The Jacob Sears Memorial Library in East Dennis was alive with the sound and story of Christmas carols on Sunday afternoon, December 19. Cape Cod’s beloved soprano Joan Kirchner performed in a program that combined history, musical insights, and singing. The program was unique, substantive, and entertaining, and the record audience of over 100 people was enthralled. Ms. Kirchner delighted us all with every bit of the charm, wit, and glorious sound audiences have come to expect from Cape Cod’s beloved soprano.
In a region rich with musical talent, Joan Kirchner is a stand-out. Joan first came to prominence in the 1990s as a soloist for oratorio, opera, and recital repertoire. Whether she is delivering a witty, inventive rendering of Cole Porter or an insightful twist on a medieval work, Joan Kirchner engages and uplifts her audiences with the beauty and clarity of her voice, her lively imagination, and her charismatic stage presence.
Joan escorted the audience back to the early Renaissance, when carols originated as verses to accompany dance. She took us to England, Europe, and South America and revealed some of the insights and secrets that carols hold, and showed how their words are often simple expressions of profound truths. En route back to present-day Cape Cod, Ms. Kirchner dropped in on early America and moved on to the Victorian period, when carols – long underground following the Puritans’ ban on such frivolities - were rediscovered.
Joan has performed with many of the top musical groups in the region and beyond, including Boston’s Handel and Haydn Society, Toronto's Tafelmusik Chamber Choir, the Masterworks Chorale, Chorus North Shore, the Woods Hole Cantata Consort, and the Chatham Chorale. Pursuing her passion for early music, Joan has worked with some of the world’s foremost musicians, including the famed Austrian conductor Nikolaus Harnoncourt; the highly acclaimed musicologist, and leader in the movement to perform early music on period instruments, Gustav Leonhardt; and Ton Koopman, another important leader in the authentic performance movement. Joan is herself the co-founder of the Renaissance group OYEZ! which performs regularly here at the Cape.
A native of western New York State, Joan holds two bachelor's degrees from Houghton College, one in Music and a second in Business Administration. She earned a master's degree with distinction in Music from Indiana University, and studied at the Eastman School of Music. In addition to her public performances, Joan performs for private events, serves churches throughout the Cape, and teaches voice, piano, flute, and organ at her home studio in Brewster.
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