Serenity – Choral Music from Fauré to Prauliņš Meridian & Irene Messoloras

• Gabriel Fauré (1845 - 1924): Pie Jesu, arr. Barnaby Smith:
• 1 Fauré: Pie Jesu, arr. Barnaby Smith 03:39
• John Rutter (b. 1945): God Be in My Head:
• 2 Rutter: God Be in My Head 01:44
• Uģis Prauliņš (b. 1957): Missa Rigensis:
• 3 Prauliņš: Missa Rigensis: Kyrie Eleison 03:55
• Hanna Havrylets (1958 - 2022): Prayer:
• 4 Havrylets: Prayer 04:30
• John Tavener (1944 - 2013): Mother of God, Here I Stand:
• 5 Tavener: Mother of God, Here I Stand 02:44
• Total Runtime 16:32

Info for Serenity – Choral Music from Fauré to Prauliņš

“With Serenity, we aimed to create a listening experience that breathes, that carries the weight of human longing, and that allows room for reflection. This recording is deeply personal to me. Each piece was chosen not only for its beauty but for the way it invites us into a space of stillness and soulful contemplation.” – Irene Messoloras

Grace Davidson, soprano
Meridian
Irene Messoloras, conductor

Grace Davidson
is a British soprano who specialises first and foremost in the performance and recording of Baroque music.

Grace grew up in a house whose hallway was entirely filled by a grand piano which was being stored for a friend of the family – music was physically unavoidable. She learned the piano and the violin but it was singing that she loved best. Taken to ‘Cats’ when she was three years old she sang along throughout or, rather, whenever her mother’s hand wasn’t clamped over her mouth. And it was her singing that won her a scholarship to the Royal Academy of Music where she won the Early Music prize and gained her degree and postgraduate. In 2016 Grace was appointed an Associate of The Royal Academy Of Music.

Since then she has worked as a soloist with leading Baroque ensembles, under the batons of Sir John Eliot Gardner, Paul McCreesh, Philippe Herreweghe and Harry Christophers.

Her discography includes a decade of recordings with The Sixteen, many of which feature her as soloist – Handel’s Jeptha (as Angel), Dixit Dominus, Monteverdi’s Vespers of 1610, Pianto della Madonna, Acis and Galatea (as Galatea) and the Lutheran Masses of Bach. On Radio Three’s ‘Building a Library’, her singing in Fauré’s Requiem (with the London Symphony Orchestra and Tenebrae, Nigel Short conducting) was reviewed by Richard Morrison quite simply: “Grace Davidson’s Pie Jesu is matchless”.

Grace’s purity of tone has attracted many of the leading contemporary composers to write for her, most notably Max Richter, who chose her as the solo singer for many of his works, such as Sleep. This piece – lasting all night – has now been performed all over the world, including a performance in 2019 on the Great Wall of China.

Recent solo recordings for Signum Records are Vivaldi & Handel, a disc of sacred solo cantatas with the Academy of Ancient Music and John Dowland: First Booke of Songes Or Ayres with lutenist David Miller.

Irene Messoloras
Dedicated to inspiring musicians and audiences through a determined passion for musical excellence, Irene Messoloras is a Greek-American conductor who maintains an active career as a music educator, clinician, and adjudicator. Her ensembles have delivered meaningful and passionate performances across the United States and on the international stage in both Europe and Asia.

Dr. Irene Messoloras serves as the conductor for the award-winning Hour of Power Choir in the weekly international Christian television program “Hour of Power with Bobby Schuller.” Broadcast in fifty-six countries, the Hour of Power Choir is heard weekly by over 4.3 million viewers. Made up of some of the most accomplished professional singers in Southern California, the choir regularly sings new music, and has toured extensively throughout Germany and the Netherlands. Most recently the choir performed at the American Choral Directors Association National Conference in Cincinnati in February 2023, and at the virtual conference in 2021.

Additionally, Dr. Messoloras serves as Director of Choral Activities at the University of California, Irvine. She conducts the University Chamber Singers, University Concert Choir, and teaches courses in conducting. Before coming to Irvine, Dr. Messoloras served as Director of Choral Activities at the University of La Verne, she was the Chair of the Fine Arts Department and head of Choral Activities at Northwestern Oklahoma State University, and also served as the Director of Choral Activities at Gonzaga University in Spokane, Washington.

Messoloras’ collegiate ensembles have performed in over 20 international tours. Under her direction, ensembles have performed at state and national NAfME conferences, performed in national commercial campaigns and produced professional music videos and recordings. Dr. Messoloras was the recipient of the Donovan and Dorothy Reichenberger endowed chair in music from 2011-2016. Additionally, she secured an endowment in the area of choral activities at the University of La Verne in 2018. Dr. Messoloras is the recipient of numerous awards for creative programing, diversity and inclusivity, and community engagement. As a result of Dr. Messoloras' leadership, her ensembles are pushing the boundaries of choral performance in a variety of ways, including educational initiatives, and innovative partnerships around the world.

Dr. Messoloras received her doctor of musical arts degree in choral conducting from the University of California, Los Angeles at the Herb Alpert School of Music.

Meridian
is a London-based professional choir, under the direction of their conductor, Irene Messoloras. Unwavering in their commitment to the art of musical storytelling, Meridian shapes every note with intention and weaves every phrase with sensitivity, ensuring that their artistry is not just heard but profoundly felt.

Exploring a vast repertoire, ranging from early sacred works to contemporary and innovative compositions, Meridian believes that music has the power to connect, inspire, and enrich.

Booklet for Serenity – Choral Music from Fauré to Prauliņš