Michael John Trotta Commissions Piece for Archmere Mastersingers
The Mastersingers of Archmere Academy will be premiering a new Christmas work that was commissioned for them by American composer Michael John Trotta.
The piece will have two premieres. The first will be at Archmere's Christmas Concert on Sunday, December 10th at 3:00 PM in the Performing Arts Center Theater. The second premiere will be on Thursday, December 14th at 7:00 PM at the Candlelight Vespers held at St. Mary Magdalen Church on Concord Pike, accompanied by a full orchestra.
The piece, "There Is No Rose" is based on a medieval poem (c. 1420) of the same title. It is macaronic, meaning it is written in two languages: Middle English and Latin. The melody is based on the traditional Christmas carol, "The First Nowell."
"There Is No Rose" is the second piece written for the Mastersingers by Dr. Trotta. The first "Psalm 150" was commissioned in 2018, premiered by the Mastersingers in Rome, Italy while on their concert tour and dedicated to Anthony Penna, a Mastersinger who tragically lost his life in a car accident in 2018.