Concert Chorale

Texts & Translations 

Verleih uns Frieden

translation © by Choongwoo Steve Ko.  Reprinted by permission.

Der Psalm 42

translation by Choongwoo Steve Ko.  Reprinted by permission.

O Clap Your Hands

O clap your hands together, all ye people; O sing unto God with the voice of melody. For the Lord is high and to be feared; he is the great King of all the earth. He shall subdue the people under us, and the nations under our feet. He shall choose out an heritage for us, even the worship of Jacob, whom he loved.

God is gone up with a merry noise, and the Lord with the sound of the trumpet. O sing praises, sing praises unto our God: O sing praises unto the Lord our King. For God is the King of all the earth: sing ye praises with the understanding. God reigneth over the heathen: God sitteth upon his holy seat. For God, which is highly exalted, doth defend the earth, as it were with a shield.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost; as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Psalm 47, the Bible, King James Version, public domain

“Suite” de Lorca

translation by Michael Follis. Reprinted by permission. 

Afro-American Fragments

Song for Billie Holiday
What can purge my heart of the song and the sadness?
What can purge my heart but the song of the sadness?
What can purge my heart of the sadness of the song?

Do not speak of sorrow with dust in her hair,
Or bits of dust in eyes A chance wind blows there
The sorrow that I speak of is dusted with despair

Voice of muted trumpet, cold brass in warm air.
Bitter television blurred by sound that shimmers, Where?

Feet o’ Jesus
At the feet o’ Jesus, Sorrow like asea.
Lordy, let yo’ mercy
Come driftin’ down on me.
At yo’ feet I stand.
O, ma little Jesus, please reach out yo’ hand.

Fire
Fire, Fire, Lord!
Fire gonna burn ma soul!

I ain’t been good, I ain’t been clean
I been stinkin’, lowdown, mean.

Fire, Fire, Lord!
Fire gonna burn ma soul!

Tell me, brother. Do you believe if you wanta go to heaben
Got to moan an’ grieve

Fire, Fire, Lord!
Fire gonna burn ma soul!

I been stealin’, been tellin’ lies,
Had more women than Pharaoh had wives

public domain

Lullaby

The stars are twinkling in the skies, 
The earth is lost in slumbers deep;
So hush, my sweet, and close thine eyes,
And let me lull thy soul to sleep.
Compose thy dimpled hands to rest,
And like a little birdling lie
Secure within thy cozy nest
Upon my loving mother breast,
And slumber to my lullaby,
So hushaby—O hushaby.
The moon is singing to a star
The little song I sing to you;
The father sun has strayed afar,
As baby’s sire is straying too.
And so the loving mother moon
Sings to the little star on high;
And as she sings, her gentle tune
Is borne to me, and thus I croon
For thee, my sweet, that lullaby
Of hushaby—O hushaby.
There is a little one asleep
That does not hear his mother’s song;
But angel watchers—as I weep—
Surround his grave the night-tide long.
And as I sing, my sweet, to you,
Oh, would the lullaby I sing—
The same sweet lullaby he knew
While slumb’ring on this bosom too—
Were borne to him on angel’s wing!
So hushaby—O hushaby.
 

public domain

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About the Artists

Choongwoo Steve Ko

Choongwoo Steve Ko, a native of South Korea, is a second year Doctoral Student in Choral Conducting at the Butler School of Music where he studies with Dr. J.D. Burnett and is conductor of the University Tenor/Bass Chorus. Prior to his doctoral studies, Ko taught secondary music at Keswick Christian School in Florida. Steve, first prize winner of American Choral Directors Association Composition Focus Prize, is also a prolific composer whose compositions focus on biculturalism based on his Korean-American ethnicity. His compositions are published through Choruscenter, in Seoul, Korea and Hinshaw music. Ko’s research is focusing on the pedagogical method of authentic diction on Korean choral music and on the female dominant social phenomena in the Korean choral music composition. Ko holds a Master of Music in Choral music from University of Southern California where he studied with Dr. Jo-Michael Scheibe, a Bachelor of Science in Music from Eastern Michigan University, and a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor.

J.D. Burnett

Dr. J.D. Burnett enjoys a varied career as a conductor, singer, and teacher. In the Butler School of Music at the University of Texas, he serves as Director of Choral Activities, conducts the UT Concert Chorale, and teaches courses in graduate choral conducting and literature. Additionally, he is the founding Artistic Director of Kinnara, the premier professional chamber choir in Atlanta, Georgia. In March 2021, he was named Artistic Director of Orpheus Chamber Singers in Dallas, and assumed the role on January 1, 2022. Formerly, he was Associate Professor of Music and Associate Director of Choral Activities at the University of Georgia Hugh Hodgson School of Music. He has served as Assistant Director of the Dallas Symphony Chorus, conductor of the New Jersey Youth Chorus Young Men’s Ensemble, Associate Conductor of the Masterwork Chorus of New Jersey, and Acting Director of Choral Activities at Montclair State University.

eric Newell

Eric Newell is in his first year pursuing the Doctor of Musical Arts in Choral Conducting at the Butler School of Music, where he studies conducting with Dr. J.D. Burnett and conducts the University Treble Chorus, as well as assists with the Concert Chorale. Outside of UT, Eric also serves as Assistant Director of Sacred Music at St. Louis King of France Catholic Church, where he works with the King’s Choir, Children’s Choir, Contemporary Choir, and Vespers ensemble. Prior to his time in Austin, he was the Director of Choirs at the Kirby School in Santa Cruz, CA, as well as the Director of Music at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Walnut Creek. He has sung with Volti, the American Bach Soloists, and the Atlanta Master Chorale. Eric holds the Bachelor of Business Administration from Emory University and a Master of Music in choral conducting from the University of Georgia. When not conducting or singing, he loves jazz, tennis, cooking and baking.

Lili Juyeon Yoo

Based in Austin Texas, South Korean soprano Lili Juyeon Yoo is finalizing her Doctoral degree in Opera Performance at University of Texas at Austin. Last summer, Ms. Yoo joined Chautauqua Opera Company as an apprentice artist singing the role of Micaëla in La tragédie de Carmen and Ensemble in Sweeney Todd. This season, Lili made her role debut as Mimí in La bohème and will present Poulenc’s one-act opera La voix humaine. 2022-23 highlights include singing the role of Antonia in Offenbach’s Les Contes d’Hoffmann and Juliette in Gounod’s Roméo et Juliette at the Butler Opera Center. She received her Master of Music degree and Performer Diploma from Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, and she holds a Bachelor’s degree in vocal performance from Seoul National University. Ms. Yoo was trained at the Aspen Music Festival, Prague Summer Nights, and Songfest. 

Renan Branco

Renan Branco is a Brazilian collaborative pianist currently based in Austin, Texas. His passion for chamber music and innovative performance possibilities has led him to numerous festivals, masterclasses and ensembles in the past 12 years. He holds a bachelor’s degree in piano performance from the School of Communications and Arts at the University of São Paulo (2014). From 2015-2021, he worked actively as a versatile collaborative pianist. As an opera rehearsal pianist, he worked in two of Brazil’s most prestigious theaters in a wide range of operas, including works by Mozart, Verdi, Massenet, Stravinsky, Strauss, Wagner, Puccini and Britten. Prior to coming to Texas in 2021, Renan was an active chamber music performer and collaborative pianist, working mostly with choirs and ballet classes in Manaus, northern Brazil. Most recently, Renan graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a master’s degree in collaborative piano performance. He is currently pursuing a Doctor of Musical Arts degree at the same university, where he serves as a graduate teaching assistant of Dr. Colette Valentine.

sunbeam choi

Dr. Sunbeam Choi started piano at age of five and studied at the prestigious schools including Seoul Arts High School and Yonsei University in Seoul where he received the Bachelor of Music degree. He holds the Master of Music degree at The Peabody Institute of The Johns Hopkins University and Doctor of Musical Arts degree at the University of Texas at Austin where he was awarded Teaching Assistantship for teaching Group Piano Class for undergraduates. He has won various competitions including the first prize in the American Protégé International Piano Competition. After his public debut in 1996 at Seoul Arts Center Concert Hall, he has performed numerous recitals around the world including Carnegie Hall in New York. He was also featured as a soloist at a live radio show at “Classical 89 station”. As an active lecturer, he taught at Brigham Young University, Sejong University, Gwangwoon University, and Sunhwa Arts High School. Currently, he is a candidate for Master of Music in Collaborative Piano at UT Austin.

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Concert Chorale

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