Pergolesi's Stabat Mater a chance to reflect on Holy Week
South Chiltern Choral Society at Reading University on Saturday, April 1. Review by JOHN HERITAGE
I CAN’T believe it’s already April, but the first treat of the month was a trip to hear the South Chiltern Choral Society perform two quite different works, one by Pergolesi, the other by Puccini.
Chairman Richard Larkin welcomed us to the rather grand Great Hall at the University of Reading and we settled into our seats for an evening of Italian music.Pergolesi’s Stabat Mater opening the evening and this baroque setting of the Virgin Mary’s anguish as she witnesses her son’s suffering brought home to us that it was the beginning of Easter week. The 80-strong chorus was accompanied by a small string orchestra with organ continuo and the arias and duets were shared between the choir members and Harriet Kirk (mezzo) and Jennifer Cearns (soprano), who’d stepped in at the last minute, having received a phone call at 11am!
The opening bars with their plangent discords set a reflective mood for the elegant melodies that were to follow.
Both soloists sang with confidence and vocal agility and the choir sang with impressive attack and pleasing dynamic contrast.
Puccini is famous for his dramatic, melodic operas and La Bohème, Tosca and Madame Butterfly have remained staples of the operatic repertoire since their early 20th-century premieres but, interestingly, the 22-year-old composer wrote his Messa Di Gloria as a graduation exercise.
The strings were joined by a modest wind section and timpani and the piece demonstrated the same musical characteristics as his later, larger works with long flowing melodic lines and beautiful harmonic invention.
The chorus was joined by the visiting L’ensemble Vocal de Domaine Vallée du Tarn and the combination of both choirs was a force to be reckoned with; the sound reaching the very back of the hall, not to mention raising a rafter or two.
Sam Young’s baritone entry in the Crucifixus was imposing and resonant in tone; the choir sang with jollity and rhythmic precision, particularly in the Gloria.
A highlight of the evening was tenor soloist Dominic Bevan, who performed his demanding solos with operatic style and great aplomb.
The piece closed with the Agnus Dei and all on stage were treated to generous applause from the packed house.
The evening was co-ordinated with dexterity and assurance by the SCCS’s conductor, Paul Burke, and everyone drove home in great spirits, ready to reflect on the week ahead.
Congratulations to all.
