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Musica Vocale’s final local concert of the season showcased Aaron Copland’s Four Motets and Arthur Honegger’s King David.  This was challenging music, not only for the musicians, but for the audience as well.  Those expecting to hear sounds similar to Appalachian Spring and Pacific 231 were probably disappointed, but the Motets and King David were worth the listen.

I must admit I arrived late and only caught the tail-end of Copland’s first motet, “Help Us, O Lord” (blame it on multiple venues with the same name; once again Facebook came to the rescue…). I was immediately struck, though, by the intonation issues.  Copland’s close harmonies demand exacting pitch control, and unfortunately the intonation and all too prominent female vibrato rendered many of the harmonies as shaky cluster chords instead of tension-filled dissonances.  A notable example of that was at the end of “Have Mercy on Us, O My Lord.” However, the up-tempo “Sing Ye Praises to Our Kings” was snappy and the call-and-response form of the piece was a nice respite for the ear.  The mezzo-soprano of the soli group was especially fine. 

Arthur Honegger’s tripartite King David is a quirky piece with many astounding twists and turns and unexpected sonorities through its hour-long performance time.  Honegger’s original scoring for sixteen players was a marvel. Scored for woodwinds, brass, string bass, percussion, and three keyboard instruments, I was surprised that this was my first encounter with his “symphonic psalm,” as it could fit very well in many college wind ensemble programs.  The absence of strings made the orchestra sound more exotic and ancient—well suited to the story of the biblical king—especially when oboist Margaret Marco played her embellished modal melodies.  At times though, the orchestra seemed unwilling to listen to one another, making for some discrepancies in what should have been matching timbres, intonation and articulation.  

The mammoth piece was slightly above the choir’s skill level as a whole.  It is a long piece requiring great endurance. The music, with its echoes of Stravinsky, Gershwin, Milhaud, Satie, Debussy and Respighi, should be approached differently in each section to achieve the desired affect, thus heightening the drama.  Instead, the choir sang full voice with full vibrato for the piece’s entirety, expressing little of the depth inherent to the moving libretto. 

There were some glimmers of brilliance, however.  Tenor Craig Allen displayed clear diction and a nimble voice on the faster sections of his solos.  The narration by Brian Steele lent a gravitas to the proceedings that could give James Earl Jones a run for his money.  Jan Rogge, as The Witch of Endor, took what could have been a laughable, melodramatic soliloquy, and, with the help of the orchestra, transformed it into a captivating incantation.  Unfortunately countertenor Jay Carter, usually a standout, sounded vocally fatigued and pressed.  Although she had the volume and vocal dexterity, soprano Stella Dayrit Roden’s vibrato was bit heavy for my taste.

I applaud Maestro Epley for his courageous programming.  These are both very difficult works, and far too often groups do not challenge themselves artistically.  The majority of the performance issues could have been resolved in a more forgiving acoustic space with a few more rehearsals.  And to attempt these pieces in what is only their second season, Musica Vocale deserves applause and appreciation.

REVIEW:
Musica Vocale
Sunday, June 6, 2010
Congregation Beth Shalom
Wornall and Bannister, Kansas City, MO
www.musicavocale.org

By Lee Hartman

Editor-in-Chief; Traditional and New Classical Contributor

Lee Hartman holds degrees from the University of Missouri-Kansas City (D.M.A., M.M.) and the University of Delaware (B.M.). At the University of Delaware, he received a Dean's Scholar position enabling him to pursue an individually designed academic program combining music education and composition. At the University of Missouri-Kansas City he served for three years as the Assistant Director to Musica Nova, the conservatory's new music ensemble, while teaching a variety of composition classes.

In 2007 he was invited to both the Iceland Academy of the Arts in Reykjavík, Iceland and the Sichuan Conservatory in Chengdu, China to give lectures and master classes in composition. In the summer of 2009, Hartman served as an orchestra manager for the Aspen Contemporary Ensemble and Aspen Opera Theater Center for various performances. He serves on the National Executive Committee of the Society of Composers, Inc. as Submissions Coordinator. His primary composition instructors include James Mobberley, Chen Yi, Zhou Long, Paul Rudy, John Beall, and Jennifer Margaret Barker. He currently teaches music theory at the University of Central Missouri and general music classes at Park University having previously taught at UD (2007–08) and UMKC (2006–07).

His compositions can be found at http://www.leehartmanmusic.com

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