March 12, 2010
by Maureen Callan
Next Friday, March 19, the Horace Greeley High School Chorus will present its annual major work concert at 7:30 p.m. in the high school auditorium. This year, the featured work will be Haydn’s “Missa Brevis St. Joannis de Deo.”
I chose this work for its elegant simplicity, and for the purity of tone which the Latin text demands. This seventeen-minute work is not only a lovely example of classical choral writing, but a perfect training piece for young singers. Since there are no diphthongs in Latin, it’s an ideal language for teaching singers to form tall, rounded vowels. Once this is accomplished, they are able to blend their voices, stay on pitch and create a unified ensemble sound. Also, the brevity of the work enabled the Chorus to spend more time mastering solid vocal technique, and go deeper into the expressive aspect of their performance.
The musical climax of the piece is the “Benedictus” section, which features a soprano soloist (Christine Haggerty) and a virtuoso organ part (Felice Kuan).
From their first read-through of the “Missa Brevis,” the Chorus immediately connected with Haydn’s music. Two hundred years after his death, Haydn’s passionate and artfully constructed style is still able to capture the imagination of eighty-three teenagers at a Monday morning rehearsal. Hopefully, the same will be said for Friday night’s audience!
Joining the Chorus for the “Missa Brevis” will be the following chamber ensemble:
Violin: Katie Barclay, James Cranston, Gautam Narasimhan, Alexandra Orlander, Rose Schrott, Aoi Senju
Cello: Gabe Spade, H. Davis Knobloch
Organ: Felice Kuan
The concert is free, and refreshments will be served in the lobby following the performance. Please join us!
Maureen Callan is the director of the Horace Greeley High School Chorus.
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