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August 14, 2016 – 23rd Anniversary Concert
First Presbyterian Church San Anselmo, CA
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“A MUSICAL TOUR IN TIME AND PLACE” Celebren, Publiquen, Entonen y Canten – Sumaya |
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— Chorale Members — |
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— Program Notes — |
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MEXICO – Baroque
Celebren, Publiquen, Entonen y Canten (Sumaya, 1678-1755)
Soloists:
Alto – Melissa Muller Tenor – Sanford Dole Bass – Jim Kamphoefner
Celebren, publiquen, entonen y canten, celestes Anfiones, con metricos ayres las dichas, las glorias, los gozos, las paces con qu’hoy a su Reyna la corte flamante recibe gloriosa admite gozosa y aplaude triunfante.
Y al elevarle la Angelica milicia a dichas, a glorias, a gozos, a paces cada cual reverente la espera deseoso en su clase por Pura, por Reyna, por Virgen, por Madre.
Las tres altas jerarquias en fiel controversia amable amorosos solicitan a la que sube triunfante. Los Seraphines alegan qu’en su coro ha de quedarse pues si a ellos toca amar en amar es Mar de mares. Cada Querubín porfia su plenitud admirable que esta Ave de gracia llena. Los Mercurios soberanos del Cielo nuncios brillantes exclaman que aquesta Aurora anuncio al mundo las paces.
Praise, proclaim, intone, and sing, heavenly Amphions with metric tunes, the good fortune, the glory, the joy, the peace with which the Heavenly Host today receives its Blessed Queen amidst triumphant applause.
And as the Angelic Host raises Her up to good fortune, to glory, to joy, to peace, each one in his heavenly station reverently awaits Her as the Chaste One, as Queen, as Virgin, as Mother.
The three high hierarchies in friendly and faithful dispute lovingly call for the attention of Her who rises up triumphantly. The Seraphim claim that She should stay in their choir because if it is their duty to love in loving, She is the Sea of seas. Every Cherubim vies for Her admirable fullness that this Ave, fills with Grace. The sovereign Mercuries, the brilliant messengers of Heaven, exclaim that this dawn proclaimed peace on earth.
Manuel de Sumaya (or Zumaya) was a composer, organist and choir director in Mexico. His compositional style, while firmly Baroque in character, incorporates tri-tones and harmonic changes that are markedly different than his contemporaries in Western Europe employed. We are grateful to Chanticleer for recording and reintroducing his music to the world.
USA – 21st Century
Dream Land (Kevin A. Memley, 1971 – )
Poem by Christina Rossetti, 1830 – 1894
Where sunless rivers weep Their waves into the deep, She sleeps a charmed sleep: Awake her not. Led by a single star, She came from very far To seek where shadows are Her pleasant lot. She left the rosy morn, She left the fields of corn, For twilight cold and lorn And water springs. Through sleep, as through a veil, She sees the sky look pale, And hears the nightingale That sadly sings. Rest, rest, a perfect rest. She cannot see the grain Ripening on hill and plain; She cannot feel the rain Upon her hand. Sleep that no pain shall wake; Night that no morn shall break Till joy shall overtake Her perfect peace.
Kevin A. Memley is a refreshing and versatile composer whose works can be heard around the world. Many of Consort Chorales members were fortunate to be included in the performance of his “Magnificat” with full orchestra at Carnegie Hall in May of 2015.
FRANCE – 20th Century
Hymne au Soleil (Lili Boulanger, 1893 – 1918)
Hymn to the Sun Poem by Casimir Delavigne (1793 – 1843)
Soloist: Elisabeth Zurlinden
Du soleil qui renait benissons la puissance. Avec tout l’univers celebrons son retour. Couronne de splendeur, il se leve, il s’elance. Le reveil de la terre est un hymne d’amour. Sept coursiers qu’en partant le Dieu contient a peine, Enflamment l’horizon de leur brulante haleine. O soleil fecond, tu parais! Avec ses champs en fleurs, ses monts, ses bois epais, La vaste mer de tes feux embrasee, L’univers plus jeune et plus frais, Des vapeurs de matin sont brillants de rosee.
Let us bless the power of the reborn sun. With all the universe let us celebrate its return. Crowned with splendor, it rises, it soars. The waking of the earth is a hymn of love. Seven rushing steeds that the God scarcely holds back ignite the horizon with their scorching breath. Oh, vivid sun, you appear! With its fields in bloom, its mountains, its thick forests, the vast sea set ablaze by your fires, the universe, younger and fresher, With morning vapors are glistening with dew.
The younger sister of noted composer and composition teacher Nadia Boulanger, Lili was a child prodigy who studied with Gabriel Fauré. She was the first female composer to win the distinguished Prix de Rome in music.
USA – 21st Century
The Heart’s Reflection (Daniel Elder, 1986 – )
Text based on Proverbs 27:19, paraphrased by Daniel Elder
See the waterfront shine forth resplendent; so the heart of humanity to all the earth reflects, to all the earth.
From Athens, GA, with degrees from the University of Georgia and Westminster Choir College, Daniel Elder is an emerging name in 21st-century composition. His works have been performed by choirs at All-state, regional honor choir events, and by the acclaimed Eric Whitacre Singers.
USA – 20th Century
The One Hundred Fiftieth Psalm (Howard Hanson, 1896 – 1981)
Praise ye the Lord. Praise God in his sanctuary: praise him in the firmament of his power. Praise him for his mighty acts: praise him according to his excellent greatness. Praise him with the sound of the trumpet: praise him with the psaltery and harp. Praise him with the timbrel and dance: praise him with stringed instruments and organs. Praise him upon the loud cymbals: praise him upon the high sounding cymbals. Let everything that hath breath praise him. Alleluia.
A Pulitzer-Prize-winning composer, Hanson served as director of the Eastman School of Music for 40 years. He has been credited as a champion of American classical music, of which he is now recognized as a major contributor.
UK – 21st Century
The Isle is Full of Noises (Paul Ayres, 1970 – )
Texts by William Shakespeare (1564-1616) and Bai Juyi (772-846)
Shakespeare: … the isle is full of noises, sounds and sweet airs, that give delight, and hurt not. Sometimes a thousand twangling instruments will hum about mine ears; and sometime voices, that, if I then had wak’d after long sleep, will make me sleep again: and then, in dreaming, the clouds methought would open and show riches ready to drop upon me; that, when I wak’d I cried to dream again.
Juyi: The bloom is not a bloom, The mist not mist. At midnight she comes, And goes again at dawn. She comes like a spring dream – how long will she stay? She goes like morning cloud, without a trace.
Paul Ayres is a freelance musician who works in and around London, UK. He is a published composer and arranger with numerous catalogs and is also a choral conductor, music director, organist and accompanist. The compostion heard tonight was the winner of the Edwin Fissinger Choral Competition sponsored by North Dakota State University.
USA – 21st Century
Tenebrae (Richard Burchard, 1960 – )
Traditional from Liturgy
Tenebrae factae sunt super universam terram. Et circa horam nonam, clamavit Jesus voce magna, dicens “Eli, Eli, lamma Sabactani?” [hoc est] “Deus meus, Deus meus, ut quid derelequisti me?”
Darkness fell over all the earth, and at about the ninth hour (3:00 p.m.) Jesus cried out in a loud voice, saying, “Why have you neglected/forgotten me?”
It was not until recently that Richard Burchard’s music began to be published. Since that time he has received commissions from all over the world. His “Seven Last Words of Christ,” from which this is the fourth movement (and word), displays his writing for choir with strings. The work was premiered in April of this year. We are pleased to premiere this movement in the Western United States.
SOUTH AFRICA – 20th Century
Mass (Peter Klatzow, 1945 – )
Traditional from Liturgy
Soprano Soloist: Patricia Littman
KYRIE (Lord)
Kyrie Eleison. Christe Eleison, Kyrie Eleison.
Lord, have mercy. Christ, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.
GLORIA (Glory Be)
Gloria in excelsis Deo. Et in terra pax hominibus bonæ voluntatis. Laudamus te; benedicimus te; adoramus te; glorificamus te. Gratias agimus tibi propter magnam gloriam tuam. Domine Deus, Rex coelestis, Deus Pater omnipotens. Domine Fili unigenite Jesu Christe. Domine Deus, Agnus Dei, Filius Patris. Qui tollis peccata mundi, miserere nobis. Qui tollis peccata mundi, suscipe deprecationem nostram. Qui sedes ad dexteram Patris, miserere nobis. Quoniam tu solus Sanctus, tu solus Dominus, tu solus Altissimus, Jesu Christe. Cum Sancto Spiritu in gloria Dei Patris. Amen.
Glory be to God in the highest. And in earth peace to people of good will. We praise Thee; we bless Thee; we worship Thee; we glorify Thee. We give thanks to Thee for Thy great glory. O Lord God, Heavenly King, God the Father Almighty. O Lord Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son. Lord God, Lamb of God, Son of the Father. Thou that takest away the sins of the world, have mercy upon us. Thou that takest away the sins of the world, receive our prayer. Thou that sitteth at the right hand of the Father, have mercy upon us. For thou only art holy, thou only art the Lord; thou only art the most high, Jesus Christ. Together with the Holy Ghost in the glory of God the Father. Amen.
CREDO (I Believe)
Credo in unum Deum; Patrem omnipotentem, factorem coeli et terrae, visibilium omnium et invisibilium. Et in unum Dominum Jesum Christum, Filium Dei unigenitum, Et ex Patre natum ante omnia saecula. Deum de Deo, lumen de lumine, Deum verum de Deo vero, Genitum non factum, consubstantialem Patri per quem omnia facta sunt. Qui propter nos homines, et propter nostram salutem descendit de coelis. Et incarnatus est de Spiritu Sancto ex Maria Virgine: et homo factus est.
Crucifixus etiam pro nobis sub Pontio Pilato, passus et sepultus est. Et resurrexit tertia die secundum Scripturas. Et ascendit in coelum: sedet ad dexteram Dei Patris. Et iterum venturus est cum gloria, judicare vivos et mortuos: cujus regni non erit finis. Et in Spiritum Sanctum, Dominum, et vivificantem, qui ex Patre Filioque procedit. Qui cum Patre et Filio simul adoratur et conglorificatur, qui locutus est per Prophetas. Et unam sanctam catholicam et apostolicam ecclesiam. Confiteor unum baptisma, in remissionem peccatorum. Et expecto resurrectionem mortuorum et vitam venturi saeculi. Amen.
I believe in one God; the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible. And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all worlds; God of God, light of light, true God of true God, begotten not made; being of one substance with the Father, by Whom all things were made. Who for us and for our salvation descended from heaven; and was made incarnate by the Holy Ghost, of the Virgin Mary, and was made man.
He was crucified also for us, suffered under Pontius Pilate, and was buried. And on the third day He rose again according to the Scriptures, and ascended into heaven. He sitteth at the right hand of the Father; and He shall come again with glory to judge the living and the dead; and His kingdom shall have no end. I believe in the Holy Ghost, the Lord and giver of life, Who proceedeth from the Father and the Son; Who, with the Father and the Son together, is worshipped and glorified, as it was told by the Prophets. And I believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church. I acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins. And I await the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come. Amen.
SANCTUS (Holy, Holy)
Sanctus, Sanctus, Sanctus, Dominus Deus Sabaoth. Pleni sunt coeli et terra gloria tua. Osanna in excelsis. Benedictus qui venit in nomine Domini. Osanna in excelsis.
Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God of Hosts. Heaven and earth are full of Thy glory. Hosanna in the highest. Blessed is He that cometh in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest.
AGNUS DEI (Lamb of God)
Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi, miserere nobis. Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi, Dona nobis pacem.
Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world, have mercy upon us. Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world, Grant us peace.
Professor Emeritus of Music at the University of Cape Town, Peter Klatzow, studied composition in London at the Royal College of Music and also with Nadia Boulanger in Paris. Known mostly for his instrumental works, he has received numerous awards including the International Composers’ Competition in 1977. As far as we can tell, tonight’s performance is the premier of his Mass in the United States.
USA – 21st Century
Down by the Riverside (Arranged by Stacey V. Gibbs, 1965 – )
African-American Spiritual
Gonna lay down my burden down by the riverside, and study war no mo’. Lord, I’m gonna lay down my sword an’ shield down by the riverside.
Stacey Gibbs is a true amateur musician who makes a living outside of music. His arrangements of spirituals have captured the attention of choral directors of professional, university and community choirs the world over. He had fewer than three new works premiered at the ACDA National Convention in 2015. Rumor has it he will have four at the National Convention in 2017.
Consort Chorale consists of selected choral singers from the San Francisco Bay Area who are dedicated to the choral art form. Every summer, for the past twenty-three years, the group has auditioned in May, then gathered for almost-weekly rehearsals and an intensive week of nightly rehearsals, culminating in a crowd-pleasing concert. The unique “intensive” format comes with certain limitations, but provides an opportunity for singers to share in their love of choral music through the ages. We are indebted to our associate conductors, David Irvine, RuthE Wells, and Sanford Dole, whose assistance in preparation is immeasurable. Consort Chorale has toured Eastern Europe three times, and performed at Carnegie Hall. They will tour Argentina next summer. Allan Robert Petker, founder-director of Consort Chorale, is an internationally known choral conductor, clinician and prolific composer with many published works. He is the Vice President of Publications for the Fred Bock Music Companies (which recently acquired Hinshaw Music), and President of Pavane Publishing. He is the Artistic Director and Conductor of the Santa Clarita Master Chorale and the Los Cancioneros Master Chorale in the Los Angeles area. For the past 17 years he has served as Dean for two music conferences at Lake Tahoe. Special thanks to the First Presbyterian Church of San Anselmo; Bob Friestad, Consort’s unflappable Dean; The Madison Company Realtors for their assistance with our publicity; Jon Curtis for managing our web site; Barbara McElroy and Andrea Fox for rehearsal accompaniment assistance; Alexandra Amati-Camperi and Martin Hillyer for program assistance; Kimberly Ayers Petker, Allan McAllister, RuthE Wells, Kris Irvine, Terry Scott, and Maggie Huffman, Reception; Tom Atkin, Recording Engineer; Good Shepherd Lutheran Church for rehearsal space, and Stephen McKersie for his invaluable assistance. |