Musica Plenti is an award-winning vocal chamber ensemble formed in Connecticut in 1987. Its members are professional singers who combine solo virtuosity with sensitive ensemble singing. Their repertoire covers a wide range of classical music from madrigals and motets to opera and modern American music. In recent years they have earned critical acclaim for commissioning works for chorus, soloists and instrumentalists.
Musica Plenti was honored to receive a 1998 Award of Merit with an Excellent Rating from the National Federation of Music Clubs for its presentations of American music. Musica Plenti also received a matching grant in 1999 from the Connecticut Commission on the Arts (now the Connecticut Commission of Culture and Tourism) for the commissioning of Artaban the Stargazer: The Story of the Fourth Wise Man, an oratorio with narration by Martha Kate Miller and music by composers Robert Puleo, John Velonis and Constance Walton. Musica Plenti performed this work numerous times. CD and score are available for purchase.
The purpose of Musica Plenti is to enrich the community-at-large by:
- Presenting a rich repertoire of music for vocal chamber ensemble, from traditional to contemporary, in an informal, intimate manner that creates a close connection with audiences.
- Encouraging the writing and performance of new compositions for vocal chamber ensemble, in order to preserve and expand the heritage of American music.
- Creating a series of musical experiences for small groups with an emphasis on young people, in which we invite and inspire the audience to explore more deeply with us the meaning, technique and power of music-making.
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Enhancing community celebrations, including charitable benefits with programs especially designed for these occasions.
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The award-winning vocal chamber ensemble Musica Plenti is celebrating its Twentieth Anniversary in an extended concert season that began in the Spring of 2007 and will run through the Fall of 2008. The group, which has been described by critics as "versatile," "exuberant," and characterized by "sensitive ensemble singing," gave its first concert at St. Luke's Episcopal Church, Darien in May, 1988.
"You could say that Musica Plenti was formed after a conversation around a kitchen table," said Robert Puleo, artistic director of the group. Puleo, a tenor and composer, Kate Humphrey, a soprano, and her husband Joe Humphrey, bass-baritone, all loved singing vocal chamber music, from medieval to contemporary. They also had extensive operatic and oratorio experience. But the opportunities to sing this varied repertoire were limited.
"Why don't we form our own group?" asked Kate Humphrey. “And we will make music aplenty,” quipped Robert Puleo. And so Musica Plenti was born. At first, it consisted of eight singers, two each of sopranos, altos, tenors and basses. The group's debut concert at St. Luke's ranged from motets by di Lasso and Jannequin through Mozart, Haydn, Brahms, and Holst to the modern "Wedding Cantata" of Daniel Pinkham.
Over the years, the group, which now consists of twelve singers, has presented programs entitled “OperAlive!” (duets, trios and ensembles from major operas); “AmericAlive!” (a panorama of American music); In Our Own Backyard” (works featuring outstanding regional composers including Alma Hamilton, Robert Puleo, John Velonis and Constance Walton); and a recent favorite, “Much Ado About Shakespeare” (madrigals old and new, opera excerpts and Broadway hits, all based on Shakespearean texts and themes). Such programs keep alive the rich heritage of vocal chamber music usually not performed by large choral groups.
Musica Plenti has also brought numerous programs to senior living centers over the years, including Edge Hill (in Stamford) and Sterling Glen (now known as Atria) and the Rosenthal Hospice at Stamford Hospital. Rehearsals are every Monday evening at Atria, 77 Third Street in Stamford at 7:30 pm.
Musica Plenti has received a number of prestigious grants and awards. The Connecticut Commission on the Arts awarded the group a major matching grant for its holiday blockbuster, “Artaban the Stargazer: The Story of the Fourth Wise Man”, with original music by Robert Puleo, Constance Walton and John Velonis (a CD is available). The National Federation of Music Clubs presented the group with an award for "Excellence in the Presentation of American Music." The New England Foundation extended a grant for the performance of Constance Walton's "Revelations."
The group's repertoire has also been enriched by two remarkable oratorios composed by its artistic director Robert Puleo: “Outcasts” highlights those in our society who have faced discrimination and prejudice; and “Cry of the Children” is a moving testament on war and peace, based upon poetry written by children who attend the United Nations International School in New York City.
Musica Plenti has performed at major concert venues in Fairfield and Westchester Counties, including the Norwalk Concert Hall; the Greenwich, New Canaan, Westport and New Rochelle (NY) Public Libraries and the Greenwich Arts Center. The group also has given concerts at many area churches and synagogues, including Christ and Holy Trinity Church, Westport, as part of numerous Westport/Weston First Night celebrations, Diamond Hill United Methodist Church (Cos Cob), Round Hill Community Church (Greenwich), Temple Beth El (Stamford), First Congregational Church (Old Greenwich) and St. Paul’s Episcopal (Riverside).
"We can't tell the full story without mentioning the two outstanding accompanists who have played with us over the years," said Robert Puleo. "Alma Hamilton was our accompanist from 1989 to 1998, and Justine Macurdy has been with us from 1998 to the present. We have also been privileged to work with gifted musicians like John Hanulik, an acclaimed oboist, who performs widely in Connecticut."
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