Document text
The Southern Oregon Repertory Singers opened the winter season last week with a splendid and heartfelt concert, “Welcome Yule!” a whirlwind, world tour of holiday music. Many pieces were perfectly suited for dancing, in spirit if not in truth. “Welcome Yule!” featured 16 short pieces that ranged from solemn and haunting to joyous and triumphant, which conductor Paul French described as eclectic and festive. The opening piece was “Estampie Natalis,” by Czech composer Vaclav Nelhybel, and Morgan O’Shaughnessey’s violin echoed strains of the Romany as the work became more dense, more dramatic and more folk-like as it progressed. There couldn’t have been a better start to the concert than “Estampie Natalis,” which ends suddenly, surprisingly with bells and a brilliant burst of alleluia. In counterpoint, “Hodie Christus Natus Est,” composed by Heinrich Schutz in 1893, was a Gregorian chant of waiting and anticipation as sopranos, altos, tenors and bass singers picked up the refrain. The great pipe organ was revealed, and Jodi French echoed the alleluias. “Puer Natus est Nobis” followed, a contemporary piece by Swiss composer Ivo Antognini. This soft lullaby, with delicate a cappella, hushed as the new babe slept sweetly. The piece was lush and harmonic with notes at times that seemed born of jazz. Sherril Wood on wind, Jared Brown on percussion and Jodi French on piano and organ brought just the right notes to accelerate, echo and surround the magnificent voices of the singers. Morgan O’Shaughnessey accompanied many of the pieces, especially during the first half of the concert; he is a master of the violin, bending and curving his body about the instrument. The audience was further gifted with O’Shaughnessey’s nyckelharpa for “Eit Barn er Født I Bethlehem,” a 14h century Norwegian carol that was perfectly suited to that oddly beautiful Swedish stringed and keyed instrument that is played with both bow and keyboard. Perhaps my favorite work performed by the Southern Oregon Repertory Singers at “Welcome Yule” was Scottish composer James Macmillan’s “And Lo, the Angel of the Lord Came Upon Them.” Macmillian wrote of the moment when angels appeared to the shepherds in the fields, to lead them to the manger and to the Christ child. This very contemporary piece was unexpectedly thought-provoking and emotional. The soft sopranos might have been stars high in the sky leading the shepherds in the night, while the tenors described an immense mystery that would have been impossible to conceive of without voices raised in exultation. The piece ended with trumpets that proclaimed the glory of all — shooting stars perhaps, a celestial mystery revealed. One of the evening’s many serendipitous delights was Jingle Bells. Paul French confessed that he’s always on the lookout for new arrangements of this old favorite, and Philip Lawson’s 2015 arrangement is absolutely fun to hear, and must have been fun to sing as well. Strangely simplistic and complex, each refrain changed and reinterpreted the pattern of the familiar carol. In an ever accelerating movement toward a spectacular finale, the North Medford High School choir — all decked out in black robes and a scarlet collar — joined the Southern Oregon Repertory Singers on stage. These high school vocalists were solemn, singing “Rorate Caeli,” sacred music that was beautifully slow placed and comforting in its sublime simplicity. This very contemporary work by American composer, Leo Nestor began with men’s voices, deep and low, articulating those paced medieval chants, while the women come in with more modern harmonies that both distinguish and showcase old music in new ways. The final work of the evening was “Noel,” performed by both the Rep singers and North Medford High, so the stage was filled with talent. “Noel” was composed by Todd Smith, the son of African missionaries, in the style of an African folksong. The work brings the music, the rhythms and joy of Zaire to a composition that is grand with staccato, punctuated with drums and made live with stamps and a complicated double claps. The stage was filled with adult and youthful singers, all focused on this final work – those claps lifted hands from the earth to the sky with celebration and gratitude for all things. The Southern Oregon Repertory Singers opened “Welcome Yule!” with that classic, Germanic staid rhythm and closed with the excitement and exhilaration of Zaire. Welcome Yule to all! The next Southern Oregon Repertory Singers performance will be “First Light,” the second annual James Collier Festival of New Chorale Music on March 2 and 3, 2019. “First Light” showcases new works for voice, including “Stabat Mater” for choir and strings by Paul Mealor and other world and North American premieres, as well as a new composition by Jodi French. For more information on the Southern Oregon Repertory Singers and to order tickets, visit RepSingers.org or call 541-552-0900. Reach Ashland freelance writer Maureen Flanagan Battistella at [email protected].