The nationally recognized chamber choir The Crossing has just announced its 20th season, a celebration and continuation of the music it’s performed since forming in 2005. Hailed as “America’s most astonishing choir” by The New York Times, the ensemble has long performed music that addresses a multitude of issues, from environmentalism to politics and all that’s between. This season, however, carries with it a particular title more in line with the thinkers who bring forth solutions to these kinds of issues.
“Transcendental Idealists,” the title of the 20th season, invokes and honors great philosophers of the past. Conductor Donald Nally promises “a season of questions, echoing those of Immanuel Kant: What can we know? What should we do? What may I hope?” These questions, which Nally says may go unanswered, set up a gravity-like pull for listeners.
This season will include a bouquet of new music and local or regional premieres, starting with What belongs to me?, a program of new music from Ayanna Woods, David Lang, Shara Nova, and Gabriela Ortiz. This piece focuses on how we relate to the Earth, our histories and our bodies through capitalistic and psychological lenses, and will be performed on Sept. 6 at Gettysburg College and Nov. 15 at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill.
Can We Know the Sound of Forgiveness? hits the stage at Zankel Hall within Carnegie Hall for a New York premiere on Oct. 18. The five-movement piece by Mexican composer Gabriela Ortiz speaks from the perspective of the Earth, the Land, the Soil, and the Sand to immerse viewers and deliver them hope in trying times. The premiere will be preceded by a workshop preview performance of Can We Know the Sound of Forgiveness? on Oct. 16 at The Performance Garage in Philadelphia.
David Lang’s poor hymnal poses the question “if a community placed the most challenged among us at the center of its practice, what would its hymnal sound like?” Following its auspicious premiere in Philadelphia last December, poor hymnal returns to The Crossing’s program for seven shows throughout the season: in Philadelphia on Dec. 20 and 22; in New York on Dec. 21; at Princeton University on Feb. 4; and in Iowa and Nebraska later in February.
The Crossing’s Philadelphia performance on Feb. 7 will feature both the world premiere of Sebastian Currier’s Mysterium and the North American premiere of Linda Catlin Smith’s Folio. Both pieces fixate on philosophical niches, with Mysterium leaning into questions about life and its defining aspects such as span and purpose, while Folio takes root in the letters of Emily Dickinson.
Also in February, The Crossing collaborates with the Boston Symphony Orchestra to present Gabriela Ortiz’s Revolución diamantina (Glitter revolution). The piece and title are inspired by the Glitter March, a 2019 incident where protesters threw pink glitter on Mexico City’s chief of police following the mishandling of the rape of a woman by police officers. Three performances will be held in Boston, on Feb. 27 and 28 and March 1.
On June 14 in Philadelphia, The Crossing will reunite with Gavin Bryars to celebrate his ninth decade and their numerous collaborations over the years. Bryars will draw from The Last Days of Immanuel Kant, an essay by Thomas De Quincy.
To wrap up the season, The Crossing performs the New York premiere of Aaron Hegelson’s The Book of Never. An adaptation of the esoteric Novgorod Codex, an unearthed text reading back about one thousand years that was the attempt of a 10th-century monk to preserve the story of his village. The adaptation covers Ukraine’s history in that time, making an implicit comment on the nation’s war with Russia. The final performance of The Crossing’s 2024-2025 season will take place on June 20 at St. Peter’s Church in New York City.
For more information regarding The Crossing’s upcoming schedule, including dates, times, locations and programs, visit crossingchoir.com/upcoming.