Reviews
Concert Review of Christmas in Elizabethan England "[The Rose Ensemble] blended their voices beautifully, weaving about one another in meticulously balanced fashion . . A lovely evocation of the era." |
Pioneer Press |
Concert Review of And Glory Shone Around "The Rose Ensemble is known for its harmonic skills, but Sunday's performance was an exceptional showcase for the talents of each of its members, showing the choir to be the sum of some impressive parts." |
Pioneer Press |
Concert Review of Cantigas from the Land of Three Faiths "The beauty of this ancient music comes back to life in [The Rose Ensemble's] performances. Famous musicians like Palestrina are joined by nameless ones across the ages, whose music has to be recreated from manuscripts. Reawakening the ancient becomes a beautiful experience whenever the Rose Ensemble offers a program." |
Duluth News Tribune |
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Concert Review of Il Poverello ... it's refreshing to spend a couple of hours in a vivid world created simply through the interaction of words and music. |
ClevelandClassical.com |
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CD Review of Rosa das Rosas "[The musicians] land in an intriguing space between English purity and Spanish gutsiness . . . Recommended, especially for newcomers to medieval and Renaissance music, for these performances make the music come alive." |
AllMusic.com |
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Concert Review of Cantigas from the Land of Three Faiths ...the ensemble from St. Paul, Minnesota, does more than reawaken.
It energizes old music to the point where it sounds as new and alive
as a listener could imagine. |
Cleveland Plain Dealer |
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Concert Review of Cantigas from the Land of Three Faiths ...a dazzling aural feast of many wonderful sounds and styles, expertly
and passionately performed, which will be remembered with great pleasure
by all fortunate enough to have heard and seen it. |
Continuo |
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Concert Review of And Glory Shone Around The Rose Ensemble always creates a colorful blend of text and tune,
woven together for a seamless tapestry of music from distant times
and places. Shaping these programs from very raw materials is what
they do best. |
Duluth News Tribune |
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Concert Review of Celebremos el Niño: A Mexican Baroque Christmas The individual voices have been insightfully cast, the timbres coming
together in an easy and natural blend. |
Express Milwaukee |
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Concert Review of Celebremos el Niño: A Mexican Baroque Christmas This is a scholarly, period-conscious group, but they sing and play
with a lusty ease that blows the dust off old music. |
Milwaukee Journal Sentinal |
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Concert Review of An American Holiday Tapestry Authenticity is the calling card of the Rose performers, and the
15 first-class singers and instrumentalists, led by founder and artistic
director Jordan Sramek, lived up to their well-earned reputation. |
Berkshire Eagle |
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Concert Review of And Glory Shone Around The vocalists are the soul of the group, with clear, young-sounding
voices that seem infinitely flexible and perfectly blended. |
St. Paul Pioneer Press |
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CD Review of Nā Mele Hawai'i This group has done their homework — and beyond. ...The vocal performances
[are] spot-on beautiful (and beautifully recorded)... |
Northwest Hawai'i Times |
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Concert Preview of Candlelight Concert: The Secret Society of Notre Dame de Paris Part of the enjoyment of a Rose Ensemble performance is in letting
go of the clutter of your mind; allowing yourself to be carried back
in time by the intricately laced, powerfully rhythmic vocals. |
MinnPost |
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Concert Review of Candlelight Concert: The Secret Society of Notre Dame de Paris One work, a new motet by Rose ensemble alto Linda Kachelmeier, made
a telling statement. Its luscious counterpoint, deliberate dissonances
and assertive vocal interaction, while thoroughly modern, aren't all
that distant from 12th century Notre Dame. Composed in the mold of
Gorecki, Pärt and other spiritually-inspired postmodernists,
it revealed that vocal music may be coming full circle after 900 years. |
Alabama Entertainment |
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CD Review of Nā Mele Hawai'i This pure singing of it will amaze you — it's gorgeous. |
American Record Guide |
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Concert Review of Slavic Wonders - Feasts and Saints in Early Russia, Poland & Bohemia Though most in the audience did not recognize the names on the program
[...], few people will forget the Rose Ensemble’s gripping and emotional
interpretations of the music that portrayed God and his angels as
vividly as that same culture’s gold-encrusted painted icons. |
Goldberg |
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Concert Review of Slavic Wonders - Feasts and Saints in Early Russia, Poland & Bohemia The evening was notable for its air of informality and the infectious
sense of enthusiasm exhibited by the performers — all of which turned
what could have been a rather ascetic program into one that will linger
in the memory as an especially intriguing exploration of music rarely
encountered. |
Berkshire Eagle |
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Concert Review of Cantigas from the Land of Three Faiths This program wasn't a performance. It was more like a resurrection.
The Rose Ensemble breathes life into stark, ancient manuscripts .
. . restores them as new creations. |
Ames Life & Times |
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Concert review: Rose Ensemble unearths a sovereign Hawaii's music The Rose Ensemble's intellectual rigor as well as the vocal proficiency
led to idiomatic and compelling performances that deserve to be savored. |
Star Tribune |
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Concert Preview/CD Review of Hawai'i Revealed ...a world-renowned vocal group that has spent the dozen years of
its existence combining extraordinary scholarship, a sense of adventure,
and breathtaking technique to explore a wide range of early music. |
Minneapolis City Pages |
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CD Review of Rosa das Rosas There is splendid variety here.... The performances, based on thorough
and up-to-date research, are impassioned and brightly alive. |
Choral Journal |
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Album Review of Rosa das Rosas Early music of Spain has been touched less than other countries by
the trend back toward unaccompanied vocal music. The similarity of
the medieval and the later songs is well exemplified in this program,
as least in the Rose Ensemble’s interpretations. |
Fanfare Magazine |
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Concert Review of Bobby Previte's The Separation (Hallwalls, Buffalo, NY) The Rose Ensemble is a splendid choir whose basic repertoire leans
toward the Baroque and the Renaissance eras and their take on the
splintered version of the Dufay masterpiece they were charged with
presenting was most exemplary. |
The Buffalo News |
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Concert Review of Bobby Previte's The Separation (Walker Art Center, Minneapolis) The majestic, soaring harmonies of the nine-member Rose Ensemble
were a welcome counterpoint to the harmonically and rhythmically simplistic
guitar riffs. |
Pioneer Press |
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CD Review of Rosa das Rosas Engaging and educational, the rich variety on offer makes this satisfying. |
Gramophone |
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Review of December 21, 2006 concert, Christmas in Elizabethan England If you imagine the counterpoint of the 16th century to be too simple
for your modern ears, be assured that the 14 voices of the Rose Ensemble
uncover unexpected wonders within the works. They paid profound respect
to each composer represented, be it an unknown of the 15th century
or a legend of the 16th like Thomas Tallis. |
Pioneer Press |
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CD Review of Celebremos el Niño The villancicos on this disc are well performed and well recorded,
offering polished renditions of rarely heard works. |
Choral Journal |
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Review of December 2, 2006 Cantiga!, Vocal and Instrumental Music from the Land of Three Faiths concert The troupe's musicians...are a versatile group. |
The Eagle |
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Review of December 2, 2006 Cantiga!, Vocal and Instrumental Music from the Land of Three Faiths concert The group is blazing new trails in seldom-heard byways of early music,
far off the beaten path. |
WAMC Northeast Radio |
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Review of October 20, 2006 Rosa das Rosas concert in Duluth Part of the delight the Rose Ensemble brings is its message that this program is aimed at everyone in the house. With beautiful music and immediate audience rapport, the Rose Ensemble
will find a responsive audience in Duluth whenever they visit. |
Duluth News Tribune |
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Review of June 12, 2006 concert in Neuss, Germany ...the joy of the performers could be felt as they were the bearers of rare musical jewels. ...the choir piece of Sergey Khvoshchinskiy...blended into the program
like a valuable ikon that presents, on a gold background, ancient
traditions in contemporary colors. |
Neuss-Grevenbroicher Zeitung |
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CD Review of Celebremos el Niño Delicate but lively, alternately sad and festive, the music is given
subtle support by period instruments and sung with immaculate intonation
and lively rhythms. |
Minneapolis Star Tribune |
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CD Review of Fire of the Soul Everything from the Russian diction to vocal timbre to the unusually
vibrant sound on many of the open-spaced chords shows a concern for
detail and for creating an idiomatic context respectful of the music's
time and place. |
Classics Today |
| Concert Review of Visitatio Sepulchri: The Dublin Mystery Play By William Randall Beard "the Rose Ensemble's stellar performance of "Visitatio Sepulchri: The Dublin Mystery Play" was emotionally committed and moving enough to attract a broad audience." Read more>> |
Minneapolis Star Tribune April 11, 2005 |
| "...Which is why this recovering Lutheran is swept away by the
Rose Ensemble. This twelve-member choral group, based in St. Paul, is
devoted to early music - music that connects with ideas and aesthetics
that have been tested over centuries of audience trials, but is being
remade for people who live and who listen now." Read more>> |
Rake Magazine Article April 2005 |
| Concert Review of St. Martin of Tours By Samuel Black "As the thirteenth century envelops the evening, modern concerns regain a certain perspective. Even sharing music from the sixteenth century, as well as the twenty-first, does not diminish the aura." Read more>> |
The McKnight Foundation's MNartists.org December 7, 2004 |
| Review of Cantiga! Cult of the Virgin By Wilma Salisbury "...the program was so flawlessly performed and smoothly structured by the ensemble from St. Paul, Minn., that the audience was mesmerized." Read more >> |
The Cleveland Plain Dealer October 13, 2004 |
| Review of Cantiga! Cult of the Virgin By Barbara Zuck "...Jordan Sramek has brought these natural talents to a point of near-perfection in the careful performance and delivery of each selection, achieving a harmony that offers a spiritual dimension as well." Read more >> |
The Columbus Dispatch September 25, 2004 |
| CD review of Fire of the Soul By Laurence Vittes "...the confident use of late-Renaissance gestures, complete with an ethereal soprano in the style of Allegri's Miserere, is ultimately convincing." Read more >> |
Gramophone |
| CD review of Fire of the Soul By KOOB "With only 12 voices, often singing one to a part, they produce the kind of richness and volume of sound that you would normally expect from a much larger ensemble. They absolutely raise the roof in Zielenski's 12-part Magnificat, with its ringing multi-choir antiphony." Read more >> |
American Record Guide |
| CD review of Fire of the Soul By Craig Zeichner "Two composers dominate Fire of the Soul: the Polish master Mikolaj Zieleski (fl. 1611) and the Russian Vasily Polikarpovich Titov (c. 1650-c.1715). The balance of the program is rounded out with music by another Pole, Andrzej Rohaczewski (fl. c. 1620) and a gorgeous contemporary work by the ensemble from Sergey Khvoshchinsky (b. 1957), a Russian-born composer living in Minneapolis..." Read more >> |
Early Music America Magazine, Spring 2004 |
| CD review of Fire in the Soul By Michael Anthony "Fresh takes on evergreen holiday music" Read more >> |
Minneapolis StarTribune |
| Concert Review of "Fire of the Soul CD-Release Concert" The Rose Ensemble unfolded Fire of the Soul, a program that opened one musical blossom after another, each one startlingly fresh and vocally brilliant. For this, the responsive audience applauded and stood, whistled and whooped---all for 500-year-old music sung in Russian, Spanish, and Latin! Read more >> |
McKnight Foundation's MNartists.org |
| Concert Review of Cantiga! The Cult of the Virgin "As interesting as the texts are, the compulsion is often to close one's eyes and just bask in the sounds of the rich, resonant singing."" Read more>> |
Minneapolis StarTribune |
| CD review of Road to Compostela In a world full of amplification, ...demonstrates the power of quiet music, sung with quiet artistry. Read more>> |
St. Paul Pioneer Press |
| CD Review of Road to Compostela "...a souvenir every early music traveler should be happy to bring home." Read more>> |
Classical 89.3 (WCAL) |
| CD Review of Slavic Holiday "This group deserves to be known beyond the narrow boundaries of its home." Read more>> |
Goldberg Magazine |
| Concert Review of Slavic Holiday Part of the group's depth of sound comes from the great diversity in voices within the larger ensemble. A counter-tenor, a contralto, and the standard soprano, mezzo, alto, tenor, baritone and bass voices create a colorful palette. Read more >> |
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel |
| Concert Review of The Road to Compostela "With the stage strewn with rose petals, the musicians used the intimate Mediterranean-style venue skillfully, entering and exiting while singing in a processional, with the intermittent rumble of distant thunder adding an evocative counterpoint." Read More >> |
South Florida Sun - Sentinel. Fort Lauderdale, Fla. |
| CD Review of Slavic Holiday "The Rose Ensemble...handles this material with great skill and grace." Read more>> |
Early Music America Magazine |
| Concert Review of Slavic Holiday Rose Ensemble Celebrates Holidays in Harmony "All went home amazed at the creativity of the legends and stunning technique of the ensemble." Read more>> |
Duluth News-Tribune |
| CD Review of Lôbo Requiem/van Wilder motets "...seemingly effortless, blended sound....persuasive, passionate, and a pleasure to hear." Read more>> |
Early Music America Magazine |
| CD Review of Lôbo Requiem/van Wilder motets "...the passion that these singers have for Renaissance music comes across..." Read more>> |
Minneapolis StarTribune |
| Concert Review of It's About Time Rose Ensemble's music blooms with human feeling "...a world-class group with a distinctive take on its repertoire." Read more>> |
Milwaukee Journal Sentinal |
| Concert Review of Lillies Rose Ensemble Expertly Weaves Choral Tapestry "...the Twin Cities' premier performance group of the unaccompanied Renaissance vocal repertory..." Read more>> |
Minneapolis StarTribune |
| Concert Review of Tears of the Soul "The Twin Cities music scene received a breath of fresh air Thursday from a group specializing in the ancient, The Rose Ensemble for Early Music." Read more>> |
Minneapolis StarTribune |
| "Vocal music with grace and intelligence." |
Minnesota Monthly May 1999 |
| "Gorgeous sound...stunning performance." | Early Music Now! newsletter July 1997 |
| "Excellent tuning...effortless sound...always intimate." |
David Bahrke, Chorus Manager, Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra July 1997 |
| "A sublime performance...I feel completely bathed." | Louise Vahle, Minnesota Public Radio March 1997 |