Cat Monfette has been a mentor and teaching assistant for the Rhode Island Children’s Chorus for the past 16 years, after joining as a member in 2003 in its very first year. She has been a proud member of the soprano section of the Providence Singers for ten years. She is a frequent soloist with the Providence Singers, most recently in Considering Matthew Shepard (2024), Only in Sleep by Ēriks Ešenvalds (2023) and Schultz’s Musikalische Exequien (2022). She is delighted to perform the boy soprano solo in Chichester Psalms and solos in A Ceremony of Carols.
About the solo:
"A gentle and lyrical setting of Psalm 23 ('The Lord is my shepherd') opens the second movement, featuring a boy soloist (eventually joined by soprano voices) with harp accompaniment, a musical evocation of King David, the shepherd-psalmist.
"Bernstein created this melody using material from The Skin of Our Teeth. The bitter expression and agitated music of Psalm 2 (“Why do the nations rage”) interrupts this tranquility. At this, the most dramatic moment of the composition, the setting prominently features music cut from West Side Story. Though the upper voices return with the soloist’s song of faith, the tension of suppressed violence lingers throughout the rest of the movement."
Source: LeonardBerstein.com
Bernstein wrote the soprano and alto choral lines with boys' voices in mind, but conceded that it was "possible, but not preferable, to substitute women's voices." He specified that the solo in the second movement must be sung by either a boy or a counter-tenor. In actual practice, however, this solo is often sung by an adult female soprano.
Cat's pure, light tone turns this beautiful solo into a concert highlight. Come hear her sing!
November 9, 2024, 7pm
St. Mary of the Bay, Warren, RI
November 10, 2024, 3pm
Grace Church, Providence, RI
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