J.S. Bach's masterwork, considered a supreme achievement of
Western classical music, with a 27-member Baroque orchestra
joining the Chorale for two memorable performances.

The Desert Chorale's signature summer program will include majestic
choral works by German masters Brahms and Mendelssohn, plus the
hauntingly beautiful Miserere by Gregorio Allegri, once considered
such a treasure that the score was treated as a state secret by the
Vatican.  With the inclusion of Bach's Motet #2 Der Geist hilft
unsrer Schwachheit auf we are pleased to announce the inaugural
performance of our Bach Motet Project, an undertaking to
present all of Bach's motets over several seasons.

Also featured prominently on the program is the Desert Chorale's
own Missa Eclectica, assembled from selections of the greatest
mass settings of the last 100 years, as well as a new work by SFDC
Composer in Residence Robert Kyr , based on Walt Whitman's
Tides of Peace, which will receive its world premiere on this series.

In a program ranging from medieval chant to music of our time,
War and Peace tells the stories of soldiers and the families they have
left behind. A letter by Civil War soldier Sullivan Ballou to his wife
provides the text for James Syler's moving Dear Sarah. Traditional
American melodies stand side by side with Shawn Crouch's Lullaby, in
which an Iraqi father seeks to calm his frightened child, explaining the
"new music" of the bombing around them. We hear Battle Hymns of
Pulitzer Prize winner David Lang, and Frank Ferko's The Mother tells
the touching story of a grieving parent, proud of her two soldier sons.
An encore presentation of Robert Kyr's soaring Tides of Peace
offers a stirring ode to the resolution of violence.

The works of Tania Leon, Judith Cloud and Pulitzer Prize-winner
Jennifer Higdon will be complemented by offerings from a host
of other composers, whose music celebrates women throughout
the ages, ranging from Biblical leaders to mythological
figures to Billie Holiday.

The 2011 summer benefit will be a feast of American cuisine and music.
Members of the Chorale will sing folk songs and spirituals. Special guest
artist, the extraordinary Patricia Racette , will offer a selection of popular
and Broadway gems, as only she can interpret them.

Encantado's master chef, Charles Dale , will re-create the
January 2011 White House State Dinner for the President of China.