Present Music’s Thanksgiving Concert Makes a Vocal Return

Grammy-winning choir The Crossing will join the ensemble to sing a newly commissioned piece on Nov. 23.
Present Music has stumbled upon a tradition: a Thanksgiving concert at the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist that kicks off the holiday season with gratitude and acceptance.
The first performance proved popular 25 years ago, and it became a fixture for the contemporary ensemble that yielded a Pulitzer Prize for a piece by Raven Chacon, commissioned by Present Music and premiered by the group in 2022. Each concert brings commissioned works from talented composers to the cavernous cathedral for an unparalleled listening experience.
“You couldn’t replicate it with 30 surround-sound speakers,” says co-artistic director Eric Segnitz. “Watching people struggling to create music and relating to their humanity, there’s something important about that.”

Join us for an afternoon of inspiration and fellowship as we honor six incredible women leading Milwaukee forward in the spirit of our longtime publisher, Betty Quadracci.
This year’s Nov. 23 concert features “Of Being Numerous,” a commissioned piece by Christopher Cerrone and performed by Grammy-winning chamber choir The Crossing, which artistic director Eric Segnitz calls “an incomparable get.” This piece will blend electronics with conventional instruments and historical poetry. It’s titled after George Oppen’s Pulitzer-winning poem of the same name, which explores individualism in our vast modern world.
The Crossing only sings new music. The choir drummed up an international following for its exploration of timely social, environmental and political issues with the help of director Donald Nally. Its altruistic endeavor highlights the concert’s raison d’etre to celebrate difference and bring a diverse group of people together in the pursuit of music.
Before the Milwaukee concert, The Crossing and Present Music will meet in Philadelphia to perform the concert and do a studio recording of Cerrone’s piece for the first time.
Two other recent commissions will precede Cerrone’s piece; Ochre by Caroline Shaw and Distant Maneuvers by Paul Wiancko. As always, the show will be bookended by drumming – Little Priest Singers will fill the space with rhythm and the power of Native tradition.
“This will be an exceptional year because of the quality of the artists we are bringing in,” Segnitz says.
The performance is Nov. 23 at 5 p.m, including a pre-concert conversation with Cerrone and Nally.