Paul Cienniwa has been named chorus master of the New Bedford Symphony Orchestra for the 2012–13 season. He worked extensively with local choral groups in preparation for the NBSO’s performance of Handel’s Messiah at St. Anthony’s Church on November 25. In addition to his chorus master duties, Cienniwa performed to rave reviews as harpsichord soloist in Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 5 at the NBSO’s “A Concert of Concertos” at Wickenden Chapel. The NBSO Chorus is made up of over 125 members from area choirs.
A resident of Fall River, Massachusetts, Cienniwa is director of Sine Nomine choral ensemble and choral director at Framingham State University. As organist and conductor, he is music director at First Church in Boston, where he leads the professional First Church Choir and can be heard weekly on WERS (88.9 FM) Boston. As a harpsichordist, Cienniwa performs as a soloist, recording artist, and ensemble player.
Cienniwa studied piano at the American Conservatory of Music in Chicago and completed his bachelor’s degree at DePaul University. In 2003, he received the DMA from Yale University. He been awarded Belgian American Educational Foundation and Fulbright grants, and his musicological articles and reviews have appeared in American and European journals, including Early Music, Ad Parnassum, and Early Music America. His article, “Dear Harpsichordists: Why Don’t We Play from Memory?” appeared in The Diapason, September 2011. He has taught at the Yale University School of Music, Salve Regina University, and Mount Ida College. He continues to teach at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth and Framingham State University. Paul Cienniwa is represented by Concert Artist Cooperative. For information: www.paulcienniwa.com and www.concertartistcooperative.com.
“The Opus 139 Project: To Hear the Music” is a documentary entering its final editing stage that celebrates C.B. Fisk, Inc. It is a film about the creation of the firm’s Opus 139 for the Memorial Church at Harvard University, and includes stories of founder Charles Brenton Fisk, and the workshop in action, creating, installing, and voicing the new organ, culminating in the inaugural concert. The project is three years in the making, and continues to raise money for its completion; timeline for finishing is May 2013.
For information: www.tohearthemusic.com.
