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CHORAL MUSIC REVIEW
The Head but Not the Heart March 23, 2002
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By Bruce Lamott
The distinguished career of The Tallis Scholars, now approaching their
thirtieth year under founding conductor Peter Phillips, has contributed
generously to our familiarity with the unaccompanied sacred choral music of
the 15th and 16th centuries. Through annual international tours and a
discography of more than 40 releases, ranging from the familiar (Palestrina,
Byrd) to the more obscure (Gombert, Clemens non Papa), this mixed-voice choir
attracts an enthusiastic following, witnessed by their sold-out performance
Saturday in Berkeley's First Congregational Church. In a program
curiously — if not facetiously — entitled "Music Before 1850" (the repertoire
barely made it past 1550), the ten singers demonstrated their
characteristically impeccable intonation, contrapuntal clarity, and vibrant
sonority. However, the lingering impression of the concert, to this listener,
was one of sound in search of spirit.
The Palestrina Missa Benedicta es revealed a robust timbre which was
nonetheless transparent enough to reveal the constantly shifting textures.
The various permutations of the five parts result in an intricate interplay
of duos and trios within a harmonious whole. Soaring soprano lines arch over
the close heel-to-toe canonic imitations of the Christe. However, the
unrelieved intensity of the Gloria was more fatiguing than inspiring, and the
brilliance of the concluding "Cum Sancto Spiritu" was robbed of its effect
by its boisterous preparation.
The discoveries of the second half of the program, including two motets by
Jacquet of Mantua and a setting of the Lamentations of Jeremiah by Thomas
Crecquillon, introduced more harmonic and textural variety. The appealing
melodic lines of Jacquet's four-part "Alleluia, surrexit Dominus" appear in
canonic pairs, with a sensitively-inflected bass line. However, the
unfelicitous combination of female alto and effortful countertenor
overpowered the ensemble. Crecquillon's richly sensual settings of the Hebrew
letters which introduce each lamentation traced arabesques of counterpoint
with the intricacy of an illuminated manuscript.
The closing pair of Josquin motets wove together the threads of a finely-crafted program centered on the influence of this Franco-Flemish master, hailed by his contemporaries as "Prince of Music." The concluding motet, "Ave noblissima creatura," is based on the same plainsong as the opening Palestrina mass, a work closely related to and influenced by Josquin. Though composed to console one scoundrel (Pope Alexander VI, aka Rodrigo Borgia) on the death of another (his son, the monstrous Juan Borgia), Josquin's plangent setting of David's lament over his son Absalom has survived its dubious origins to become one of the most poignant of Renaissance laments. However, the dolefully descending lines of baritone and bass were somewhat negated here by the unabated assertiveness of the alto/countertenor pair. While Peter Phillips has unquestionably done remarkable work in introducing forgotten repertoire and building an impressively cohesive ensemble sound, one has to ask what purpose his conducting serves in performance by ten singers subject to an inexorable pulse. The peculiar shudder which accompanies his clenched fist at the upbeat and travels down his neck on the tactus contradicts the fluidity of the complex lines, and one looked in vain for a gesture eliciting the shaping of a melodic line. Left to their own devices, perhaps the singers might internalize their melodic interplay more effectively, but in the face of a large and undifferentiated beat, they suppress these instincts to a monotonous mezzo-forte. The cohesiveness of their sound was belied by the diffused focus of each singer: some riveted to the score, others fixed on Phillips, a few connecting with the audience, and a lone (albeit resonant) bass facing away from the ensemble, singing to the floor. The experience of live performance is rarely challenged by recordings, but in the case of The Tallis Scholars, their presence in person contributes little to an impressive discography. (Bruce Lamott is choral director of the Philharmonia Chorale and the Carmel Bach Festival. He is also an instructor in music and Western Civilization at San Francisco University High School and conducts choral classes in the San Francisco Conservatory of Music's Extension Program.) ©2002 Bruce Lamott, all rights reserved |
