The Annual

 Glebe Music Festival

In conjunction with The Glebe Society Inc

15 November 2005
NEW MUSICAL DIRECTOR FOR ONE OF SYDNEY'S LEADING CHAMBER CHOIRS

Coro Innominata, one of Sydney's leading chamber vocal ensembles, is delighted to announce the appointment of Marcus Hodgson as its new Musical Director.

Marcus Hodgson's musical foundations were built on the grand English traditions of church and varsity choral repertoire. He sang in choirs as a boy treble and later read Music at the University of North Wales, Bangor under William Matthias. Basing himself in London for a career in Arts Administration he soon become involved in the London choral scene, performing with the Thames Singers, the Abbeyville Singers and the church choirs of St John the Divine, Kennington and St Peter's Kensington.

Since his arrival in Australia in 1991 he has sung with the Choir of Christ Church St Laurence, Sydney Philharmonia Motet choir, Sydney Chamber Choir, and Coro Innominata. His arts management career has included working for the Royal Opera Covent Garden, Opera Australia and Musica Viva, bringing great discipline to the ongoing administration of Coro Innominata. This rich tapestry of his own musical development and experience will be a great asset to the choir's preparation for their final 2005 performance and its future seasons.

"Coro Innominata is a highly respected choir in Sydney, and it is a great privilege to be invited to lead it to its next stage," Mr Hodgson said. "While Innominata has often concentrated on renaissance and baroque repertoire, it has consistently demonstrated an extraordinary depth of skill and polish with many styles and periods of music. I'm looking forward to building on that experience, and perhaps introducing some new ones for us to explore together."

Whilst Marcus Hodgson has appeared as guest conductor with the choir on several occasions, Coro Innominata will formally perform under their new Musical Director on Sunday 4 December at 3pm at St Scholastica's Chapel at Glebe. In keeping with the choir's 2005 theme, which has explored the traditions of English music, the December 4 concert will explore some of the great masters of 20th century English vocal composition, including Ralph Vaughan Williams, Herbert Howells and Gustav Holst.

Coro Innominata has been part of the Sydney classical music scene since 1992. The choir, whose ironic title translates as "choir without a name", was initially drawn from like-minded choristers from various Sydney-based singing groups who were looking for greater focus on the music which most appealed to them, that is, the chamber choir repertoire, particularly that drawn from the renaissance and baroque periods.