All is Mere Breath Empire City Men’s Chorus & Vince Peterson

• Nicholas Weininger (b. 1978): Hakol Hevel (All Is Mere Breath):
• 1 Weininger: Hakol Hevel (All Is Mere Breath): I. Overture 02:02
• 2 Weininger: Hakol Hevel (All Is Mere Breath): II. How she sits alone 08:47
• 3 Weininger: Hakol Hevel (All Is Mere Breath): III. The words of Qohelet 07:20
• 4 Weininger: Hakol Hevel (All Is Mere Breath): IV. Like foxes among the ruins 06:20
• 5 Weininger: Hakol Hevel (All Is Mere Breath): V. My God, my God 03:35
• 6 Weininger: Hakol Hevel (All Is Mere Breath): VI. Interlude - Turning 01:23
• 7 Weininger: Hakol Hevel (All Is Mere Breath): VII. Look, my servant 04:46
• 8 Weininger: Hakol Hevel (All Is Mere Breath): VIII. Send out your bread upon the waters 04:15
• 9 Weininger: Hakol Hevel (All Is Mere Breath): IX. Hear this, you elders 03:19
• 10 Weininger: Hakol Hevel (All Is Mere Breath): X. Coda - Oseh Shalom 03:13
• Total Runtime 45:00

Info for All is Mere Breath

In the throes of lockdown, Nicholas Weininger found himself reflecting on this Hebrew verse; what is the nature of our collective life sustained on if not breath and breath alone? It was a breath robbed and convoluted during the COVID-19 pandemic: the ravaged breath of the afflicted, the fear of coming too close to the breath of another. Our world seemed to pause and take a breath, busy city streets gone barren amid our collective anxieties.

Debuted and recorded by the Empire City Men’s Chorus, ALL IS MERE BREATH asks us to question the nature of our changed society in the thought of mere breath alone, and offers us refuge in the breath of song, perhaps, now and then, the purest form of it.

Empire City Men’s Chorus
Amy Buckley, soprano
Blythe Gaissert, mezzo-soprano
Brian Mextorf, baritone
Vince Peterson, artistic director

Empire City Men’s Chorus
is a forward-thinking, urban auditioned men’s chorus based in New York City. For over 27 years, ECMC’s high quality choral concert programming has brought countless audiences to their feet, made significant contributions to the tradition of men’s choral repertoire, and given back to its greater community through volunteer service, profit-sharing, and goodwill performances. Today, ECMC is much more than an avocational men’s chorus. It is a tight-knit community that values fraternity, musical excellence, and social justice. For many members and listeners, it is an extended family in music that has changed their lives for the better. Its membership reflects a diverse cross-section of New Yorkers, identifying not only with multiple racial and ethnic heritages, but also representing gay, bi-sexual, straight, and transgender identities.

Vince Peterson
is a respected choral conductor, composer/arranger, and teacher of music in the United States. His 20-year hybrid career spans the worlds of choral music, theater, sacred music, and music education. He has, however, established himself most prominently in the world of choral music, notably having founded the “shape-shifting” vocal ensemble Choral Chameleon in 2008. Across his work, he is responsible for presenting nearly 300 premieres of new choral and theater music in the last 15 years and has won critical acclaim in The New York Times, Time Out New York, The New York Concert Review, I Care If You Listen, The Examiner, and other publications. He is also a recipient of the prestigious ASCAP/Chorus America Award for Adventurous Programming.

As a prolific arranger, Peterson has received seven commissions to date from the multi-Grammy Award-winning ensemble Chanticleer, whose YouTube videos of his work have garnered over half a million views. Several of his choral arrangements and original compositions have become staples for choirs across the United States. Distinguished performance venues include Chicago Symphony Hall, San Francisco’s War Memorial Opera House, Bartok National Concert Hall in Budapest, New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art, and Carnegie Hall, among others.

A recognized thought leader in the music world, The New York Times called Peterson “authoritative beyond his… years,” and The Brooklyn Eagle praised his work as “a stunning symphony of the spiritual and secular,” while hailing him as a solo performer “with depth and vigor” who “provided a universal context which resonated with his audience.”

In 2018, Vince was awarded the Louis Botto Award for Innovative Action and Entrepreneurial Zeal by Chorus America, a lifetime distinction he shares with only 15 of the most influential choral musicians in the United States.

He has been the Artistic Director of Empire City Men’s Chorus since 2014 and led the group through its 25th Anniversary Season.

This album contains no booklet.