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Julianne Baird has a reputation for being one of the world's leading interpreters of Baroque vocal music.  Her expressive soprano voice has been described by the Washington post as "one of the most extraordinary voices in the service of early music."  I had heard about her and seen her name headlining at the Boston Early Music Festival for years, but this was my first chance to hear her live.  Performing on the Harriman-Jewell Series  with the viola de gamba consort Parthenia at the Folly Saturday night, they debuted a well curated program of early English Christmas music called As if fell on a Holie Eve.

The pre-performance lecture was given by William Jewell Artist in residence, Jay Carter, a local counter-tenor.  He provided an engaging overview of early music, expertly fielded questions and prepared the audience for what they were about to hear.  With regard to the vocal aspect, he indicated that a simple tone would be heard without "wobble" and vibrato would be used for ornamentation only.

This, unfortunately, was not the case.  Ms. Baird used vibrato throughout her middle and upper register.  There were many beautiful high notes that were clean and unaffected, but the majority of the pieces lay in the lower part of her register which she wasn't able to support without vibrato.

She whispered the lowest notes of her songs with intensity.  In the Byrd piece, Out of the Orient Crystal Skies, the bell-like refrain "Falantidingdido" was highly animated, but unfortunately, her facial intensity did not translate into any sort of volume that could help the listeners hear her better.  The melodic lines of each song, therefore, rose and fell in volume according to where they rose and fell in her voice. 

Julianne Baird is undoubtedly still one of the best interpreters from a stylistic perspective.  Her use of Baroque ornamentation in the return of the main melody of each song was perfectly chosen and well executed.  My only lament was that the venue didn't help her.  A more reverberant space could have given her voice the resonance it lacked.

The viol players of Parthenia are masters. The viols or viola de gambas are some of the most difficult early instruments to play.  The cat gut strings are forever changing shape and tone according to the environment. In addition, the horse hair bows can't be adjusted mechanically, requiring the players to pull them tight with a finger while pushing and pulling them across the strings.  Balancing the instruments, as they do, between their legs without an end pin takes a considerable amount of physical lower body strength.

As an ensemble, they were meticulous and sensitive to each other in an almost subconscious way.  Tenor Viol, Lawrence Lipnik, played with joyful abandon as did Bass viol Lisa Terry.  They seemed to be spiritually reinforced by their instruments and watching them in action was a pleasure.  The second bass viol, Beverly Au was unassuming until her solo in the piece Harke, Harke by Tobias Hume where she plucked with such a soft delicacy her viol reminded me of an angel's harp.  At the end of the piece, she bounced the bow on a chord which made the instrument sound as if it were quietly calling, "hark, hark".

The piece Fantasia a 4 by Alfonso Ferrabosco the Younger had a decidedly Italian feeling.  Although he had always lived in England, this piece had more passion, longer phrases and stronger volume than the other, bouncier English pieces on the program.

Lully, lula attributed to Shearman & Tailors, is one of my favorite early carols and was touchingly rendered by Baird and Parthenia.  The viols plucked, strummed and rolled chords through the variations as each verse become more embellished vocally.  It was an exquisite arrangement.

What early English Christmas concert would be complete without at version of Greensleves? Divisions on Greensleves, by Anonymous from the mid-17^th century had a dance-like lilt and virtuosic vocal runs. The melody passed from voice to tenor viol to treble viol to bass, each completing the former idea and creating their own.  It reminded me of the sort of improvisational games musicians in the jazz and bluegrass traditions still play today.

Early music is satisfying because it not only allows the audience to take a step back into time, but also reminds us of how much in common we still have with the past.  Thanks to Julianne Baird and Parthenia for bringing us the music of this "Holie Eve".  

REVIEW:
Harriman-Jewell Series
Parthenia with Julianne Baird
As it fell on a Holie Eve
Saturday,  December 19, 2009
Folly Theater
300 West 12th Street, Kansas City, MO
For more information call (816) 474-4444 or www.hjseries.org

By Megan Browne Helm

Classical, Vocal and Theatre Contributor

Megan Browne Helm grew up singing, dancing and acting.  Inspired by Emma Kirkby as a high school student in St. Louis she went on to study voice and sing with the Collegium Musicum at the Oberlin Conservatory in Ohio where she also had a radio show of contemporary classical music on WOBC.  At the University of Kansas she had the pleasure of working with former Kings’ Singer, Simon Carrington in his Collegium Musicum and Oread consort. Years later, she was a choral fellow at the Yale School of Music’s  Norfolk Chamber Music Festival.  She is currently singing with the Kansas City Symphony Chorus under the direction of Charles Bruffy. 

 As a freelance music and culture writer her work can be found on KCMetropolis.org, presentmagazine.com, the Lawrence Journal World, Shawnee Magazine, Leawood Lifestyle Magazine and KC Parent.  She was one of 26 journalists in the country chosen as a NEA Institute Fellow for Classical Music and Opera at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. 

Her current interest is how classical music remains relevant through active collaborations with artists in different fields, including science.  She also sees a connection between classical music, travel and food as a way to engage all of the senses in a 360 degree cultural experience.  She blogs at raworganum.wordpress.com.