VOICES IN THE HEARTLAND

Music has a way of haunting each of us.  Sometimes a single piece can take hold of a person and become almost an obsession.  I keep a mental list of several pieces that always impact me profoundly.  Over the years, my choices have evolved to include a wide variety of genres and performers.

One such piece that I find haunting is "The Call"  from the Five Mystical Songs by Ralph Vaughan Williams.  This short work, written for baritone soloist and instrumental accompaniment, is redolent of Gregorian chant as well as the Romanticism of the 19th and 20th centuries, set to words by the 17th century British poet George Herbert:

The Call
Come, my Way, my Truth, my Life:
Such a Way, as gives us breath:
Such a Truth, as ends all strife:
Such a Life, as killeth death.
Come, my Light, my Feast, my Strength:
Such a Light, as shows a feast:
Such a Feast, as mends in length:
Such a Strength, as makes his guest.
Come, my Joy, my Love, my Heart:
Such a Joy, as none can move:
Such a Love, as none can part:
Such a Heart, as joyes in love.


The Gateway Men's Chorus of St. Louis performed this entire work, and many others, as part of their holiday concert on December 8 and 9, with baritone Robert McNichols, Jr., conducted by Robert Stumpf.  Both men are consummate musicians.  McNichols sings with boundless energy and precision honed by years of careful practice.  His voice boomed throughout the auditorium at Union Avenue Christian Church, backed by organist John Cargile. 

Robert Stumpf is one of those conductors who breathes with the music and makes himself a complete part of it.  He clearly understood the drama and pathos intended by Vaughan Williams.  Stumpf has built on the legacy of previous conductors of the GMC to craft a skilled and unified ensemble that continues to grow and mature, now in its 31st season. 

Interestingly, Vaughan Williams was an atheist turned agnostic, yet is renowned for his Christian music.  Perhaps he understood that mysticism sooner or later tugs at each of us.  Here is a performance from YouTube of the song by baritone Carl Frank and organist Colin Knapp:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DAxc7zuqFyU

THE BOOKS WE READ: RUDYARD KIPLING'S "KIM"

Lately I had been noticing that I was spending too much time watching the world go by, but not taking time to read.  So I adopted a midyear resolution and commanded myself to begin reading all the books collecting dust on a "to read" shelf.  One of the very first was "Kim", by Rudyard Kipling, which appeared in print in 1901.

Today in the United States we need to read more of the classics.  It is amazing how timeless the themes are in Kipling's work:  devotion to one's passions; persistence; the legacy of colonialism; racism; religion.  "Kim" tells the story of an orphaned Irish boy raised as a Hindu in the streets of Lahore in India.  Kim becomes the devoted guide to an elderly Tibetan lama as he searches for the River of the Arrow in India and who becomes as a father to the orphaned boy.  Along the way, Kim acquires a European education paid for by the lama and gets involved in colonial espionage.

Reading "Kim" is challenging; Kipling throws around terms from Buddhism, Hinduism, Christianity and Islam on almost every page.  His own father commented on the difficulty of the text.  But the effort is well worth it.  Seldom has there appeared a book that speaks more deeply to the very essence of the human spirit and all our inner and outer struggles. 

Kipling's own life was very difficult--separation from parents, abuse by foster parents and legal battles--so I suspect there are many autobiographical moments recounted in the pages of "Kim", rendering his words all the more poignant.  

Next on my list:  Faulkner's "Light in August".  Anyone else care to share their thoughts on a particular book that moved them?

Review: THE METROPOLITAN ORCHESTRA PRESENTS A MUSICAL PANORAMA

Sunday, March 5, 2017

A kaleidoscope of diverse and talented soloists and a broad-ranging program, led by two conductors, combined to produce a spirited and intriguing concert by the Metropolitan Orchestra of Saint Louis this weekend in their home venue at First Presbyterian Church in Kirkwood.  

In his remarks to the audience, Conductor Laureate Allen Carl Larson explained the uniqueness of several of the featured works, as well as the characteristics and challenges of the solo instruments involved. Today it is more important than ever to provide education and background to listeners, which is one of the most important and attractive components of MOSL’s concept and mission. Not only does the orchestra provide background and knowledge, but it also offers a “Share the Music Stand” program in which gifted students are paired with orchestra members at rehearsals and concerts. This is music education at its very finest:  veteran performers in the orchestra teaching by example, and students learning by doing.

Harpist Megan Stout opened the program as soloist in the “Danses sacree et profane” (Sacred and Secular Dances) by Claude Debussy, a beautiful work showcasing the strength, agility and sheer beauty of the instrument, for which Stout was amply suited. Benjamin Britten’s remarkable “Serenade for Tenor, Horn and Strings”, featuring Peter Ulffers, horn, and tenor Keith Boyer.  Drawing upon verses from major British poets, the cycle of songs requires performers with a wide range and warmth of tone. Ulffers and Boyer melded a beautiful lyrical counterpoint together; without such smoothness and rich sonority, this work would be cold and lifeless. But that was certainly not the case. Britten’s score calls for both a field horn (no valves) as well as the modern concert horn.  The opening and closing sections of the work are played offstage by the field horn, creating a roving and dreamlike effect that provides a tonal backdrop to the poetry proclaimed by the tenor.

The program continued—without intermission, which seemed entirely appropriate for such a musical showcase—with clarinetist Jeanine York-Garesche performing the “Five Bagatelles for Clarinet and Strings” by the 20^th century composer Gerald Finzi, arranged by Lawrence Ashmore.  The descendant of Italian Jews who settled in England, Finzi is well known for his numerous choral and vocal works. The Five Bagatelles are a beautiful set of short capricious works, full of melodic ingenuity and expressing various moods.  Along with all the featured soloists on the program, York-Garesche performed not only with a flowing, liquid tone, but also consummate technical skill. All musical instruments, and all human voices, must “sing,” meaning they must perform with expression, dynamics, proper phrasing, rich tone and must be able to give the music wings to take flight on its own. All the featured soloists at this concert were able to successfully embody these characteristics.

The first three works on the program were conducted by Conductor Laureate Allen Carl Larson, perhaps the single guiding force behind the establishment of the Metropolitan Orchestra, ably assisted by Music Director Wendy Lea. In addition to his musical leadership that molds the entire ensemble into a cohesive, dynamically balanced whole, Larson also functions as an educator and commentator to the audience. Added to that is his deep commitment to nurturing young musicians. These traits combine to create an impressive mission statement for the orchestra.

Assistant Conductor Andrew Peters concluded the concert with Franz Schubert’s Symphony No. 5 in B-flat Major, completed in 1916 when the composer was only nineteen. Since Schubert died at 31, somehow his inner spirit knew that he needed an early start. This symphony displays Schubert’s uncanny ability to produce tuneful and soulful melodies, easily recognizable yet always original. The task of the conductor is to make sure that each melody must ring out clearly and sail into the listener’s ears. Peters projected a solid understanding of Schubert’s ideas and how they intermingle, making this work an excellent send-off for the enthusiastic audience.  

The winning combination for this program was its mixture of varied instrumental and vocal soloists, a wide historical range of musical styles, inclusion of works that appealed to audiences yet here and their gave just a bit of harmonic and melodic challenge, an affordable admission price, a hall that is large enough to accommodate yet still provides an intimate setting, and careful yet brief explanations and introductions of the pieces. This is what symphony orchestras were meant to be, and why they are critical to the cultural life of every community.