Vancouver
Chamber Choir
The Angel Sang:
An Advent Concert
Conductor: Jon Washburn Harp: Heidi
Krutzen
Percussion: Salvador Ferreras
Venue: Holy
Rosary Cathedral
Date: 30 November 2002
Reviewer: John Jane
At
this time of the year, Christians all over the world begin spiritual
preparations for Christmas. This time of preparation is known as the
season of Advent. For many people, an important element of this, is to
share in a festival of Christmas music. The Vancouver Chamber Choir
performed their Advent concert this weekend, appropriately in the Holy
Rosary cathedral, in front of a surprisingly large gathering for a chilly
November evening. Those of whom who managed to leave their cozy living
rooms for the rather austere ambiance of the Cathedral experienced a
joyous selection of well known, and not so well known carols and Christmas
songs.
The
twenty choir members and choirmaster appeared on the stage area, entering
from behind the altar to welcoming applause and looking particularly
festive, with the ladies dressed in bright red velour jackets. The
programme got under way with four short carols by Healey Willan, including
the jaunty "Tyrle, Tyrlow." Then, with scarcely missing a beat to accept
the grateful applause, the choir swung into a triune of French songs
adapted by Vancouver-born Peter Mathews, youngest of the featured
composers and arrangers in the evening's programme.
For
the next collection, the choristers adjusted their position to form four
groups, and following an introduction from Jon Washburn on the history of
this selection of compositions, each group delightfully interpreted seven
songs originally intended as Christmas greetings from Robert and Margaret
Fleming. The second of which was a cheery little verse titled "O Gladsome
Hearts, Remember" that featured a brief solo by new soprano Joanna
Dundas.
The choir returned for
the second half with a glorious rendering of what was probably the best
known carol in the programme, "O Come, O Come Emmanuel," Stephen Chatman's
arrangement of the fifteenth-century processional hymn. This rendition may
have provided some relief to a section of the audience to hear something
they recognized, after a collection of rather obscure carols just prior to
the break.
With a trilogy of
Christmas canons, Heidi Krutzen on the harp and Salvador Ferreras with
percussion bells provided splendid accompaniment. The first of these was a
blissful "Whence come you, Shepherd Maiden" and delivered with such
abundant zeal. The tempo slowed down to suit the sombre "New Prince, New
Pomp," but then returned with the lively "Masters in the Hall."
The recital concluded
with a first time performance by the Vancouver Chamber Choir. Four lyrical
children's Christmas songs arranged by Mr. Washburn sung impeccably in
German, with harp accompaniment provided once again by Heidi Krutzen. For
those in the audience with German heritage, the music must surely have
provoked visions of a childhood Weihnachten.
Christmas carols can
be simple songs with complex origins, therefore perhaps an occasional
brief narrative by the choirmaster may not have been amiss, considering
the relative obscurity of certain sections of the programme. This Advent
concert offered a vade mecum to Christmas choral music and will no doubt
provide some inspiration to rejoice in the coming season.
© 2002,
John Jane
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