Mathes Performs Encore Concert of Original Song Cycle 'At Night A Song Is With Me'

Back by popular demand, the talented and world-renowned musician and Greenwich resident Rob Mathes will perform a one-night-only encore concert of his original song cycle, "At Night A Song Is With Me: A Cycle of Ballads and Psalms for Singers, Rhythm Section and Orchestra," with lyrics by internationally-acclaimed Irish poet Micheal O'Siadhail.

The concert will be performed at 8 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 6, at Christ Church Greenwich, 254 E. Putnam Avenue in Greenwich, presented as part of the "Conversations on Courage & Faith series." The entire performance will be recorded and filmed in high definition.  

Tickets are $40 and are available online at www.courageandfaith.org or at The Music Source in Old Greenwich (203-698-0444).
 
A pre-event talk entitled "Words Before Music: Putting it Together," along with preferred seating for the concert are also available for $75 per person and feature a discussion with Rob Mathes and Micheal O'Siadhail about "At Night A Song is With Me." These tickets are also available online at www.courageandfaith.org or www.themusicsource.org.
 
The original performance of "At Night A Song Is With Me" premiered last spring to a sold-out audience. The response was so overwhelming that Mathes agreed to perform the spectacular evening of music and song one more night in his hometown of Greenwich before taking the performance to other cities. This will likely be the last local performance of this piece for a long time.
 
"At Night A Song Is With Me" is an original song cycle written and created by Mathes, who is a Grammy- and Emmy-nominated musician, and whose work with the annual Kennedy Center Honors was recently recognized with a 2010 Emmy for the Best Variety, Music or Comedy Special.  

Mathes' impressive resume includes work with just about every major musician throughout the world.  He is currently wrapping up an exciting year working with Sting, co-producing Sting's "Symphonicities" CD and working as music director and orchestrator for Sting's 2010/2011 World Tour with The Royal Philharmonic. He is currently producing the debut album by Matthew Morrison of the TV hit "Glee," and produced the critically lauded "Interpretations: The British Rock Songbook," the new CD by legendary Rhythm and Blues singer Bettye LaVette.

"At Night A Song Is With Me" is a crowning achievement for Mathes and the impressive evening of music on Nov. 6 features The New York Chamber Consort, an orchestra drawn from some of the finest musicians in Manhattan, including members of the New York Philharmonic; and singers including the Christ Church Choirs and the amazing Pop and R&B vocalists Laila Biali and Mike Harvey. Mathes will also be singing and playing, along with Ben Wittman on drums and David Finck on bass.

"This concert is an unbelievably rich evening of lyrical music and song, thanks to the work of these incredible artists and Michael's words, which are extraordinary; not to mention the Psalms, some of the most beautiful poetry ever written," noted Mathes.  O'Siadhail and Mathes wrote the song cycle to trace a life through the Psalms.  

"Combining Micheal O'Siadhail's poetic words with my music addresses the question of how we retain a song in our hearts, all the while navigating the vagaries of life on planet earth. The piece explores the difficulty of living a life filled with hope and the blues, fear and joy, and the tension of being fragile human beings with longing hearts."
 
At Night A Song Is With Me was commissioned by Conversations on Courage & Faith, a series of lectures, artistic performances and spiritual experiences that inspires and equips people to live Christianly in a postmodern world.  

Past Conversations on Courage & Faith events at Christ Church Greenwich included Archbishop Desmond Tutu, a women's retreat with Phyllis Tickle, Belfast native and author Peter Rollins, artist Makoto Fujimura, and Rob Mathes and Micheal O'Siadhail.  

Future events include Nigel Mumford Nov. 14; Dr. Anthony Campolo Jan. 9; The Rev'd Dr. Jeremy Begbie March 12-13; Dr. Maya Angelou accompanied by Rob Mathes April 2; and N.T. Wright May 14-15.  

For more information on the Conversations on Courage & Faith series, contact info@courageandfaith.org or visit www.courageandfaith.org.
 
"The challenges facing the contemporary church are both daunting and exciting," said Ian Morgan Cron, curator of the Conversations on Courage & Faith series.  "How can we express the love of God in an increasingly secular age?  How do we wage peace in a time of social polarization and global conflict?  Are there new ways of doing church that will awaken others to the relevance of our faith?  We hope this series will stimulate generative conversation about what it means to live a spiritual and courageous life."
 
To learn more about the Rob Mathes' encore performance of At Night A Song Is With Me, or any of the upcoming events in the Conversations on Courage & Faith series, visit www.courageandfaith.org.  

For more information on Rob Mathes and his music, visit www.robmathes.com.