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CHORAL MUSIC REVIEW
An Evening
April 7, 2001
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By Kaneez Munjee
Chanticleer's concert Saturday night at Mission Dolores in San Francisco was a decadent step back into the 17th century as a re-creation of Dietrich Buxtehude's Abendmusiken in Lübeck, Germany. Unsurprisingly, the 12-voice male a cappella group lulled its audience with serenity, joined by the 10-piece instrumental Chanticleer Sinfonia, which accompanied all the vocal works and also performed three pieces on its own.
Buxtehude's Abendmusiken — or musical evenings — in Lübeck were an attempt to present "theatrical events that bordered on sacred opera." While most of the pieces offered great dramatic possibilities, there were few moments that delivered real drama. With their characteristic light, pure vocal colors, the men of Chanticleer created a wonderfully luscious musical atmosphere, yet one that lacked emotional depth and contrast. It was a luxuriant and rich sonic world (particularly sensual in the warm acoustic of the Mission Dolores, with its domed ceiling right above the musicians), enjoyable but rather too homogeneous for my appreciation of the Baroque repertoire.
The group sang music exclusively by Buxtehude. The first choral work, "Aperite mihi portas" ("Open the gates for me"), showed Chanticleer's vocal quality at its most beautiful and included a lovely trio by alto Jay White, tenor Michael Lichtenauer, and bass-baritone Thomas Bold. The final two pieces, "Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme" ("Awake, call the voices") and the "Alleluiah" from "Heut triumphieret Gottes Sohn" ("Today God's Son triumphs"), showed off the polyphonic hallmarks of 17th century German music, giving the singers an exciting opportunity to interact with one another and with the Chanticleer Sinfonia, this time including oboes and trumpets.
In contrast, the four middle pieces on the program featured individual voices. Tenor Matthew Oltman and bass David Alan Marshall paired well with each other in "Ich suchte des Nachts" ("I sought Him at night"), and soprano Ian Howell shone in the fourth verse of "Klag-Lied" ("Sorrow Song"). Yet these two, along with "Mit Fried und Freud" ("In peace and joy") and the cantata "Nichts soll uns scheiden" ("Nothing shall separate us"), which all called for largely unison, single-part or even solo singing, seemed to cheat us of the rich Baroque textures being offered by the instruments. For an audience that loves Chanticleer for its vocal blend and tight choral sonorities, this program offered too few opportunities to hear the ensemble utilize all its vocal resources. But even so, Chanticleer's singers did not disappoint. Throughout, they reached out and sang to the audience, led by passionate and energetic music director Joseph Jennings, and the audience responded enthusiastically. The Chanticleer Sinfonia offered the most distinctive note, their presence adding a novel dimension to Chanticleer's traditional fare. In addition to accompanying all of the vocal pieces, the Sinfonia strings and continuo section performed three lively Sonatas by Johann Rosenmüller, a contemporary of Buxtehude. Their playing captured the spirit of the music with enthusiasm and energy, and the interplay between violinists Carla Moore and Laurie Young Stevens was particularly engaging. (Kaneez Munjee is a doctoral candidate in musicology at Stanford University, a singer, and editor of the newsletter of the California Bach Society.) ©2001 Kaneez Munjee, all rights reserved |