{"id":45559,"date":"2024-07-22T17:44:33","date_gmt":"2024-07-22T15:44:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/05c69c8e-eea9-4fd8-98bd-2eb21a5e45af"},"modified":"2024-07-26T10:00:29","modified_gmt":"2024-07-26T08:00:29","slug":"eric-whitacre-nevadas-most-famous-composer-who-has-broken-records-with-his-virtual-choirs","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/rss_feed\/eric-whitacre-nevadas-most-famous-composer-who-has-broken-records-with-his-virtual-choirs\/","title":{"rendered":"Eric Whitacre: Nevada’s most famous composer, who has broken records with his virtual choirs"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By <\/p>

Published: Monday, 22 July 2024 at 15:44 PM<\/p>

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He is conducting the world premiere of his Eternity in an Hour<\/em> at the BBC Proms this year. But who is Eric Whitacre?<\/p>

Who is Eric Whitacre?<\/h2>
Eric Whitacre is one of today\u2019s most popular and most often performed composers. Hailing from Nevada, US, and a graduate of the Juilliard School in New York, the 54 year-old has made his name primarily as a composer of choral music, often conducting it himself, and has broken records with his online Virtual Choir projects. Although he has spent much of his career in California, he has also worked extensively in the UK and currently lives in Belgium with his wife Laurence Servaes, an opera singer.<\/p>
The 50 Greatest Composers of All Time<\/strong><\/a><\/li><\/ul>What is Eric Whitacre\u2019s most famous work?<\/h2>
Lux Aurumque<\/em>, his haunting four-minute piece for unaccompanied voices, has become a favourite of choirs right across the world, particularly (though not exclusively) at Christmas \u2013 it also features on our list of five of the best contemporary choral works<\/strong><\/a>. It features on Light and Gold<\/em>, his debut album as a composer and conductor which, released in 2010, topped the classical charts in both the US and UK and went on to win a Grammy the following year. Other Whitacre favourites include The Seal Lullaby<\/em> and Sleep<\/em>, both of which also featured on Light and Gold<\/em>.<\/p>
<\/div><\/figure><h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-what-does-eric-whitacre-s-music-sound-like\">What does Eric Whitacre\u2019s music sound like?<\/h2><p>The popularity of many of Whitacre\u2019s shorter choral works lie in their floating, ethereal quality, not dissimilar to that of his fellow American Morten Lauridsen, whom he has acknowledged as an important influence. Sustained crushed harmonies are another Whitacre hallmark. In longer works, he tends to show a more experimental side, including moments of atonalism. His music is largely for voices, his preferred medium. \u2018I\u2019ve done some orchestral pieces and some pieces for concert band, but that\u2019s pretty much it,\u2019 he told <em>BBC Music Magazine <\/em>last year. \u2018I can\u2019t imagine not spending most of my time writing for choirs.\u2019<\/p><h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-\"\/><figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embedwrapper\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Eric Whitacre's Virtual Choir - 'Lux Aurumque'\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/D7o7BrlbaDs?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen=\"\"\/><\/div><\/figure><h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-what-then-are-his-longer-pieces\">What, then, are his longer pieces?<\/h3><p>The best known is <em>The Sacred Veil<\/em>, a 50-minute piece for voices, cello and piano. Premiered in 2019, it was initially sparked by the death from ovarian cancer of Julia Lawrence Silvestri, the wife of poet and author Charles Anthony Silvestri, a long-time friend of Whitacre\u2019s. The work sets harrowing words by Julia and Tony Silvestri plus reflections by the composer himself. \u2018In my entire career as a composer, <em>The Sacred Veil<\/em> was a singular experience,\u2019 Whitacre told <em>BBC Music Magazine<\/em>. \u2018There were times when I was openly weeping at my desk.\u2019 To date, this has been Whitacre\u2019s longest work, though his 60-minute <em>Eternity in an Hour<\/em> will surpass that when he conducts its premiere at the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/bbc-proms\/\"><strong>BBC Proms<\/strong><\/a> in September.<\/p><ul><li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/bbc-proms\/2024-bbc-proms-listings\">BBC Proms 2024: every concert, every work, every performer<\/a><\/strong><\/li><\/ul><h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-what-other-conducting-does-eric-whitacre-do\">What other conducting does Eric Whitacre do?<\/h3><p>As well as his own Eric Whitacre Singers, he has conducted many ensembles on both sides of the Atlantic, in repertoire ranging from the Renaissance to contemporary composers. Such ensembles have included the choir of Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge, where he is a former visiting fellow and composer in residence, and the Los Angeles Master Chorale, with whom he was artist in residence.<\/p><h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-what-is-eric-whitacre-s-virtual-choir\">What is Eric Whitacre\u2019s Virtual Choir?<\/h2><p>In 2010, Whitacre invited amateur singers across the world to record themselves individually singing his <em>Lux Aurumque<\/em> and send their videos to be edited together into one vast online chorus. Thousands took part, and further <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/news\/eric-whitacre-to-release-new-work-for-virtual-choir\"><strong>Virtual Choir<\/strong><\/a> projects followed, including <em>Sing Gently<\/em> which, put together during lockdown, featured an astonishing 17,572 singers.<\/p><h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-so-why-do-people-enjoy-singing-his-music-so-much\">So why do people enjoy singing his music so much?<\/h3><p>Though Whitacre says he does not have a particularly special voice himself, his time singing bass in choirs has given him a valuable insight into composing for them. As such, he always puts practicality first. \u2018My North Star as a composer is always \u201cIs this singable?\u201d,\u2019 he says. \u2018I sing through ever one of my parts to see if, say, a phrase can be done in one breath. I also try to give everybody a sense of line and a vocal arch that makes it feel rewarding to sing.\u2019<\/p><figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-4-3 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embedwrapper\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Eric Whitacre conducts "Sleep"\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/9shXm0cIeEY?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen=\"\"\/><\/div><\/figure><h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-and-finally-does-eric-whitacre-have-the-best-hair-in-classical-music\">And finally, does Eric Whitacre have the best hair in classical music?<\/h3><p>Quite possibly. So much so, in fact, that in 2011 he was signed up by leading model agency Storm. This led to him being interviewed in the hallowed pages of <em>Vogue<\/em> magazine \u2013 almost as glamorous as <em>BBC Music Magazine<\/em>, but not quite.<\/p> <\/body><\/html>\n<hr class=\"no-tts wp-block-separator\"\/>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Published: Monday, 22 July 2024 at 15:44 PM He is conducting the world premiere of his Eternity in an Hour at the BBC Proms this year. But who is Eric Whitacre? Who is Eric Whitacre? Eric Whitacre is one of today\u2019s most popular and most often performed composers. Hailing from Nevada, US, and a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":45560,"template":"","categories":[1,17],"acf":{"readingTimeMinutes":"4"},"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2024\/07\/eric-whitacre-nevadas-most-famous-composer-who-has-broken-records-with-his-virtual-choirs.png",1197,797,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2024\/07\/eric-whitacre-nevadas-most-famous-composer-who-has-broken-records-with-his-virtual-choirs-150x150.png",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2024\/07\/eric-whitacre-nevadas-most-famous-composer-who-has-broken-records-with-his-virtual-choirs-300x200.png",300,200,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2024\/07\/eric-whitacre-nevadas-most-famous-composer-who-has-broken-records-with-his-virtual-choirs-768x511.png",768,511,true],"large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2024\/07\/eric-whitacre-nevadas-most-famous-composer-who-has-broken-records-with-his-virtual-choirs-1024x682.png",800,533,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2024\/07\/eric-whitacre-nevadas-most-famous-composer-who-has-broken-records-with-his-virtual-choirs.png",1197,797,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2024\/07\/eric-whitacre-nevadas-most-famous-composer-who-has-broken-records-with-his-virtual-choirs.png",1197,797,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"importmanagerhub@sprylab.com","author_link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/author\/importmanagerhubsprylab-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"By Published: Monday, 22 July 2024 at 15:44 PM He is conducting the world premiere of his Eternity in an Hour at the BBC Proms this year. But who is Eric Whitacre? Who is Eric Whitacre? Eric Whitacre is one of today\u2019s most popular and most often performed composers. Hailing from Nevada, US, and a…","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed\/45559"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/rss_feed"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/45560"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=45559"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=45559"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}