preferring not to travel after dark. Experience the heart and soul of American Spirituals, performed in the exquisite space of Sacred Heart Cathedral, 711 S. Northshore Drive, Knoxville, TN 37919.
Guest Conductor Everett McCorvey will invigorate and inspire. Young people will be engaged. Adults will be captivated. The musicians will sing their hearts out.
Sacred Heart Cathedral provides an inspiring space for great music that stirs the heart and soul.
Photo taken April 29, 2018 at the Knoxville Handel Society performance of The Creation, by Joseph Haydn.
The performance of Haydn’s Creation on April 29 opened the Cathedral Concert Series to a standing-room-only audience. It was thrilling to witness the oratorio in the beautiful sacred space of Sacred Heart.
If you experienced The Creation with KHS, the impact of that evening has had profound effect. Choir, soloists, orchestra and conductor Wendell Boertje were invigorated by the eager faces of the audience. It was intimate and deeply moving. Knoxville Handel Society continues to present dynamic masterworks and promote the Choral Arts.
Dr. Everett McCorvey is Guest Conductor for American Spirituals Concert November 18
Cathedral of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus is the setting for the American Spirituals Concert. Everett McCorvey is Guest Conductor. McCorvey is founder and Music Director of internationally recognized American Spiritual Ensemble, a dynamic group of professional musicians. Four soloists from American Spiritual Ensemble will join Knoxville Handel Society to add vibrancy to this performance of American Negro Spirituals on November 18. Well-known spirituals will be powerfully presented by Knoxville Handel Society. This concert will stir hearts and spirits, and encourages broader participation in the community. Purchase tickets early to ensure your enjoyment of a spectacular event!
Tickets are available now through Knoxville Tickets at 865.656.4444 or online.
Purchase tickets here at knoxvilletickets.com.
Adults $20; groups of 4 or more $15; College students $10; K-12 Students no charge. NO CHARGE tickets for Students K -12 must be ordered in person at the Thompson-Boling Arena Box Office.
Dr. Everett McCorvey describes his early music career and a relentless pursuit of musical excellence.
The American Spiritual Concert on November 18 at 7:00 PM is an event of the Cathedral Concert Series at Sacred Heart Cathedral. The Cathedral Concert Series provides the community with opportunities to enjoy sacred and classical music and to support Community Arts. Knoxville Handel Society will present a program of well-loved spirituals, and introduce ones which may become your new favorites. Music is a universal language, with the power to unify and heal. It forges bonds of brotherhood through faith and art and inspires dialog. A special invitation is extended to our African-American community to attend this event.
Sacred Heart Cathedral’s vision for enabling arts organizations has been a gift to the Knoxville metropolitan community. Dedicated in March 2018, Cathedral of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus is an exquisite sacred space. Their extension of hospitality for the arts has created opportunities for greater community.
Almost one year has passed since the fledgling community choir, Knoxville Handel Society, brought its first concert, Handel’s Messiah Parts 2 & 3, to the Tennessee Theatre. With a commitment to perform choral masterworks and to promote Choral Art, Knoxville Handel Society presented a concert of best-loved classical masterworks November 12, accompanied by orchestra and magnificent pipe organ.
We are elated to announce our Spring Concert, The Creation, by Franz Joseph Haydn. The oratorio will be performed Sunday, April 29 at 7:00 PM in the newly completed Sacred Heart Cathedral. Many of you have watched the progress of this impressive structure over two years of construction. It is a dream come true to anticipate singing in this inspiring sacred space. We are extending this extraordinary opportunity for you to be part of the first performance of the Cathedral Concert Series in the new Most Sacred Heart of Jesus Cathedral. The multi-generational KHS choir will be enhanced by 30-piece orchestra and professional soloists: Jami Rogers-Anderson, soprano; Michael Bundon, tenor; and Andrew Wentzel, bass. Wendell Boertje, KHS Music Director, will conduct.
Hayden’s The Creation |April 29 at 7:00 PM | Cathedral of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus | 711 South Northshore Drive, Knoxville TN 37919
The Creation is the highly esteemed oratorio depicting the Creation of the world, based on the Genesis biblical account of creation, and John Milton’s poem, Paradise Lost. The KHS performance will include selected solos and choruses, somewhat abbreviated, due to the original score being quite lengthy.
Tickets for The Creation are available online at KnoxvilleTickets.com or by calling Knoxville Tickets at 865.656.4444.
Adults $20; groups of 4 or more $15; College students $10; K-12 Students no charge. We encourage purchase of tickets in advance due to the expectation of a large audience.
Plans don’t always work out as you want, but sometimes they work out better than you can imagine.
That’s the case for Knoxville Handel Society, which is in rehearsal for Haydn’s Creation, to be performed in the recently completed Cathedral of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus on Sunday, April 29 at 7:00PM. This performance will be the first in Sacred Heart’s 2018 Cathedral Concert Series, which supports the arts by providing opportunities for local, regional, national and international music ensembles to perform sacred and classical musical works for the community. That goal aligns perfectly with the purpose of Knoxville Handel Society: to perform choral masterworks and promote Choral Art.
Wendell Boertje and Don King, co-Music Directors of KHS, met 3 days after the fall concert in November. Their express purpose was to consider where The Creation would be performed. The intended venue had become unavailable and a new venue was needed. This was a big work, about a very big event, the creation of the world! Wendell was to be conductor of this performance. He felt it needed to happen in a sacred space, ideally within a cathedral—but where? Don remembered a conversation from 2016 in the formative stages of Knoxville Handel Society, when a friend casually related how he had been asked to consult on community arts involvement in the Cathedral Concert Series.
The wheels began to turn, pondering if the new cathedral might be completed by late April 2018, which was the planned concert date. Some inquiries were made, introductions were arranged, and the first meeting occurred in early December between Don King, Father David Boatner and Glenn Kahler, Director of Music and Liturgy. What a watershed moment that was! Father Boatner and Glenn listened to our vision with openness, anticipation and warmth. Excitement about the possibility gained strength. Don could hardly wait to share with Wendell. This was a blessing beyond our imaginations!
As the months and weeks have unfolded, the relationship between Sacred Heart and Knoxville Handel Society has grown. The staff’s willingness to facilitate, coordinate and support has been unparalleled. The entire team of Sacred Heart has welcomed KHS and made the journey to Creation a blessing. Knoxville Handel Society eagerly anticipates the opportunity to stand under the dome and raise our voices to the Creator. Worthy is the Lamb that was slain!
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