Ahhhh--what a wonderful evening of music! Actually, the last two evenings have been full of incredible choral music. "The Hills Are Alive..." (Somerset Hill that is!). Six choirs graced The Sacred Heart Center for a workshop led by Francisco Nunez. Francisco is a composer and conductor with a passion for weaving music into the lives of children. (See bio below). The first image is of Mr. Nunez as he conducts the choir--inspiring them to "sing it out". The second image is the obvious fun all these students were having during the performance.
Shot Thought: Struggled a bit with lighting as there are windows in the chapel. Set camera on time value priority so I could shoot at 1/100 sec. to keep subjects sharp.
Biography for Francisco Nunez:
“Francisco J. Núñez,” wrote the New York Times in 2007, “has been raising the bar for children’s music over the last decade.” As founder and artistic director of the Young People’s Chorus of New York City, he has been recognized as a trailblazer in music education—one of a rare few to have elevated the youth chorus to the ranks of serious contemporary music. Since 1988 Mr. Núñez has pursued his vision of providing young people of all ethnic, religious, and economic backgrounds with a safe haven for personal and artistic growth through music and to date has changed the lives of thousands of young people. YPC is widely recognized for its exceptional caliber and has been cited as a model of artistic excellence and diversity by the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities.
As a composer, Mr. Núñez has earned acclaim for seamlessly fusing a wide gamut of Latin cultures and musical idioms, and his works for chorus, orchestra and solo instruments have attracted leading soloists and ensembles. He wrote his first choral work, Misa Pequeña, at age 15. Since then, he has written countless compositions and arrangements for choirs, orchestras, and solo instruments, and receives numerous commissions.
Mr. Núñez also leads University Glee Club of New York City, the fifth conductor in its 117-year history, and as a guest conductor, he is sought after by professional orchestras and children’s choirs and as a master teacher and advisor for choral workshops, demonstrations, and festivals nationwide. Mr. Núñez has greatly expanded the repertoire of choral music for young people with new works commissioned from today’s most distinguished composers through his Transient Glory™ series of concerts, CDs, and publications, which are published by Boosey & Hawkes in association with Chester Novello and G Schirmer. He recently extended Transient Glory® to Radio Radiance™, a new radio, digital media and internet program, presented in partnership with WNYC New York Public Radio and American Public Media, to develop new audiences for cutting-edge choral music.
He serves as a member of the Board of Directors of Chorus America and is the recipient of numerous awards, including a 2009 ASCAP Concert Music Award, the 2009 New York Choral Society's Choral Excellence Award, and the 2005 Liberty Award from the New York Post. Hispanic Business magazine named him one of the 100 Most Influential Hispanics of 2005; GMC’s national campaign hailed him as an unsung Hispanic hero; and La Sociedad Coral Latinoamericana honored him as 2009 Man of the Year.
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