The Advertiser, 12 March 2015 Late Night in the Cathedral : Passio, 8 March, St Peter's Cathedral Rodney Smith

Arvo Pärt's Passio is an uncompromising piece of European 1980s minimalism that wields an iron fist in a velvet glove.

Only when listeners have experienced its final brief spasm of triumphantly major harmony do they realise the full extent of the dark labyrinthine tunnel they have been travelling for more than an hour as Pärt un-folds St John's Passion narrative word for word with terrible, simple, inevitability.

St Peter's Cathedral provided a perfect atmospheric backdrop for this relentlessly pious and difficult work and two subtitle monitors kept us up to speed with the English translation from the sung Latin, giving a sense of immediate recognition.

Pärt's deliberately flat landscape was therefore softened to some extent but not so far as to rob listeners of Passio's medieval sense of suffering.

Pärt intends the words to dominate and the marvellous verbal duels between baritone Alexander Knight's evocatively statuesque Jesus, tenor Richard Butler's brilliant portrayal of a nervously edgy Pilate and the ACS's strident and menacing Priests and Crowd kept Pärt's otherwise monolithic score moving along.

With stellar playing from the small group of instrumentalists and the steady hand of director Carl Crossin always ensuring balance and precision, this was as persuasive a performance of a challenging work as you could encounter. That's what good Festivals are for, of course.

Indaily, 10 March 2015 Late Night in the Cathedral : Passio, 8 March, St Peter's Cathedral Greg Elliott

The Adelaide Chamber Singers are celebrating their 30th anniversary in 2015, with Late Night in the Cathedral: Passio the first of a series of exciting concerts to be held in St Peter’s Cathedral throughout the year.

Arvo Pärt’s Passio Domini Nostri Jesu Christi secundum Joannem (The Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ According to John or Passio) is an inspired choice by conductor Carl Crossin, and St Peter’s Cathedral is a perfect venue for such a work.

Pärt is an Estonian composer who apparently was invited to leave the Soviet Union and soon became widely acknowledged and acclaimed for his contemporary, minimalist sacred music. Pärt’s Passio is a passion cantata for solo baritone (Jesus), solo tenor (Pilate), vocal quartet (Evangelist), choir, violin, oboe, cello, bassoon and organ: the text is in Latin from the Gospel of John, and it tells the story of Christ’s arrest, trial and crucifixion.

It is evident in this work that Pärt has been influenced by medieval music and inspired by Gregorian chant. Sensibly, two television screens display an English translation; the pace of the music allows the text to be easily read, enabling the audience to contemplate its meaning and significance while enjoying the music. Passio begins dramatically and, as the solo Evangelist sings, Alexander Knight, as Jesus, dressed in a simple, off-white gown, walks silently through the audience. In typical ACS style, the work is dignified, solemn and intriguing, and complex musicality seems easy in the hands of these accomplished musicians and singers.

Under Crossin’s direction, Passio allows each singer to shine individually and collectively: they are allocated moments to sing lines of the Evangelist’s narrative and then to participate in duets, quartets or as a complete choir.

The talented ensemble of musicians accompanies soloists and the choir. The sound of Celia Craig’s oboe with a solo female voice or Mark Gaydon’s bassoon supporting the reflective thoughts of Christ or Josh van Konkelenberg’s organ accompanying Pilate, as well as Elizabeth Layton’s violin and Simon Cobcroft’s cello, are integral to the power and impact of Passio.

As the story progresses through events we all know, the familiar is made fresh through the careful focus and highlight provided by Pärt’s musical treatment. The choir enters into the mood, atmosphere and drama of each moment and conflict without enactment or overt dramatization; the music itself provides the drama and the tension.

Standing opposite Knight is tenor Richard Butler, as Pilate, dressed in a red cassock. The questions he asks of Christ mostly end in a sustained high note, ethereal in nature and sounding as pure as a bell. His voice – and personal dilemma – seem to echo and reverberate throughout the cathedral.

Knight’s booming baritone voice brings an authority, power and presence to Jesus that demands everyone’s attention and consideration. The opening-night audience was still, silent and totally enchanted by the drama created by the score and performance.

It is intriguing to have the Evangelist’s narrative shared by varying soloists and groups, and the chorus performed by the entire choir, effectively creating an ever-changing sound quality and the illusion that we are witnessing the thoughts and words of many individuals and an enormous crowd.

Arvo Pärt’s Passio is a musical work for everyone: it is a cantata of great beauty and profound feeling. Although sacred in nature and style, the ACS’s performance will appeal to anyone who enjoys great music, performed by world-class musicians in a unique and superb acoustic setting.

Adelaide Chamber Singers are performing again tonight (March 10) at 10pm in St Peter’s Cathedral as part of the Adelaide Festival.

Barefoot Reviewer, March 2015 Late Night in the Cathedral : Passio, 8 March, St Peter's Cathedral Kym Clayton

This performance of Estonian composer Arvo Pärt’s Passio – Christ’s Passion according to St John – is incisive and dramatic. It doesn’t come any better.

Passio is sung by a bass-baritone soloist (singing Christ), tenor soloist (Pilate), vocal quartet (Evangelist), and choir. Typical of Pärt’s style in vocal composition, it is the text that takes centre stage and the singers are accompanied only by pipe organ (which mirrors Christ) and four instrumentalists (oboe, violin, ‘cello and bassoon). The human voice is unencumbered by an elaborate orchestration – the music is economical, but rich at the same time. Every note, every combination of notes, every moment of silence is pregnant with consequence and meaning.

Pärt often devises and exploits mathematical ‘formula’ (but not to suggest a ‘formulaic’ approach) upon which to construct his compositions and Passio is no exception. He exploits ‘modes’ and confines the voices of the singers to their own sound-palettes. Significantly, and most dramatically, Pilate’s vocal part is characterised by the tritone B to F, which is awkward to sing and has a restless and dissonant quality. This is a perfect aural device to underline Pilate’s reluctant role in Christ’s crucifixion.

Carl Crossin again excels with the Adelaide Chamber Singers, and sets a choral benchmark to which others aspire. Sometimes at the altar of precision is sacrificed warmth, meaning and fervor, but not so with the Singers. Crossin and the Singers attain it all. Bravo. Brava.

The stellar heights that the performance reaches are greatly assisted by the competence and artistry of the musicians. Elizabeth Layton (violin), Celia Craig (oboe), Mark Gaydon (bassoon), Simon Cobcroft (‘cello) and Josh van Konkelenberg (organ) are consummate artists and, most significantly, expert accompanists. Enough said.

But the high drama of the evening belongs to the two soloists. Dressed in a simple white soutane, Alexander Knight walks down the length of the central nave of the cathedral, takes his place, and sings Christ with disarming serenity and calmness. He not only sings the words, but also plays the role. He appears almost not of this world. Knight has a deeply satisfying bass baritone voice with just a hint of gentle vibrato that authoritatively fills St Peter’s to the very back pew. This young man has a wonderful career in front of him.

For me, the highlight of the evening, which is awash with stellar performances, is Richard Butler’s performance of Pilate. Dressed in a crimson soutane, Butler enters from the ambulatory. He exudes the authority of a Roman governor and handles the challenging dissonance of Pilate’s vocal line with great skill. Butler has a rich tenor voice. I recall his performance last November year in the Singers’ performance of the Messiah. He was charismatic then, as he is tonight, strangely. In character he looks searchingly (but never imperiously) at Christ throughout his interrogation. His reluctance to condemn is palpable. His sadness at being forced to condemn is quite touching. Butler was illuminating in the Messiah. Tonight he was stellar, as was the entire performance.

Passio is surely a highlight of the Festival.

Aussie Theatre, 10 March 2015 Late Night in the Cathedral : Passio, 8 March, St Peter's Cathedral Peter Bleby

Arvo Pärt is one of the most enduring revolutionary composers of choral and instrumental music of the 20th century. Carl Crossin has been a major influence in the presentation and acceptance of Pärt’s choral music in particular in Adelaide. His Adelaide Chamber Singers is one of the most accomplished choirs in Australia. This combination held an enthralled capacity audience in the magnificent ambience and acoustic of St Peter’s Cathedral entranced in a spine-tingling and mesmerising performance of Passio Domini Nostri Jesu Christi Secundum Johannes: Arvo Pärt’s St. John Passion, sung in Latin, with translation on screens on each side of the choir. From the dramatic and anguished opening chord announcing Passio, it was clear we were in for a choral treat. The music is an inventive and fascinating complex of modes and idiosyncratic, deeply spiritual, ascetic minimalism. Any initial unfamiliarity with the harmonic structure soon disappears as the work progresses and the internal logic of it becomes increasingly apparent: dark, yes, and austere, but intensely expressive and involving. Chorally demanding, it was made to sound easy by the accomplished Chamber Singers, and the masterful control and clearly deep understanding of Carl Crossin’s direction.

An ensemble of violin (Elizabeth Layton), Oboe (Celia Craig), Bassoon (Mark Gaydon),and ‘Cello (Simon Cobcroft) with Josh van Konkelenberg at the Organ accompanied parts, left others a capella, and neatly punctuated the many short clauses of the narration.

"The music is an inventive and fascinating complex of modes and idiosyncratic, deeply spiritual, ascetic minimalism"

The words of Jesus in long, calm, notes were sung in serene style by Alexander Knight, who entered up the aisle in a simple alb. His rich, straight baritone was perfectly suited to this contemplative, moving role. The role of the Evangelist and other minor protagonists was shared by members of the choir in changing groups of varying numbers from a single soloist to four, five, seven or more, demonstrating the uniform quality of the individual members, each of whom is clearly capable of being a soloist in their own right. The more agitated role of Pilate was equally well sung by Tenor Richard Butler in a plain red cassock, conveying Pilate’s confusion and anxiety, giving way to weakness.

The narrative with its contemplative plainsong-like phrases and repetitive harmonies, and commentary from the crowd require great precision in entries and cut-offs, and clarity and determination in sustaining the semi-tones which frequently end the phrases, all of which Crossin and the choir achieved expertly yet apparently effortlessly. A very nice feature of the entire performance was the pleasing absence of distracting vibratos in soloists and choir alike, which enables the purity and intertwining lines of the music and the modal changes from chorus to Jesus to Pilate and back to be fully appreciated.

Then comes the murderous cry, “Crucify him!”, and a new level of passion and vigour is unveiled. Then the dramatic change to unison in the choir to tell how Jesus “bowed his head and gave up the ghost”. The work finishes with a triumphant change into the familiarity of a major key for the final epilogue: “You who have suffered for us, have mercy on us. Amen”.

For a challenge, an uplifting experience and a fine demonstration of why the composer has secured a place in the history of music, don’t miss this remarkable performance by an ensemble of which Adelaide can be very proud.