American Mystics with Anonymous 4

The Cathedral Choral Society joined by a cappella ensemble Anonymous 4, presents a concert of American Mystics. Anonymous 4 is renowned for their ethereal, almost unearthly vocal blend and virtuosic ensemble singing. The four women who comprise this ensemble combine musical, literary and historical scholarship with contemporary performance intuition.

For this concert with the Cathedral Choral Society, Anonymous 4 will draw from its repertoire of American religious ballads, folk hymns and gospel songs woven together to tell a story of love and loss, hope and redemption. In a program of exclusively American composers selected from the rich American mystical tradition, the Cathedral Choral Society will perform Stephen Paulus’s Meditations of Li Po based on the work of the great 8th century Chinese poet, Gwyneth Walker’s Hebrides Lullaby and Eric Whitacre’s meditative piece, “hope, faith, life, love” inspired by e.e. cummings’ poem. The almost architectural layering of voices required by the works in this program make this music ideally suited for performance in the vast space that is Washington National Cathedral.