Melodies of Memory: Cantus Explores the Timeless Connection Between Music and Our Past in 'Wanting Memories'
Why is it that we can recall the lyrics and melody of a song from our childhood, but we struggle to find our keys in the morning, or find ourselves unable to remember peoples’ names? Time and age can cause organized memories to gradually become a maze of fragments, but music often remains the one thing that helps us to remember who we are. As our memories fade, and life is transfigured for everyone around us, is music the final conduit for our memories, and the final connection to our past? In Wanting Memories, Cantus explores the unique and enduring relationship between music and memory in all of our lives. Through selections that include timeless tunes like "Over the Rainbow" and "What a Wonderful World", and anchored by Ysaÿe M. Barnwell’s "Wanting Memories", this performance traverses the realms of nostalgia and family, loss and love, grief, laughter, fear and hope.
Upcoming Performance
Cantus will perform their "Wanting Memories" program in New York City Sunday, January 12, 2025 at the Holy Trinity Lutheran Church.
Concert Program
Bob Thiele, George David Weiss: What a Wonderful World
Tim Minchin: From Matilda, When I Grow Up
Taylor Swift: Fifteen
Christopher H. Harris: I Would Live in Your Love
A.R. Rahman (arr. Ethan Sperry): Wedding Qawwali
Alan Jay Lerner, Frederick Loewe: From Gigi, I Remember It Well
Stevie Nicks: Landslide
Ysaÿe M. Barnwell: Wanting Memories
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Richard Strauss: Traumlicht
Sydney Guillaume: Gagot
Mia Makaroff: Spes (Hope)
Dolly Parton: Light of a Clear Blue Morning
Rosephanye Powell: When We Sing
Harold Arlen, E.Y. Harburg: Over the Rainbow
Memory Choir Resources
Art Pharmacy is the leading social prescribing solution in the United States. We partner with healthcare, universities, and community-based organizations to tackle the challenges associated with access, cultural stigma, and rising cost of care.
Mayo Clinic: Can Music Help Someone with Alzheimer's Disease?
The Guardian: ‘It brings you back’: the suburban choir helping people living with dementia reconnect
The New York Times: How Music Can Be Mental Health Care
The “engaging” (The New Yorker) low-voice ensemble Cantus is widely known for its trademark warmth and blend, innovative programming and riveting performances of music ranging from the Renaissance to the 21st century. The Washington Post has hailed the Cantus sound as having both “exalting finesse” and “expressive power” and refers to the “spontaneous grace” of its music making. The Philadelphia Inquirer called the group nothing short of “exquisite.”
Contact Us
We invite you to contact us now about finding a date to bring Wanting Memories to your series in the 2025/26 or 2026/27 seasons.