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On 17th
June 2006, the Chamber Choir of the South-east and South-west
districts of the UK presented a concert to celebrate the visit
of our Chief Apostle Wilhelm Leber. After all invited apostles
and wives were seated, the concert programme began.
The first
piece to be rendered was 'Blessed are the men who fear Him'
by Felix Mendelssohn, a movement from his 'Elijah' oratorio.
The lyrics of the piece are reflective of the events described
in 1 Kings 17, following on from the raising of the sons of
the Widow of Zarephath, mentioning both the peace of God and
the theme of light out of darkness. The context of this piece,
therefore, is reflected upon with both power and controlled
balance between emotion, praise and adoration for God.
Thomas
Morley composed the next piece in the late 16th Century, a
well known madrigal called 'Now is the month of Maying'. This
light, fast-paced and smile-inducing piece was written in
the style of an Italian madrigal, but Anglicised by Morley
to suit an English medieval court. To follow on suitably,
'Greensleeves' was performed by a counter-tenor; a voice sung
by male singers who have developed their falsetto range (or
'head voice'). Legend has it that this piece was composed
by King Henry VIII of the early 16th century, written for
his anticipated future queen, Anne Boleyn. The lamentable
lines of loss of love, 'Greensleeves was all my joy…',
were conveyed with the gusto and air of a true medieval court.
Out of
all the pieces Johannes Brahms composed, his Hungarian Dances
were the most popular and profitable for him. A violin soloist
performed the 12th of these dances by Brahms, which was originally
written for 4 hand piano (piano duet) but here transcribed
as an incredibly lively and skillfully performed solo. Interestingly,
the piano duet that featured later in the programme, 'Slavonic
Dance No. 8' by Antonin Dvorak, bears many similarities -
and may have indeed been modelled around the Hungarian Dances.
Another
of Felix Mendolssohn's works followed, 'Hear My Prayer; O
for the wings of a dove', the majority sung by a soprano soloist.
A beautiful atmosphere of tranquility broke through difficult
acoustics to bring calm and peace to the intently listening
audience. Karl Jenkins' 'Adiemus' brought together many African,
Asian and European musical themes, through phonetic sounds
of the voice as opposed to words, to bring what can only be
described as a beautiful cultural experience.
A male
choir followed with the gospel-style 'Joshua' by Robert Sells
- putting the words and actions of the falling of the walls
of Jericho to music - a truly heart-warming joyride of vocal
talent. The whole choir sang a traditional Irish Blessing
by Bob Chilcott, especially intended for the retirement of
our Apostle Hoffman. The words 'May the road rise up to meet
you' brought the essence of the message across in all it's
heartfelt beauty to our dear apostle.
Following
on from the break, the 1930s George Gershwin piece, 'Summertime',
was performed by soprano solo. An incredibly laid-back jazz
piece that harked back to the time of broadway musicals, smoothly
and delicately recreated.
Moving
on from the relaxed style came 'Witness' by Jack Halloran,
another gospel song similar to 'Joshua' earlier. Performed
by a smaller group of singers, the contrast between light
and amusing female lines interweving with rolling male lines
created an entertaining musical presentation, telling of famous
Bible stories with a humorous touch to them.
The next
performance was the piano duet mentioned above, Dvorak's 8th
Slavonic Dance. The talented pianists demonstrated their skills,
over technical difficulties, in a powerful rendition of this
romantic-era composition. 'The peace of God' by John Rutter
followed, sung by the full choir and bringing with it exactly
what the name suggests. The atmosphere of peace created by
this choral work was brought home to England to the traditional
sound of 'Abide With Me' by William Monk - perhaps one of
the most well known hymns of Great Britain. One could've believed
they were sitting in the pews of Canterbury Cathederal when
both listening to the chamber choir singing the hymn and then
singing to the words of the first verse at the end.
George
Friederic Handel was reknowned as one of the greatest composers
of the Baroque and early Classical Eras of music, and it is
from arguably his most famous oratorio, 'Messiah', that the
Hallelujah chorus is taken from, and performed as the fianle
to this musical concert. With power, majesty and authenticity
the concert was rounded off, hopefully leaving lasting impression
on all those gathered, on all the apostles, and especially
for our chief apostle.
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C. Ap. Leber, Birmingham,
2006 Concert Report
