EARLY MUSIC REVIEW: A Distinctly Passionate Passion By J. M. Bailey (California Bach Society, March 1, 2002)

EARLY MUSIC REVIEW
A Distinctly Passionate Passion
March 1, 2002

By J. M. Bailey

Both a sense of high drama and a calm sincerity pervaded the performance of Gesualdo's 1611 Tenebrae Responsories by the California Bach Society last Friday at Berkeley's First Congregational Church. With a mixture of plainchant, intoned lessons, and Gesualdo's rich and beautiful responsories, they tried to recreate the liturgical context of Gesualdo's Tenebrae service for Good Friday, as it might have have been performed in his time, in his chapel.

The performance began with a choir processional and candle-lighting ceremony, done in silence, as the performers had requested. Then an antiphon and the first Psalm were sung, in unison. Anyone who thinks that plainsong is a rather austere form of music should have been there to hear the purity of the sound,yet richness of phrasing that director Warren Stewart drew from his singers. Throughout the concert, far from seeming the simple poor sister after the complexity of Gesualdo's settings, the plainchant was rather its perfect foil. One got a very clear impression that the choir were listening to each other.

No fewer than nine lessons were sung, with dignity and rich tone, by bass Hugh Davies, as the "Celebrant." His rendition gave thoughtful expression to the text and the shape of the phrases, although the tendency to use a glottal stop for emphasis was slightly obtrusive, as in the resonant First Congregational Church they rang in the ears each time. By the third Nocturn, Davies' voice was (not surprisingly, considering the undertaking) showing some signs of strain. It is very difficult to sing these passages, not only because they are entirely unaccompanied, but also because they involve a lot of singing on a single pitch.

Intense, quiet, unobtrusively in tune

The Responsories were sung by the choir with intensity, and wonderful full tone in the loud passages, which made full use of the acoustic of this beautiful church. The acoustic was also obviously appreciated in the use of subtle quiet singing where it was appropriate. Throughout, an intelligent interpretation of the text was in evidence. The intonation was again excellent, which is crucial for giving the effect of the many unusual dissonances in Gesualdo's music. This is a choir which knows not only the sound, but also the feeling of an in-tune chord.

A slight but persistant problem in the homophonic and polyphonic singing was an imbalance toward the lower end of the choir, except in the loudest passages. The women's voices were consistently overshadowed by the sonority of the bass; at times I thought it was perhaps one singer that was doing the damage, but in fact I think they unknowingly encouraged each other in this tendency.

Notable among the many brilliant responsories was an emotional rendition of No. 5, "Tenebrae factae sunt" ("Darkness descended"), including the words "My God, why have you forsaken me?". The choir seemed to relish the dissonance and the strange harmonic progressions of this responsory. The gentle opening of the sixth responsory, "Animam meam dilectam" ("My soul, which I loved"), was also particularly beautiful.

Tenebrae ending in the literal dark

The concert ended in darkness, the extinguishing of the candles being followed by a versus from the choir and the "Miserere mei" ("Have mercy on me") sung backstage by a small group of solists. This was in fact slightly anticlimactic, in that the rhythm seemed less incisive and the intonation less pure than was the rule for the rest of the concert. It became evident at this stage how much of the group's sound and support was enhanced by Stewart's direction.

Finally, as is required in the Lauds service for Good Friday, a loud noise of footstamping came from the choir, before the lights came up and the choir exited. In some ways this left one feeling disoriented at the end of what was in fact, an excellent concert, but it was in line with the integrity of what was being attemped in this evening, and in that sense, a fitting end.

(J.M. Bailey studied Medieval and Renaissiance music at the Universities of Western Australia and Oxford, and is currently in the United States continuing studies in musical performance.)