There's a middle ground between large orchestras and chamber groups. That space is occupied by string orchestras. They have the full sound of an orchestra, but the uniform blend of a string quartet. The #ClassicsaDay challenge for this month is to post examples of string orchestra works. No brass, winds, or percussion allowed!
Views and reviews of over-looked and under-appreciated culture and creativity
Friday, November 08, 2024
#ClassicsaDay #Strings Week 1
Thursday, November 07, 2024
Andre Campra: Messe de Requiem and the Masters of Notre-Dame
The now metropolitan archbishopric ruled over the other French bishoprics. This made it the center of Catholic worship in France. In the 1640s, the Notre Dame archbishop developed new liturgies and new music with it.
This release features the music masters of Notre Dame who set those new standards. The centerpiece of the album is the Messa de Requiem by Andre Campra. Campra wrote both religious and secular music, specifically opera.
His Messa de Requiem was written in the 1720s. The choruses are lushly harmonized, and almost operatic. Yet there's a clarity to this music I found refreshing.
Contemporary sacred music written at Versailles is grandiose. After all, it was written to the glory of the king as well as to the glory of God. Campra's Requiem is less florid and more focused. This is music written to inspire contemplation in the vast space of Notre Dame.
The style of the other composers follows the same aesthetic. Francois Cosset and Jean Veillot were Notre Dame choir masters. They were a generation before Campra. Their harmonies seem a little simpler, while the ensemble sounds thicker. But this is still music for worship (and not of the king).
The Ensemble Correspondaces has a beautifully crafted ensemble sound. It's warm, yet detailed. The instrumental ensemble is mostly strings, with a few wind instruments and organ. They provide understated accompaniment to the choir.
My impression of French 17th-century sacred music came from the Versailles composers. Hearing the music created in the spiritual -- rather than the political -- center of France was enlightening, indeed.
Andre Campra: Messe de Requiem
and the Masters of Notre-Dame, Paris
Ensemble Correspondances: Sébastien Daucé
Harmonia Mundi
Wednesday, November 06, 2024
Žibuoklė Martinaitytė Choral Works Uniquely Beautiful
The opening track "Aletheia" was composed in 2022 for the Latvian Radio Choir. The shock of the Russian invasion of Ukraine inspired the work. There's no text. We hear sighs, whispers, moans, and other disquieting -- but very human -- sounds.
Imagine Gyorgy Ligeti's "Atmosphères" crossed with the thick textures of Eric Whitacre. It's a powerful work, and one of disturbing beauty.
Chant des Voyelles (2018), or, Incantation of Vowels is just that. Here Martinaitytė subtly shifts long, held tones. Overtones move, changing the character of the sounds in unobvious ways. The music seems suspended in time. And yet it's continually evolving and moving forward.
Martinaitytė writes that her work "Ululations" portrays "mourning women whose men... are at war fighting and dying." The ululations of the female voices provide the motivic structure of the work. And from those sounds the choir builds in quiet intensity.
The Blue of Distance is the earliest work on the album, dating from 2010. But it's mature Martinaitytė. The wordless chorus creates a sensuous cloud of sound. One that continually swirls about itself, creating new combinations of tones and overtones.
The Latvian Radio Choir commissioned one of the works on this release. And their performance of "Aletheia" is nothing less than authoritative. And their singing on the other pieces even more so. This is a capella music -- no instruments to lean on. And the music continually has tones a half-step apart. Their dissonances create sonic beats that are as much of the score as the written notes.
It takes singers of extraordinary skill to sing this music. If I was told they all had perfect pitch, I wouldn't be surprised. For Martinaitytė's music to deliver its full effect, every note must be sung perfectly. And that's what we get on this release. Four perfectly-sung performances. And they create four soundscapes of exceptional beauty.
Žibuoklė Martinaitytė: ALETHEIA
Choral Works
Latvian Radio Choir; Sigvards Klava, conductor
Ondine ODE 1447-2
Friday, November 01, 2024
#ClassicsaDay #Divertimento Week 5
The Classics a Day team decided to lighten up a little. Webster's Dictionary defines a divertimento as "an instrumental chamber work in several movements usually light in character."
For October, the challenge is to post videos of divertimentos written by classical composers.
I quickly discovered that every composer had a different idea of what "light in character" meant. The only thing any of these selections have in common is the title: divertimento. Here are my selections for the fifth and final week of the #ClassicsaDay challenge, #Divertimento.