A Dome of Many-Coloured Glass
Choral Music
chorus with solo instrument
work detail
instrumentation: SATB (divisi), soprano, and marimba
completion date: june 2010
duration: 17 minutes
texts: Amy Lowell (1874-1925) from A Dome of Many-Coloured Glass
audio
A Dome of Many-Coloured Glass
Scott Simpson, marimba
Stacey Weber and Stephanie Handal, sopranos
Robert Simpson and Dominick DiOrio, conductors
(click to purchase)
A Dome of Many-Coloured Glass - I: Listening
Live performance in the Yale Divinity School Marquand Chapel, April 2012. Brian Shircliffe, audio engineer.
A Dome of Many-Coloured Glass - II: At Night
Live performance in the Yale Divinity School Marquand Chapel, April 2012. Brian Shircliffe, audio engineer.
A Dome of Many-Coloured Glass - III: Hora Stellatrix
Live performance in the Yale Divinity School Marquand Chapel, April 2012. Brian Shircliffe, audio engineer.
A Dome of Many-Coloured Glass - IV: A Winter Ride
Live performance in the Yale Divinity School Marquand Chapel, April 2012. Brian Shircliffe, audio engineer.
A Dome of Many-Coloured Glass - I. Listening
Michael Barnes, marimba
Earl Rivers, conductor
videos
A Dome of Many-Coloured Glass
ACDA National Conference - Movement 4 "A Winter Ride" with Houston Chamber Choir
Behind the Music Interview
Arts and culture expert St. John Flynn chats with conductor, composer and educator Dominick DiOrio. Deemed a "triple threat", Dominick is a former member, guest composer and guest conductor of the Houston Chamber Choir.
A Dome of Many-Coloured Glass - I. Listening
The Gustavus Adolphus Choir
Virtual Choir Tour - 2021
image gallery
Conducting Houston Chamber Choir in a performance of A Dome of Many-Coloured Glass on tour at Yale's Marquand Chapel
April 2012
performances
“A Dome of Many-Coloured Glass”
Houston Chamber Choir; Robert Simpson, artistic director
Stacey Weber and Stephanie Handal, sopranos; Scott Simpson, marimba
St. John the Divine – Houston, TX
“A Dome of Many-Coloured Glass”
Houston Chamber Choir; Robert Simpson, artistic director
Stacey Weber and Stephanie Handal, sopranos; Scott Simpson, marimba
St. Luke's Episcopal Church - Beaumont, TX
New England Tour
Houston Chamber Choir; Robert Simpson, artistic director
Stacey Weber and Stephanie Handal, sopranos; Scott Simpson, marimba
Trinity Wall Street – New York, NY
New England Tour
Houston Chamber Choir; Robert Simpson, artistic director
Stacey Weber and Stephanie Handal, sopranos; Scott Simpson, marimba
St. Luke's Parish – Darien, CT
New England Tour
Houston Chamber Choir; Robert Simpson, artistic director
Stacey Weber and Stephanie Handal, sopranos; Scott Simpson, marimba
Yale University - Marquand Chapel – New Haven, CT
"Vox Battuta: Voices, Percussion, and Combinations"
Indiana University Contemporary Vocal Ensemble
Sean M. Gill, marimba; Dominick DiOrio, director
Indiana University Jacobs School of Music - Auer Hall - Bloomington, IN
Depauw University Chamber Singers
Gregory Ristow, director
Depauw University - Green Center for the Performing Arts - Greencastle, IN
Houston Chamber Choir
Stephen Tobin, marimba; Robert Simpson, artistic director
Meyerson Symphony Center - 4:30pm
ACDA National Convention Performance - Dallas, TX
Houston Chamber Choir
Stephen Tobin, marimba; Robert Simpson, artistic director
Winspear Opera House - 8:00pm
ACDA National Convention Performance - Dallas, TX
Depauw University Chamber Singers
Gregory Ristow, director
Indianapolis, IN
Houston Chamber Choir
Robert Simpson, artistic director; Scott Simpson, marimba
The Church of St. John the Divine - Houston, TX
Pacific Lutheran University Choral Union
Richard Nance, conductor; Miho Takekawa, marimba
Pacific Lutheran University - Lagerquist Concert Hall - Tacoma, WA
Yale Recital Chorus
Max Holman, conductor; Garrett Arney, marimba
St. Thomas Episcopal Church - New Haven, CT
Chicago Choral Artists
Michael Costello, artistic director
Ebenezer Lutheran Church - Chicago, IL
Chicago Choral Artists
Michael Costello, artistic director
Grace Lutheran Church - River Forest, IL
Ithaca College Choir
Janet Galván, conductor; Gordon Stout, marimba
Ford Hall - Ithaca College School of Music - Ithaca, NY
University of Maryland Chamber Singers
Dominick DiOrio, guest conductor
UMD School of Music - College Park, MD
CCM Choral Showcase
CCM Chamber Choir
Earl Rivers, conductor
University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music - Cincinnati, OH
Hofstra University Chamber Choir
David Fryling, conductor; Bryan Wysocki, marimba
Bangor Area High School - Bangor, PA
Hofstra University Chamber Choir
David Fryling, conductor; Bryan Wysocki, marimba
Holy Family Catholic Community, Middletown, MD
Hofstra University Chamber Choir
David Fryling, conductor; Bryan Wysocki, marimba
Trinity Episcopal Church, Solebury, PA
Hofstra University Chamber Choir
David Fryling, conductor; Bryan Wysocki, marimba
Rocky Hill Congregational Church, Rocky Hill, CT
Hofstra University Chamber Choir
David Fryling, conductor; Bryan Wysocki, marimba
St. Andrews UMC, Cherry Hill, NJ
Hofstra University Chamber Choir
David Fryling, conductor; Bryan Wysocki, marimba
Cathedral of the Incarnation - Garden City, NY
University of Wisconsin-Madison Concert Choir
Beverly Taylor, conductor
Mills Concert Hall - University of Wisconsin-Madison - Madison, WI
molto cantabile
Andreas Felber, conductor
Pfarrei St. Johannes - Lucerne, Switzerland
musica intima
Digital Performance
scores
press
- 2013-03-20: DiOrio Works Receive Rave Reviews at National ACDA Convention
- 2012-11-03: Depauw Chamber Singers to be Joined by VOCE on Sunday
- 2012-10-11: REVIEW: New IU conductor proves he is a real find
- 2012-10-07: New man at vocal ensemble podium to highlight contemporary works
- 2012-03-23: Chamber Choir Takes Show on the Road
- 2012-03-20: Houston Chamber Choir: A Dome of Many-Coloured Glass
- 2012-03-01: The Sweet Sounds of March
- 2011-01-29: Inside a Houston Chamber Choir rehearsal
- 2015-09-22: CD Review: Houston Chamber Choir "soft blink of amber light"
- 2015-09-24: CD Review: Houston Chamber Choir "soft blink of amber light" (Altena)
- 2015-12-17: CD REVIEW: "Soft Blink of Amber Light" variety of new composers
- 2016-01-01: CD REVIEW: 'Soft Blink of Amber Light'
- 2016-12-01: CD REVIEW: soft blink of amber light
- 2020-08-07: Behind the Music with St. John Flynn: Episode 54 - Dominick DiOrio
recordings
Houston Chamber Choir - Robert Simpson, artistic director
Buy the album on Amazon. Released September 22, 2015.
Featuring music of Jocelyn Hagen, David Ashley White, Christopher Theofanidis, Wayne Oquin, and Dominick DiOrio (A Dome of Many-Coloured Glass).
published
reviews from the dallas acda convention!
From "Musical Mayhem Blog": "The same was true of the Houston Chamber Choir directed by Robert Simpson They sang a quite difficult program with great skill and a very broad dynamic range. The focus of their program was Dominick DiOrio's kaleidoscopic "A Dome of Many-Coloured Glass" for SATB and marimba. Those of you looking for a fine choral piece with percussion by a rising young composer should definitely look at this piece."
From “The Tenor Diaries Blog”: “Robert Simpson led his professional chamber choir from Houston in an exciting performance, one that I sadly had to hear in the acoustically bereft Opera House. Of particular merit were the movements from Dominick DiOrio’s ‘A Dome of Many-Coloured Glass.’ Not only is this a very exciting work, I don’t think that these ears have ever heard a marimba played so amazingly. Stephen Tobin’s virtuosity was quite breathtaking.”
From “Music and the Sacred Blog”: “The late afternoon saw performances of the Houston Chamber Choir under the direction of Robert Simpson, an advocate for new music by Texas composers. The concert featured music about weather and included compositions by Parry and emerging conductor-composer Dominick DiOrio whose ‘A Dome of Many-Coloured Glass’ contained beautiful choral writing and a dynamic part for virtuoso marimba.”
program note
I first encountered the work of poet Amy Lowell in a song cycle by the composer Zachary Wadsworth. Immediately taken by the vivid images and inherently musical nature of the text— to say nothing of Zach’s poignant and evocative musical setting—, I immersed myself in the writings of this turn-of-the-20th-century poet. I was ecstatic to find that Lowell held Milton in high regard and wrote with a transcendentalist bent reminiscent of Whitman— two artists for whom I have a great affinity. This cantata-concerto is the culmination of a love affair with her word, at once both youthfully vivacious and elegantly burnished.
The music makes virtuosic use of the marimba, hence the use of the term cantata-concerto. While always in service to the spirit and emotion evoked by the text, it requires a percussionist of professional caliber. The choral parts and the soprano solo also demand singers of the highest level—able to produce a stark pianissimo and a flexible and powerful fortissimo—all with exceptional tonal clarity and expressive declamation of the poetry. The Houston Chamber Choir is ideally suited to these challenges, and the work has been written with their particular agility, intelligence, and interpretational zeal in mind. This work is a gift to them and to their artistic director, Robert Simpson, in thanks for the opportunity to sing regularly with such a world-class ensemble of musicians.
movements
- Listening
- At Night
- Hora Stellatrix
- A Winter Ride
information
audio
A Dome of Many-Coloured Glass
Scott Simpson, marimba
Stacey Weber and Stephanie Handal, sopranos
Robert Simpson and Dominick DiOrio, conductors
(click to purchase)
A Dome of Many-Coloured Glass - I: Listening
Live performance in the Yale Divinity School Marquand Chapel, April 2012. Brian Shircliffe, audio engineer.
A Dome of Many-Coloured Glass - II: At Night
Live performance in the Yale Divinity School Marquand Chapel, April 2012. Brian Shircliffe, audio engineer.
A Dome of Many-Coloured Glass - III: Hora Stellatrix
Live performance in the Yale Divinity School Marquand Chapel, April 2012. Brian Shircliffe, audio engineer.
A Dome of Many-Coloured Glass - IV: A Winter Ride
Live performance in the Yale Divinity School Marquand Chapel, April 2012. Brian Shircliffe, audio engineer.
A Dome of Many-Coloured Glass - I. Listening
Michael Barnes, marimba
Earl Rivers, conductor
videos
A Dome of Many-Coloured Glass
ACDA National Conference - Movement 4 "A Winter Ride" with Houston Chamber Choir
Behind the Music Interview
Arts and culture expert St. John Flynn chats with conductor, composer and educator Dominick DiOrio. Deemed a "triple threat", Dominick is a former member, guest composer and guest conductor of the Houston Chamber Choir.
A Dome of Many-Coloured Glass - I. Listening
The Gustavus Adolphus Choir
Virtual Choir Tour - 2021
image gallery
Conducting Houston Chamber Choir in a performance of A Dome of Many-Coloured Glass on tour at Yale's Marquand Chapel
April 2012
performances
“A Dome of Many-Coloured Glass”
Houston Chamber Choir; Robert Simpson, artistic director
Stacey Weber and Stephanie Handal, sopranos; Scott Simpson, marimba
St. John the Divine – Houston, TX
“A Dome of Many-Coloured Glass”
Houston Chamber Choir; Robert Simpson, artistic director
Stacey Weber and Stephanie Handal, sopranos; Scott Simpson, marimba
St. Luke's Episcopal Church - Beaumont, TX
New England Tour
Houston Chamber Choir; Robert Simpson, artistic director
Stacey Weber and Stephanie Handal, sopranos; Scott Simpson, marimba
Trinity Wall Street – New York, NY
New England Tour
Houston Chamber Choir; Robert Simpson, artistic director
Stacey Weber and Stephanie Handal, sopranos; Scott Simpson, marimba
St. Luke's Parish – Darien, CT
New England Tour
Houston Chamber Choir; Robert Simpson, artistic director
Stacey Weber and Stephanie Handal, sopranos; Scott Simpson, marimba
Yale University - Marquand Chapel – New Haven, CT
"Vox Battuta: Voices, Percussion, and Combinations"
Indiana University Contemporary Vocal Ensemble
Sean M. Gill, marimba; Dominick DiOrio, director
Indiana University Jacobs School of Music - Auer Hall - Bloomington, IN
Depauw University Chamber Singers
Gregory Ristow, director
Depauw University - Green Center for the Performing Arts - Greencastle, IN
Houston Chamber Choir
Stephen Tobin, marimba; Robert Simpson, artistic director
Meyerson Symphony Center - 4:30pm
ACDA National Convention Performance - Dallas, TX
Houston Chamber Choir
Stephen Tobin, marimba; Robert Simpson, artistic director
Winspear Opera House - 8:00pm
ACDA National Convention Performance - Dallas, TX
Depauw University Chamber Singers
Gregory Ristow, director
Indianapolis, IN
Houston Chamber Choir
Robert Simpson, artistic director; Scott Simpson, marimba
The Church of St. John the Divine - Houston, TX
Pacific Lutheran University Choral Union
Richard Nance, conductor; Miho Takekawa, marimba
Pacific Lutheran University - Lagerquist Concert Hall - Tacoma, WA
Yale Recital Chorus
Max Holman, conductor; Garrett Arney, marimba
St. Thomas Episcopal Church - New Haven, CT
Chicago Choral Artists
Michael Costello, artistic director
Ebenezer Lutheran Church - Chicago, IL
Chicago Choral Artists
Michael Costello, artistic director
Grace Lutheran Church - River Forest, IL
Ithaca College Choir
Janet Galván, conductor; Gordon Stout, marimba
Ford Hall - Ithaca College School of Music - Ithaca, NY
University of Maryland Chamber Singers
Dominick DiOrio, guest conductor
UMD School of Music - College Park, MD
CCM Choral Showcase
CCM Chamber Choir
Earl Rivers, conductor
University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music - Cincinnati, OH
Hofstra University Chamber Choir
David Fryling, conductor; Bryan Wysocki, marimba
Bangor Area High School - Bangor, PA
Hofstra University Chamber Choir
David Fryling, conductor; Bryan Wysocki, marimba
Holy Family Catholic Community, Middletown, MD
Hofstra University Chamber Choir
David Fryling, conductor; Bryan Wysocki, marimba
Trinity Episcopal Church, Solebury, PA
Hofstra University Chamber Choir
David Fryling, conductor; Bryan Wysocki, marimba
Rocky Hill Congregational Church, Rocky Hill, CT
Hofstra University Chamber Choir
David Fryling, conductor; Bryan Wysocki, marimba
St. Andrews UMC, Cherry Hill, NJ
Hofstra University Chamber Choir
David Fryling, conductor; Bryan Wysocki, marimba
Cathedral of the Incarnation - Garden City, NY
University of Wisconsin-Madison Concert Choir
Beverly Taylor, conductor
Mills Concert Hall - University of Wisconsin-Madison - Madison, WI
molto cantabile
Andreas Felber, conductor
Pfarrei St. Johannes - Lucerne, Switzerland
musica intima
Digital Performance
scores
press
- 2013-03-20: DiOrio Works Receive Rave Reviews at National ACDA Convention
- 2012-11-03: Depauw Chamber Singers to be Joined by VOCE on Sunday
- 2012-10-11: REVIEW: New IU conductor proves he is a real find
- 2012-10-07: New man at vocal ensemble podium to highlight contemporary works
- 2012-03-23: Chamber Choir Takes Show on the Road
- 2012-03-20: Houston Chamber Choir: A Dome of Many-Coloured Glass
- 2012-03-01: The Sweet Sounds of March
- 2011-01-29: Inside a Houston Chamber Choir rehearsal
- 2015-09-22: CD Review: Houston Chamber Choir "soft blink of amber light"
- 2015-09-24: CD Review: Houston Chamber Choir "soft blink of amber light" (Altena)
- 2015-12-17: CD REVIEW: "Soft Blink of Amber Light" variety of new composers
- 2016-01-01: CD REVIEW: 'Soft Blink of Amber Light'
- 2016-12-01: CD REVIEW: soft blink of amber light
- 2020-08-07: Behind the Music with St. John Flynn: Episode 54 - Dominick DiOrio
recordings
Houston Chamber Choir - Robert Simpson, artistic director
Buy the album on Amazon. Released September 22, 2015.
Featuring music of Jocelyn Hagen, David Ashley White, Christopher Theofanidis, Wayne Oquin, and Dominick DiOrio (A Dome of Many-Coloured Glass).
published
reviews from the dallas acda convention!
From "Musical Mayhem Blog": "The same was true of the Houston Chamber Choir directed by Robert Simpson They sang a quite difficult program with great skill and a very broad dynamic range. The focus of their program was Dominick DiOrio's kaleidoscopic "A Dome of Many-Coloured Glass" for SATB and marimba. Those of you looking for a fine choral piece with percussion by a rising young composer should definitely look at this piece."
From “The Tenor Diaries Blog”: “Robert Simpson led his professional chamber choir from Houston in an exciting performance, one that I sadly had to hear in the acoustically bereft Opera House. Of particular merit were the movements from Dominick DiOrio’s ‘A Dome of Many-Coloured Glass.’ Not only is this a very exciting work, I don’t think that these ears have ever heard a marimba played so amazingly. Stephen Tobin’s virtuosity was quite breathtaking.”
From “Music and the Sacred Blog”: “The late afternoon saw performances of the Houston Chamber Choir under the direction of Robert Simpson, an advocate for new music by Texas composers. The concert featured music about weather and included compositions by Parry and emerging conductor-composer Dominick DiOrio whose ‘A Dome of Many-Coloured Glass’ contained beautiful choral writing and a dynamic part for virtuoso marimba.”
program note
I first encountered the work of poet Amy Lowell in a song cycle by the composer Zachary Wadsworth. Immediately taken by the vivid images and inherently musical nature of the text— to say nothing of Zach’s poignant and evocative musical setting—, I immersed myself in the writings of this turn-of-the-20th-century poet. I was ecstatic to find that Lowell held Milton in high regard and wrote with a transcendentalist bent reminiscent of Whitman— two artists for whom I have a great affinity. This cantata-concerto is the culmination of a love affair with her word, at once both youthfully vivacious and elegantly burnished.
The music makes virtuosic use of the marimba, hence the use of the term cantata-concerto. While always in service to the spirit and emotion evoked by the text, it requires a percussionist of professional caliber. The choral parts and the soprano solo also demand singers of the highest level—able to produce a stark pianissimo and a flexible and powerful fortissimo—all with exceptional tonal clarity and expressive declamation of the poetry. The Houston Chamber Choir is ideally suited to these challenges, and the work has been written with their particular agility, intelligence, and interpretational zeal in mind. This work is a gift to them and to their artistic director, Robert Simpson, in thanks for the opportunity to sing regularly with such a world-class ensemble of musicians.
movements
- Listening
- At Night
- Hora Stellatrix
- A Winter Ride
