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Siskiyou Singers bring 'Samele' to life By Susan DeRosia Revels Editor Every Tuesday evening around 7:20 p.m., a community of singers gathers in Wesley Hall at the Methodist church on the corner of Laurel and Main Streets in Ashland. It's not a religious gathering, unless by religious, you mean people who are so devoted to singing in this large, sometimes boisterous group of (mostly) amateur adult singers, that they're willing to give up every Tuesday night for months at a time just for the pleasure of working together for those hours and - when it's ready - to perform the music they've been practicing. Next weekend the members of the Siskiyou Singers will get the chance to perform their music and this time, it's an extraordinary piece, "Semele," an oratorio written in 1742 by composer George Friderich Handel just a year after he wrote his most well known work, "Messiah." While "Messiah," with its rousing "Hallelujah" chorus was a very popular piece during Handel's era and for most of the years since then, "Semele," written in 1743 was rarely performed in Handel's lifetime (he died in 1759) and lay virtually dormant until very recently. Within the last five years it has been performed by the San Francisco and Seattle opera companies, among others, and has been recorded, with John Eliot Gardiner conducting. For Dave Marston, artistic director and conductor of the Siskiyou Singers, the reason "Semele" never attained the stature of Handel's "Messiah" lies, most likely, in the subject matter. "After the deeply religious fervor expressed in "Messiah," Marston points out, "English audiences weren't quite ready for a secular story about a woman who refuses her Father's wishes to marry one man, preferring instead the hand of a God, who is already married. No less than three characters - Semele; Jupiter; and Somnus, the god of sleep - experience erotic dreams in this sexy tale. That was pretty risqu� stuff for the staid English audiences of the 18th century and a century later, the Victorian audiences simply wanted no part of it. Later editions of the work omitted objectionable words such as "passion," fruitful nights," and even "bed." For this performance of "Semele" by the Siskiyou Singers, Marston has chosen to use its original oratorio style, that is, without staging, costumes, or sets, allowing the audience's minds to experience the lusty secular tale as if it were a spicy romance novel. To tell - or sing - the story, the chorus is adding an outstanding lineup of local soloists who will assist in the concert and has invited the Jefferson Baroque Orchestra to play. For the first time, the chorus held public auditions for the solo parts and nine were selected from the 26 who tried out. Soprano Pauline Sullivan is playing the title role. Tami Marston was selected to play the goddess, Juno, Jupiter's wife, who plots revenge against Semele. Her swift-footed messenger, Iris, will be performed by Joelle Graves. Patricia Leines will play Cupid, who will seek to arouse the amorous desires of Semele with a seductive air. Don Matthews plays Semele's father, Cadmus, King of Thebes. Cynthia Garson will sing the role of Ino, Semele's devoted sister. Jupiter is played by David Gabriel and Somnus, the god of sleep is played by Ellison E. Glattly. Finally, Andrew Brock will resolve all the conflict of the play, appearing as Apollo. The 100-voice Siskiyou Singers chorus echoes the sentiments with a rousing chorus of "Happy, happy shall we be" to conclude the story. Conductor Marston feels that "Semele" will greatly enhance modern concert-goers' perception of Handel, "With beautiful solos such as "Where'ere You Walk," (sung by the character Jupiter, played by David Gabriel) and Semele's air "O Sleep, Why Dost Thou Leave Me?" And the 10 choruses which comment on the story add greatly to the drama and pathos of this Greek myth. It's clear this is the same composer whose bountiful creative powers brought forth "Messiah." Handel's "Semele" will be performed at 8 p.m. on Friday, May 9 and Saturday, May 10 and at 4 p.m. on Sunday, May 11 in the SOU Music Recital Hall in Ashland. Tickets are $10 in advance and $12 at the door and can be purchased at Paddington Station or Treehouse Books in Ashland, at Piano Studios and Showcase in Medford or by calling 482-5290. LINKS: REVELS: Main | Calendar | Dining | Movies | T.V. DAILY TIDINGS: Main | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Opinion | Columnists | AP News | Subscribe | Archives | Weather | Classifieds | Contact Us | Privacy Copyright 2003 Ashland Daily Tidings 541.482.3456. 1661 Siskiyou Blvd., Ashland, OR 97520. Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. - Advertisers -