Beverly Taylor
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Capital times

12/14/2019

 

Madison Symphony orchestra & chorus

Heavenly harp and holy nights fill the hall at the 2019 Madison Symphony Christmas
by Lindsay Christians
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The Madison Symphony Christmas concert — once known as the Christmas Spectacular, held on the first weekend in December in non-“Hamilton” years — is all about tradition.

Maestro John DeMain plans his MSO seasons to be a deliberate blend of the familiar and the new. This series of three concerts in Overture Hall, playing again Saturday night and Sunday afternoon, sways toward nostalgia. There are goofy jokes and gospel carols, and violas in reindeer-antler headbands.

It’s fine if you don’t bring a Santa hat. It’s more fun if you do.


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The well-tempered ear

12/12/2017

 

UW-Madison Choral Union & CHamber Orchestra

Classical music: The UW Choral Union and UW Symphony Orchestra deliver outstanding performances of great music by Mozart and Brahms
by John W. Barker
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The program for the first concert this season by the UW Choral Union (below), mercifully, had nothing whatsoever to do with Christmas, and just offered great music.

There were only two works, one by Brahms and the other by Mozart. Surefire!

Johannes Brahms composed three relatively short works for chorus, without soloists, and orchestra. Of these, I wish conductors would get busy with two of them in particular. The Gesang der Parzen (Song of the Fates) and Nänie are simply superb works by one of the greatest of all choral composers.


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Wisconsin gazette

5/11/2017

 

Madison symphony orchestra & chorus

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Brahms ‘Requiem’ ends Madison Symphony season on a high note
MSO was joined by the Madison Symphony Chorus under the direction of Beverly Taylor. The integration of voices and instruments was without peer.
by Michael Muckian
PictureOrganist Nathan Laube
The Madison Symphony Orchestra learned long ago to cap its annual concert series with a major choral work, one that brings a lot of musicians and voices together on stage for a rousing seasonal finale. This year’s choice was Johannes Brahms’ A German Requiem, Op. 45 that struck one of the highest notes of what had been a stellar year for the orchestra at Overture Hall this past weekend.


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The well-tempered ear

12/12/2016

 

UW-Madison Choral Union & Chamber Orchestra

Classical music: The UW Choral Union delivers an eclectic non-seasonal program of music by Beethoven, Brahms and Bernstein with power and lyricism
by John Barker
Eschewing any seasonal or holiday connections, the UW-Madison Choral Union (below) gave its December concert last Friday night with a program of three “B’s”.
Once again, conductor Beverly Taylor has gone beyond stale conventions to bring us valued exposure to music outside the conventional boundaries.
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Madison Magazine

12/8/2014

 
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A "Madison Symphony Christmas": Ho-Ho-Home for the Holidays
by Greg Hettmansberger
PictureTenor Harold Meers
Friday night marked the fifth year yours truly has attended the Madison Symphony’s Christmas concert … more than long enough to know that the response is less review and more an affirmation that it remains an event that makes Madison feel like home at Christmas than any other event. In fact, John DeMain’s always-admirable blend of traditional treats and savory surprises has come to seem a little like coming back home itself: There is the extended “family” of the MSO, Madison Symphony Chorus, Madison Youth Choirs, Mt. Zion Gospel Choir, Uncle Sam (Samuel Hutchinson) at the organ, a couple of special guests and more than two thousand eager and delighted “kids” in the audience, anxious to see what our musical Santa will share with us this year.

Some things (happily) never change, and one knows that the first half will close with the “Hallelujah Chorus.” But for those who wanted more Handel and earlier, the wait wasn’t long. Following an explosive “Joy to the World” from orchestra and the MSO Chorus and Madison Youth Choirs, tenor Harold Meers took the stage for a dignified and powerful “Comfort Ye My People” and “Every Valley Shall Be Exalted.” His strong and unforced vocalism was balanced by an energetic “And the Glory of the Lord” from the MSO Chorus.


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The Capital TImes

12/6/2014

 
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MSO rings in the holidays with gospel, children's choirs and beloved classics
by Lindsay Christians
PictureCambridge, Meers
Bells were ringing all through Overture Hall Friday night as the Madison Symphony Orchestra kicked off its annual holiday concert series.

Called the Christmas Spectacular until the Radio City Rockettes threatened to get legal about it, the renamed Madison Symphony Christmas is arguably the MSO's most popular show of the year.


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Madison Magazine

4/6/2013

 
Madison Symphony Closes Season with Surprises Galore

By Greg Hettmansberger
April 6, 2013

Even before the Madison Symphony closed its 2012–13 season, attention had shifted to the celebration of John DeMain’s impending launch of his twentieth season with the orchestra next fall (along with the same round number as music director of Madison Opera). But Friday night in Overture Hall, DeMain and his ensemble—and the Madison Symphony Chorus, three vocal soloists and the venue’s magnificent organ—managed to bring our focus back to the musical business at hand. And for good measure, we were given concertmaster Naha Greenholtz in the role of soloist in a favorite concerto.

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Choral Journal

2/1/2010

 
Review of Wisdom, Wit, and Will: Women Choral Conductors on Their Art
by Anna Hamre
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Joan Catoni Conlon and her contributing authors cast a wide net with a new book, Wisdom, Wit, and Will: Women Choral Conductors on Their Art. Knitted together by the overarching, unifying theme of women in choral music, the resulting catch is expansive, varied, and thought-provoking. Given the large scope of the book and the impossibility of appropriately summarizing all articles, this review will simply talk about the contents, hopefully showing how the book will enrich the libraries of all choral conductors, especially those working in colleges and universities.

This compendium is divided into three main areas: “Our Music,” “Our Teaching,” and “Our Lives.” Within each area are multiple chapters (all at least mainly written by women) about women and/or about topics of interest to women. The chapters deal with professional development and personal histories, and they include insights on the art and education of choral music, personal and career-related advice for conductors, and concerns about gender inequities.

“Conducting the Choral-Orchestral Work” by Beverly Taylor may well become required reading in graduate programs. These instructional chapters are complete yet concise, the quality of the content matched by clarity of expression.
Choral Journal Feb 2010
Choral Journal February 2010

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New York times

10/8/2006

 
"The excellent University of Wisconsin-Madison Concert Choir, led by Beverly Taylor, delivers the text convincingly and seems at ease with its lone partner, who sometimes plays a jazzy bass line."
-Classical Recordings review of Luna Pearl Woolf: Apres Moi, le Deluge

Artes Liberales Today

2/1/1998

 
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Choral Union: blending town and gown for 104 years!

Newsletter of the College of Letters and Science
University of Wisconsin-Madison
Volume 3, Number 2
Spring 1998

"I always knew I wanted to be here," says Bev Taylor, Director of Choral Activities in the UW School of Music. "I had known of Robert Foundain for years. I had heard the chorus and visited here to observe rehearsals. When the position opened up, it was very attractive!"
   
Taylor, previously Associate Director of Choral Activities at Harvard, joined the L&S faculty in the fall of 1995 as the successor to the late Robert Fountain. She admits that stepping into the shows of such a venerated director was a daunting challenge.



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