Valentine鈥檚 Day is months away, but is in the mood for love this weekend.
Not necessarily the red roses and white wine kinda love songs, but ones that really dig deep into love in all its shades, from the giddiness of a new romance to the irritation of a relationship in the rut.
鈥,鈥 the second concert in True Concord鈥檚 20th anniversary season, takes its name from a song co-written by True Concord鈥檚 first-ever Jocelyn Hagen and Timothy C. Takach. The 13-movement work is bookended by Eric Whitacre鈥檚 鈥淔ive Hebrew Love Songs鈥 and Brahms鈥檚 Liebeslieder Walzer (Love Song Waltzes).
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Hagen and Takach, who are married, wrote 鈥淭his is How You Love鈥 in 2017 for the Seattle, Washington, vocal ensemble Esoterics. It was the first time they had co-written a piece together.
The work sets to music texts from 10 poets interspersed with transcripts from actual couples therapy sessions from the pre-eminent therapist Ellyn Bader, cofounder of the in Menlo Park, California.
鈥淚t truly covers the gamut, but the thread that runs through is this strong bond of love throughout good times and bad,鈥 True Concord founder and music director Eric Holtan said of the piece. 鈥淚t鈥檚 constant and it prevails; it keeps them together.鈥
Hagen and Takach are no strangers to 蜜柚直播 audiences. True Concord in November 2019, months before the COVID-19 pandemic ground life to a halt, performed the 蜜柚直播 premiere of Hagen鈥檚 鈥淭he Notebooks of Leonardo da Vinci,鈥 which the ensemble is bringing back this season as part of its 鈥淢ozart & Hagen: Two Important Encores鈥 concert Jan. 26-28, 2024.
True Concord last season performed the world premiere of 鈥淗ere I Am,鈥 a piece the ensemble commissioned from Hagen. The performance in late January came after two years of pandemic delays and months after True Concord performed the Southwest premiere of Takach鈥檚 65-minute outer space fantasy 鈥淗别濒颈辞蝉,鈥 accompanied by elaborate video projections and narration from 鈥淪tar Trek鈥 actor John de Lancie.
True Concord Voices & Orchestra vocalist Emily Lau was among the singers last January who read texts during the world premiere of Jocelyn Hagen鈥檚 鈥淗ere I Am,鈥 which True Concord commissioned.聽
Holtan said 鈥淭his is How You Love鈥 touches on universal aspects of love that could apply to many people, set against a musical backdrop that he described as 鈥渃ontemporary but it鈥檚 tonal and lyrical.鈥
鈥淚t鈥檚 an excellent setting to all these works,鈥 he said.
This weekend鈥檚 performances will be the first time since 2010 that True Concord has performed Whitacre鈥檚 10-minute work, which uses texts from poems written in Hebrew by Whitacre鈥檚 now ex-wife Hila Plitmann. It will be the first time in a decade that the ensemble has performed the Brahms, which takes up the concert鈥檚 second half.
True Concord will perform 鈥淭his is How You Love鈥 at 3 p.m. Friday, Nov. 17, at Valley Presbyterian Church, 2800 S. Camino del Sol in Green Valley; and 7 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 18, and 3 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 19, at St. Andrew鈥檚 Presbyterian Church, 7575 N. Paseo del Norte on 蜜柚直播鈥檚 northwest side. Tickets are $23.50-$63.50 through .
Holtan said Hagen and Takach will participate in talkback conversations at the end of this weekend鈥檚 performances.
Jocelyn Hagen researched 46 prominent women whose voices are included in the text of her new work "Here I Am," commissioned by 蜜柚直播's True Concord Voices & Orchestra.
Contact reporter Cathalena E. Burch at cburch@tucson.com. On Twitter @Starburch
Cathalena E. Burch
Reporter
