Message to Membership – February 3, 2022
From the Music Director …
Dear Hartford Chorale,
With well-earned optimism we turn our eyes upon our Fiftieth Anniversary concert on May 20, now adding to its rehearsals and other opportunities, four online sessions of “Rehearsal Pre-Ops” on Mondays, February 14, 21, 28, and March 7, from 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., via Zoom. These will serve as supplements to our two November conclaves devoted to this concert but will go well beyond those in that I will be in “rehearsal mode” as to details, alerts, suggestions, to every movement on the concert program. In addition, we will listen to complete works or movements, with “singing along” not only permitted but encouraged. These are strictly “in your home” and will not be heard by others. Each session will begin with a brief vocal warm-up session led by Jack Pott. Very soon you will receive a number of rehearsal documents and aids-to-the-cause, the first one of which is attached to this message. It represents the customary general instructions that are provided to you prior to every concert undertaking. As these documents come your way, note that they are also accessible on the website where also appear this concert’s edit masters, for those who would like to get going on those.
My tenure as Music Director of the Hartford Chorale draws to a close in June, after our anniversary concert, our Beethoven concerts, our golf tournament, our annual meeting, and more. These next five months will be for me exceptional beyond measure. My seventeen years in your service have been exhilarating and rewarding more than I could ever describe. The memories are glorious and will last forever. The appointment of Jack Pott as Interim Music Director is without a doubt the correct decision and one that I know will be heralded by all of you with joy and enthusiasm. You simply could not be in better hands.
All best,
Rick
From the Board President …
Dear Hartford Chorale,
It has been a significant week for the Board of Governors. As you saw from my announcement earlier today, our beloved Maestro will be retiring as of June 30, 2022. Every member of the board took their time talking about the Maestro and the community we hold so dear. From my end, he taught me everything about the Chorale’s business from the ground up, ensuring that all rules of governance and decorum were properly followed and in the correct order. I could not be more grateful for the attention and care he gave me as president and whose board of governors kept the Chorale healthy and thriving through a global pandemic. I am also so very proud of the Maestro for adopting and learning the technological skills he didn’t have to embrace! From Zoom, to virtual auditions, document sharing, protocols on text vs. email, and formatting excel spreadsheets… he adapted to digital ways, and he did it in a heartbeat.
Please join me in thanking the Maestro for giving us all a chance to be part of something that is bigger than every one of us combined, for making it all look so easy, and for keeping us together through this endless separation. But more importantly, please join me in thanking him in creating our excellent continuity plan. We are thrilled to be welcoming Jack Pott as our Interim Music Director. Please join me in congratulating Jack on his appointment. We are in excellent hands both now and into the future.
I know that all of this news is a lot to digest. If you need to chat or if you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me or any member of the board. Until I write to you again, have a wonderful week and weekend.
Lalitha