Celebrations from the Mediterranean New York Polyphony
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
Miller Theatre at Columbia University 2014-15 | 26th Season Early Music Celebrations from the Mediterranean New York Polyphony Saturday, November 15, 8:00 p.m. Church of St. Mary the Virgin From the Executive Director This November at Miller is all about vitality. Cyrus Chestnut is an absolute genius on the piano. I’ve heard him perform at Miller for many years now—long before I became Executive Director—and it’s always a special thrill to hear his stunning improvisations and unique style on our Steinway and in our hall, where each flourish sings. It’s also an absolute joy to welcome Anthony Roth Costanzo to our stage for the first time. The stars aligned to make this Composer Portrait possible: Bernard Rands was completing a new work, ICE expressed great interest in working with him, and Mr. Costanzo had an opening in his schedule—this concert could not have come together more perfectly. New York Polyphony returns with a program to brighten the winter, featuring luxurious works from the Spanish Renaissance. It’s been an ongoing delight to work with this ensemble and to see the acclaim that they’ve garnered since their Miller Theatre debut in 2010. Last year, we commissioned a new piece for them, a work by composer Andrew Smith titled Nowell: Arise and Wake. They premiered it at a snowy concert presented by Miller last December, and the piece is now being highlighted on their album, Sing thee Nowell. I feel lucky to follow the accomplishments of the talented musicians we work with here, and if you’ve been coming to Miller over the years, you may feel the same way. New York Polyphony and ICE are both ensembles who we’ve been rooting for throughout the years, and been fortunate to see thrive. So it is fitting that this month we introduce another ambitious ensemble to the Miller stage, as the new music quartet loadbang makes their debut at a Pop-Up Concert on November 18. The unique instrumentation of this group (baritone voice, bass clarinet, trumpet, and trombone) speaks to the type of inquisitive music-making that I absolutely love, and that is central to our mission. All of this month’s musical offerings share an enthusiasm and warmth. Whichever of these performances resonates most with you, I hope it brings you joy. Melissa Smey Executive Director Miller Theatre at Columbia University 2014-15 | 26th Season Early Music Saturday, November 15, 8:00 p.m. Church of St. Mary the Virgin Celebrations from the Mediterrenean New York Polyphony Regina caeli Francisco Guerrero (1528-1599) Quae est ista - Surge propera Guerrero Missa “Vulnerasti cor meum” Cristóbal de Morales (1500-1553) Kyrie eleison Gloria in excelsis Deo Credo in unum Deum Sanctus and Benedictus Agnus Dei with Steven Fox, tenor INTERMISSION Gaudent in coelis Tomás Luis de Victoria (1548-1611) Magnificat Primi Toni Francisco Suriano (1548-1621) Gaudent in coelis Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina (1525-1594) Missa “O quam gloriosum” Victoria Kyrie eleison Gloria in excelsis Deo Credo in unum Deum Sanctus and Benedictus Agnus Dei This program runs approximately two hours and fifteen minutes, including intermission. Please note that photography and the use of recording devices are not permitted. Remember to turn off all cellular phones and pagers before tonight’s performance begins. The Church of St. Mary the Virgin is wheelchair accessible. Large print programs are available upon request. For more information or to arrange accommodations, please call 212-854-7799. About the Program The parody mass is a method by which a composer recycles earlier material or that of another composer to set to the Latin Ordinary of The Mass. These masses have proved a major contributor to the repertoire of early music since its revival in the mid-20th century, from the numerous masses based upon the tune “l’Homme arme” to Josquin’s revered Missa “Pange Lingua.” Even J.S. Bach’s Mass in B minor could be reconstrued as parody mass, as it borrows material from his cantatas and Lutheran masses. In this program we present two such parody masses. The first by Cristóbal de Morales takes as its model the motet Vulnerasti cor meum, attributed to the Flem- ish composer Jean Mouton (1459-1522). Francisco Guerrero’s setting of Quae est ista (“Who is this so fair”) quotes the same passage from King Solomon’s poem. The influence of the sensual Song of Songs text “You have ravaged my heart” is evident in the transplanted mass texts. Contrary to the parody masses of Lassus and his fel- low Flemish school, which often used bawdy songs to bring the secular flavor to the sacred, in the Spanish school these lusty songs become, in effect, love songs to the Virgin Mary and therefore the basis for a Lady mass. Guerrero is more extravagant and ebullient in his writing than his teacher Morales. Much like Victoria, he maintains the characteristic Spanish flavor of open fifth harmonies using thirds and cross relations only in the most expressive of passages. Comparing Guerrero to Victoria and Morales, Bruno Turner writes: “Compared to the dour Morales, his manner is less rugged, less powerful; compared to Victoria, Guerrero seems less tightly organized, less concise.” The Morales Missa Vulnerasti cor meum belongs to the earlier generation still seeking to shed the stark angular nature of medieval polyphonic writing. Most remarkable to the ear is a sense of unrequited anticipation. Moments of clear destination or arrival in this mass are few and far between, which cause the text laden Gloria and Credo movements to have less gravitas than the lengthy Kyrie, Sanctus, and threefold Agnus Dei. The challenge therefore to the singer and listener is to nurture and hear the marriage of sound and silence in space or in a more practical sense, the marriage of music and liturgy. One of the great curiosities with much of the Renaissance sacred repertoire is the adding of voices at the end of masses, motets, and magnificats. This could be easily excused as a grandiose ending, but the real musicological question is the practicality of adding voices to a previously balanced group of singers. Therefore, in this per- formance is added only a single tenor voice to the third Agnus Dei. The likelihood is that much of this music would have been doubled by instruments, but can’t one just imagine performances of this mass in Morales’ day as a chance for a student—or the composer himself—to step into the group of singers? The motets Gaudent in caelis by Victoria and Palestrina are sung in their liturgi- cal function as an Antiphon to the Magnificat on Feasts of Two or more Martyrs. Palestrina and the less well-known Suriano represent the pinnacle of the Counter Reformation, focused on brevity and clarity of text inflection. This repertoire bleeds Roman churchmanship, which so heavily influenced the musical mission of the Catholic Church compounded in Spain as they colonized the globe and took this repertoire and liturgy as far as the New World—with the music of Guerrero making regular appearances in Guatemala, Lima, Mexico City, and Puebla. Every year on or about the Feast of All Saints on the 1st of November, choirs are heard singing Victoria’s motet O quam gloriosum or its equally sublime parody mass. Surely the cause for the popularity of this mass exceeds the affordable performing editions which sprang up in the mid-20th century. The original motet, much like the Victoria and Palestrina antiphons described above, is an exuberant and boisterous caterwaul- ing in honor of the myriad of saints rejoicing. The mass, however, is striking in contrast. It presents a world of calm and serenity though it is a relatively simple cut and paste of notes and rhythm to new text—a rejoicing spirituality of a completely different nature. Perhaps the attraction to vocal ensembles of all skill levels is that to learn the motet is to quickly learn the mass as well. However, simply approaching the twists and turns of the mass texts as you would the motet is a disservice both to the texts and the polyphony itself. This is much like the revered carol “Silent Night” in its English version, which regrettably doesn’t carry with it the same aesthetic as its original German forbearer. Victoria is clearly more gifted in setting text than his predecessor Morales. Like William Byrd in his three masses, Victoria (a priest himself) shares his own theology and faith in his crafting of polyphony. The Kyrie eleison leads as an upbeat to the About the Program Gloria in excelsis as would be liturgically appropriate. Victoria sets texts most beautifully in the Credo. Where Byrd would focus on the one holy catholic church, Victoria saves that care and grace for “Et incarnatus est de Spiritu Sancto ex Maria Virgine” (“And was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the Virgin Mary”) —becoming at once both composer and missionary. Texts and Translations Regina caeli Regina coeli laetare, Alleluia, Queen of Heaven, rejoice, alleluia. Quia quem meruisti portare, Alleluia, For He whom you were worthy to bear, al- Resurrexit sicut dixit, Alleluia. leluia, has risen, as He said, alleluia. Ora pro nobis Deum. Alleluia. Pray for us to God, alleluia. Quae est ista - Surge propera Quae est ista tam formosa, Who is this so fair, quae ascendit per desertum quasi aurora who comes out of the desert like the rising consurgens, dawn, pulchra ut luna,electa ut sol, beautiful as the moon, brilliant as the sun ? Surge propera, amica mea, formosa mea, Rise up, my love, my fair one, my perfect immaculata mea, one : vulnerasti cor meum, thou hast ravished my heart, soror mea, sponsa, my sister, bride, vulnerasti cor meum, thou hast ravished my heart, in uno oculorum tuorum with one of thine eyes, et in uno crine colli tui.