“stunningly superb”
— Steven Ritter, Audiophile Audition
Hailed by Gramophone Magazine for his “vibrantly colorful palette” and "exquisite piano-playing," composer Henry Dehlinger is a spectacular new arrival on the classical scene who "stands out from the crowd" for his gorgeous choral and orchestral concert music as much as for his art songs.
His compositional voice expresses a modern yet tonal American aesthetic that joins together classical and vernacular elements. Henry renders strong, unique themes and leitmotifs from a diverse palette of musical styles that reflect the words he sets and emotional responses he means to elicit.
He weaves these musical fragments into meaningful aural experiences. Soaring melodies and complex harmonic idioms are, at once, dramatic and meditative. Audiophile Audition calls his work “stunningly superb” and "formidably essential listening!"
This season, Henry's list of premieres include a dramatic concert work for voice and orchestra, an extended choral work in five movements, two chamber works, three choral pieces and a new art song cycle of ten songs.
Amore e 'l cor gentil sono una cosa (Love and the gentle heart are one and the same) made its world premiere at the 2019 Berkshire High Peaks Music Festival in Great Barrington, MA. Henry wrote it for two special friends who decided to get married in Florence. What better text could he set than a love sonnet from La vita nuova by Dante, the Florentine philosopher-poet par excellence? Sung in the original Italian, it is a love duet for soprano, baritone and string chamber ensemble.
Night Piece, Strings in the Earth and Air, and Bahnhofstrasse—Henry's new choral settings of poems by James Joyce—made their world premieres on October 27, 2019 at the Washington Master Chorale’s 10th Anniversary Season opening concert with Thomas Colohan conducting.
Night Piece is a haunting choral meditation that swells into a tender exultation of the night sky with soaring melodies and lush harmonies. Strings in the Earth and Air is a jazz-inspired hymn of nature with sparkling piano accompaniment and impressionist overtones. Bahnhofstrasse is a recollection of the feelings associated with loss of youth. Four-part vocal lines float wistfully over a minimalist piano accompaniment that steadily reiterates a simple, eerie motif.
Night Piece, Strings in the Earth and Air and Bahnhofstrasse were originally part of an art song cycle—Ten Poems of James Joyce—which Henry composed during the winter and spring of 2019. Ten Poems premiered on February 9, 2019 at George Mason University's Harris Theater in Fairfax, VA in an all-Dehlinger program presented by the School of Music, bass-baritone Kerry Wilkerson and soprano Danielle Talamantes.
The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock premieres on April 20, 2020 with conductor Piotr Gajewski leading the National Philharmonic at Strathmore. Metropolitan Opera soprano and National Philharmonic audience favorite Danielle Talamantes, for whose voice Henry wrote the piece, sings the solo part. Adapted from the poem by T.S. Eliot, it is a sweeping 21st century rhapsody that uses the melodic and rhythmic contours of Eliot's stream-of-consciousness narrative to dictate mood and melodic character.
Kohelet, Henry's new cantata in five movements for mixed chorus and orchestra, makes its world premiere on May 8, 2020 at Mission Santa Clara de Asís on the campus of Santa Clara University, Henry's alma mater in Northern California. Co-commissioned by the Santa Clara Chorale and Washington Master Chorale, Kohelet combines lush, modal melodies, energetic meters, and colorful harmonic textures with Hebrew text drawn from Ecclesiastes and Song of Songs.
Henry's cross-genre work, especially his arrangements of the Duke Ellington Songbook, with their melodic lines and stylish vocal and piano writing throughout, are equally lauded. Fanfare Magazine describes them as, "superbly judged, from the lyricism through to the stride . . . Dehlinger's own arrangement expands the envelope of the original to a more intense experience." Audiophile Audition describes them as "a knock-your-socks-off performance that leaves you hankering for much, much more."
As a performer, Henry has appeared on leading stages from the War Memorial Opera House in San Francisco to the White House and has performed as featured soloist with The United States Army Chorus, guest performer on Washington’s Embassy Row, and in concert for dignitaries, including the President of the United States and the Prince of Wales. ConcertoNet.com calls him “an experienced and versatile soloist." MusicWeb International praises his "delicious piano playing," and Audiophile Audition, his "adroit and sparkling" performances.
His recordings have also received wide and critical acclaim. In 2011, he released his first album, Evocations of Spain, featuring a performance of piano works from Iberia and Chants d'Espagne by Isaac Albéniz and Goyescas and Twelve Spanish Dances by Enrique Granados.
He followed that up with several collaborations with soprano Danielle Talamantes: Canciones españolas: Granados, Falla, Turina (2014), Heaven and Earth: A Duke Ellington Songbook (2016), and The Mount (2016), an original composition commissioned by The Casement Fund that received a resounding ovation at its New York City world premiere and Midwest premiere with the Manchester Symphony Orchestra.
In the fall of 2019, Henry went back to the studio with Danielle Talamantes and Kerry Wilkerson to record an all-Dehlinger CD featuring brand-new duets and art songs written especially for the duo.
Born in San Francisco, Henry grew up studying piano and voice. His mentors were piano virtuoso Thomas LaRatta and choral conductor William "Doc" Ballard, artistic director of the San Francisco Boys Chorus, both of whom Henry credits for his early success.
He quickly earned a reputation as a prodigious talent, performing with major orchestras under conductors such as Riccardo Chailly and Edo de Waart and enchanting audiences with inspired interpretations of George Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue and Concerto in F.
Henry is a voting member of The Recording Academy—organizer of the GRAMMY Awards—and ASCAP (American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers). He and his wife Lauren divide their time between their home in Northern Virginia, just outside Washington, DC, and California.
Photo by Roy Cox
“Formidably essential listening!”
— Steven Ritter, Audiophile Audition
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“stands out from the crowd”
— Laurence Vittes, Gramophone
“I am stunned. This is easily one of the best recordings of the year.”
— Steven Ritter, Audiophile Audition
“Dehlinger's own arrangement expands the envelope of the original to a more intense experience”
— Colin Clarke, Fanfare Magazine
“Dehlinger rises to the challenge . . . especially effective in the driving harmony underscoring the voice”
— Carla Maria Verdino-Süllwold, Fanfare Magazine
“a stunning performance capturing the brilliance of these Duke Ellington songs”
— Kim McCormick, Pan Pipes
Mar 26 2020
We're sad to say that the world premieres of The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock with the National Philharmonic at Strathmore on April 18, 2020 and Kohelet with the Santa Clara Chorale on May 8, 2020 have been cancelled…
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Feb 10 2020
Henry is delighted to announce that Bahnhofstrasse, one of his latest works for mixed chorus with text from James Joyce's poem, will be performed at the 44th Annual Military School Band and Choir Festival at Randolph-Macon Academy February 21-23.
…
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Jan 5 2020
On February 9, 2020, Kerry Wilkerson, bass-baritone extraordinaire and faculty member of The School of Music at George Mason University, presents an all-Dehlinger program of art songs and duets written especially for Kerry and soprano Danielle Talamantes. The special concert…
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Oct 24 2019
Henry is delighted to announce the world premiere of three new choral settings of poems by James Joyce. Arranged especially for conductor Thomas Colohan and the Washington Master Chorale's 10th Anniversary Season opening concert, Night Piece, Strings in the Earth…
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Sep 23 2019
Henry is back in the recording studio with Metropolitan Opera soprano Danielle Talamantes, with whom he collaborated on his last two albums, and bass-baritone Kerry Wilkerson. This time it's to record his first album as both composer and collaborative pianist…
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Aug 1 2019
Metropolitan Opera soprano Danielle Talamantes and bass-baritone Kerry Wilkerson will premiere Henry's Amore e 'l cor gentil sono una cosa ("Love and the gentle heart are one and the same") at the 2019 Berkshire High Peaks Music Festival in Great…
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Mar 29 2019
The National Philharmonic at Strathmore today announced its new 2019-20 season. On April 18, 2020, conductor Piotr Gajewski will lead the National Philharmonic in the world premiere of The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock, Henry Dehlinger's sweeping rhapsody…
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Mar 26 2019
With five new concert works premiering so far, Henry looks forward to a remarkable 2019-20 season. First up, for the Washington Master Chorale's 10th Anniversary Season opening concert on October 27, 2019, Henry is at work on a brand new…
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Jan 18 2019
Music Reviewer Kim McCormick hails Heaven and Earth: A Duke Ellington Songbook in the Spring issue of Pan Pipes.
The interaction between the two artists is comfortable, conveying Ellington’s wide range of emotions, all making the listener feel as though…
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Dec 26 2017
As 2018 approaches, Henry Dehlinger is back at work on a brand-new extended choral work for soprano, bass-baritone, mixed choir, and orchestra for a Washington, DC choral group. Looking back at 2017, Dehlinger’s creative output included: The Love Song of…
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Dec 8 2017
Henry Dehlinger today announced the publication of his latest opus: The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock. T. S. Eliot's (1888-1965) poetic masterpiece is reimagined by the composer as a sweeping rhapsody that suggests the symphonic American vernacular of…
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Oct 13 2016
Composer Henry Dehlinger today announced the upcoming world premiere of his new orchestral setting of The Mount on October 23, 2016 at the Manchester Symphony Orchestra's opening concert of its 78th season featuring soprano soloist Danielle Talamantes with Maestro Scott…
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May 16 2016
HENRY DEHLINGER announces the release of HEAVEN AND EARTH: A DUKE ELLINGTON SONGBOOK, his third recording project with soprano Danielle Talamantes. The highly-anticipated album on the MSR label features Dehlinger's sensitive arrangements of Duke Ellington’s music with their melodic lines…
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Feb 13 2016
The world premiere recording of HENRY DEHLINGER'S THE MOUNT releases today. Composed for soprano Danielle Talamantes, THE MOUNT is a new art song based on poet Mark Riddles' collection of sacred poems in which he casts famous biblical passages in…
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Dec 16 2015
PHOTO CREDIT: ROY COX
2016 promises to be an exciting year as Henry Dehlinger prepares to release Heaven and Earth: A Duke Ellington Song book, his second collaboration album with international opera star Danielle Talamantes on the MSR Classics…
May 31 2015
Canciones españolas, Danielle Talamantes and Henry Dehlinger's latest recording of Spanish songs by Enrique Granados, Manuel de Falla and Joaquin Turina, receives critical acclaim in a sensational review from Laurence Vittes in the May 2015 issue of Gramophone Magazine…
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Jan 18 2015
Canciones españolas, featuring soprano Danielle Talamantes and pianist Henry Dehlinger in a gorgeous recording of Spanish songs by Enrique Granados, Manuel de Falla and Joaquin Turina, continues to garner critical acclaim. In his December 2014 album review on ConcertoNet.com…
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Nov 5 2014
Soprano Danielle Talamantes, a rising star on the international opera scene, and pianist Henry Dehlinger, widely acclaimed for his interpretation of Spanish classical music, will celebrate the release of their critically acclaimed new album, Canciones españolas, at a CD…
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Sep 30 2014
Pianist Henry Dehlinger returns to California on November 2 for a highly-anticipated concert of piano works by Enrique Granados. The program includes selections from Doce Danzas españolas (Twelve Spanish Dances) and Goyescas - featured in his album, Evocations…
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Aug 5 2014
Soprano Danielle Talamantes, a rising star on the international opera scene, and pianist Henry Dehlinger, widely acclaimed for his interpretation of Spanish classical music, today released their new album, Canciones españolas.
The new MSR Classics release features a gorgeous…
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May 31 2014
Pianist Henry Dehlinger announced today that his new classical album with soprano Danielle Talamantes, entitled Canciones españolas, will be released by MSR Classics. Talamantes and Dehlinger have signed with MSR Classics and are thrilled with the expertise and…
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May 18 2014
Pianist Henry Dehlinger will join Metropolitan Opera soprano Danielle Talamantes and United States Army Chorus tenor Pablo Talamante as they perform operatic favorites by Donizetti, Puccini, Granados, Obadors, and more!
“An Evening of Opera Highlights” will be held…
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Apr 22 2014
Soprano Danielle Talamantes and pianist Henry Dehlinger are happy to announce that the "first edits" of their upcoming classical album, Canciones españolas, have been completed.
Producer Richard Price, whose work has been honored with two 2005 Grammy nominations and…
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