Choral Music Magazine
APRIL ISSUE
Entering the Church of St. Ignatius Loyola is both terrifying and magnificent. The church was dimly lit, half-packed, pristine yet aged, and resounding with glorious organ music. Renée Anne Louprette, a parish organist and choir conductor, finished her pre-concert recital with Liszt – mightily. The crowd responded with a standing ovation and I had gotten my first taste of the beauty of music-making in this Upper West side home for the Choir and Orchestra of St. Ignatius Loyola. The concert hadn’t even started, yet I was already sure it would be a grand one – a bustling New York City audience, a large, sharply dressed orchestra clamoring for Wagnerian drama, and a professional chorus of 32 prepared to proclaim holy praises through the music of 19th century master Felix Mendelssohn.
Prior to the choir’s appearance, the orchestra performed the Prelude and Good Friday Spell (Karfreitagzauber) from Parsifal. The vocal parts removed, the orchestra sang the music of Wagner on well-synchronized strings, whimsical woodwinds, powerful percussion, and haughty horns and brass. This three-act music drama, a 25 year development, was Wagner’s final major work, premiering within the year prior to his death. It rang well in the space. This work, sometimes solemn and often tantalizing, was proclaimed by Wagner to be a consecration.
Conducted by Kent Tritle, their director for nearly 20 years, the choir took the stage not for mass, per their usual weekly routine, but rather to spread the Word, through more robust choral music than is usually heard in a service – Mendelssohn’s Lobgesang (Hymn of Praise) Symphony No. 2 in B-flat Major, Op. 52. Described by the composer as a “symphony-cantata”, the work was originally conceived solely for instruments, but after three symphonic movements there blossoms nine vocal movements, set in German, utilizing chorus and soloists, in this case sopranos Rachel Rosales and Marlene Hernandez as well as tenor Frederick Urrey. First though, the choir declared its presence beginning the cantata with a prominent proclamation to listeners, (translated) “Let everything that hath breath praise the Lord”, followed by more resounding praise. They were few in number, but plenty loud, though not overly so. The movement concluded with a soprano solo, nicely complemented by the chorus trebles.
The tenor soloist entered splendidly, calling evangelically for people’s proclamation of delivery from evil. This movement was followed seamlessly by a reaffirmation of his words by the chorus. The soprano duet that followed, Ich harrete des Herrn,, offered a warming comfort through its familiar melody and luscious choral background, with particularly sweet-tempered passages by the men. Such a great blend!
The mood shifted drastically with the second tenor solo movement which, paired with the proceeding chorus, introduced the subject of enlightenment. Then, billed as a symbol of the German Reformation, the choir next sang Nun danket alle Gott mit Herzgen, satisfyingly simple when a cappella, then embellished during a reprise with instrumental accompaniment. Still more praises followed in the sole tenor and soprano duet, in which lovely phrasing and heartfelt musicianship were demonstrated by both the vocalists and orchestra. Finally, there was one last call to “magnify the Lord”, during which the orchestra’s volume was a bit too much as the choir sang its final fugal praises, jubilantly and with attention to each note.
The Choir of St. Ignatius Loyola is a finely trained and skillful ensemble, exemplified in the repertoire selection of their recent album Wondrous Love, amongst others. While the sound is too big for my parish music preference, it has sonority well-suited for sinfonia and the bold music of 18-20th century choral works.
Jonathon Hampton is editor of Choral Music Magazine. A Chicago native and Cornell University graduate, Hampton sings professionally in New York City. For the past two years, he performed across the San Francisco Bay Area as an Alto, Tenor, and Bass. He was previously an writer for the Cornell Daily Sun. His passion for choral music comes from 18 years of experience singing both sacred and secular music.
PHOTO CREDIT: www.stigantiusloyola.org
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