TENEbrae

TENET creates a memorable series of Lenten evenings featuring many of New York’s finest singers and instrumentalists in a continuation of TENET’s new tradition TENEbrae, presented by Trinity Wall Street.  Latin for shadows, Tenebrae marks the final three days of Holy Week with the extinguishing of candles.  Hauntingly beautiful music was composed over many centuries honoring Tenebrae, and we present  six major works by leading renaissance and Baroque composers of Germany, France, Italy, and Spain.

TENEbrae Series

Dietrich Buxtehude: Membra Jesu Nostri
February 17 at 5pm

Translated as "The Limbs of our Jesus," Buxtehude's monumental seven part cantata cycle is known as the first Lutheran oratorio and was dedicated to Gustaf Düben, a Swedish organist and composer. The seven parts are divided into cantatas that address different parts of Christ's crucified body: feet, knees, hands, side, breast, heart and head. In addition to the use of full forces, there are plentiful solo and trio passages throughout the cantatas, as is quintessential of Buxtehude's cantata writing.

François Couperin: Leçons de Ténèbres pour Mercredi
February 24 at 5pm

Couperin's settings of the Leçons de Ténèbres pour Mercredi come from the Lamentations of Jeremiah and were written for the abbey of Longchamp, outside Paris, and printed between 1713 and 1717. The first two are for solo voice and continuo, the last for two voices, viola a gamba and continuo.

Thomas Tallis: Lamentations of Jeremiah
March 3 at 5pm

Gems by Tallis, Byrd, White, and Parsons complete this early Tudor program featuring at its center Thomas Tallis' beloved Lamentations of Jeremiah, a highlight of the English Renaissance Tudor repertoire composed for Holy Week.

Carlo Gesualdo: Tenebrae Responsories for Maundy Thursday
March 8 at 8pm
March 10 at 5pm

Accounts of Carlo Gesualdo are fraught with stories of his personal life—murder, tragedy, and self-inflicted pain. His compositions reflect his life-long suffering, particularly his Tenebrae responsories, which are set to texts that dramatically detail the suffering and sacrifice of Christ.

Marc-Antoine Charpentier: Leçons de Ténèbres pour Vendredi
March 17 at 5pm

Charpentier's settings of the Leçons de Ténèbres pour Vendredi come from the Lamentations of Jeremiah and were part of his extensive writings for this genre, including many settings of the lessons as well as responses. Those presented include two for solo voice (soprano and countertenor), and trio. The lessons will be separated by organ works by Nicolas de Grigny, performed by Avi Stein.

Tomás Luis de Victoria: Lamentations of Jeremiah
March 27 at 6pm

Trinity's service for Wednesday of Holy Week will feature selections from Victoria's Lamentations of Jeremiah, alongside the devotional music presented by Trinity Wall Street each year during Holy Week. This event is free and performed within the context of a worship service.

Performers

Click on the concert titles below to see the performers for each concert. Full biographies can be found on our Artists page.