SCUNA history » Concerts » 1978 - 1
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ANU Choral Society presents
BARTOK
MONTEVERDI
HINDEMITH
BYRD
MISSA LUBA
University House
Friday April 28 at 8pm
$3.50 and $2 at the door
Wine and cheese
Thanks to Maggie Shapley, ANU Archivist, for providing scans of SCUNA material held in the ANU Archives. I haven't put the original scan (3 Mb) online, but if you would like a copy please me.
Black and white (thanks to Annabel Wheeler for this information) version of poster above but A5 in size. The transcription can be read above.
1. MASS FOR FOUR VOICES William Byrd (c.1453-1623)
Kyrie - Gloria - Credo - Sanctus - Benedictus - Agnus Dei.
Byrd, the foremost English composer of his time wrote three masses, one each for three, four and five voices. At the time they were written, (1592-1595), it was illegal either to celebrate or to publish the Latin mass, and although they were published clandestinely, the masses must represent a conscious avowal of belief. At this time Byrd was a member of the Chapel Royal, despite his declared Catholicism, and it is interesting to speculate why he escaped the fate of so many others - perhaps his stature as a musician was too great.
The mass for four voices was the first of the three to be written. exemplifies Byrd's writing at its most unrestrained and relaxed, suggesting at every point the mind of a master who has complete control over his art. The imitative style of writing adopted from the continental school is used without any sense of contrivance and each movement is beautifully structured. A piece of open, if subtle, defiance is, in the setting of the phrase, Et unam sanctam catholicam et apostolicam ecclesiam, the very obvious repetition of the word, catholicam, a pattern which Byrd repeated in his other two masses.
Byrd's three masses are the finest settings by an English composer, and some of the finest by any composer. They are fit to stand with the similar works by Byrd's contemporaries di Lasso, Victoria and Palestrina at the pinnacle of late Renaissance music.
conductor - Bryan Dowling.
2. TWO CANZONAS Girolamo Frescobaldi (1583-1643)
Recorder - Margaret Phillips
'Cello - Nicholas Short
Harpsichord - John Collis
3. THREE MADRIGALS Claudio Monteverdi (1567-1643)
Non si levav' ancor.
O com'è gran martire.
Ahi che non pur risponde
Monteverdi both brought the Italian madrigal to its peak and signalled its demise. In his eight books of madrigals, spanning nearly fifty years of composition, he effected a complete transformation in the madrigal, a form which had already been perfected by such masters as Marenzio and de Rore.
The unaccompanied madrigal of Italian musical tradition was adopted by Monteverdi for his first four books, but in the fifth book he introduced instrumental accompaniment to some of the madrigals, and by the time of the eighth book, (1638), the form was barely recognisable. Elements of opera and the new instrumental music had been incorporated to the extent that essentially a new, more dramatic and immediate form had appeared, more akin to operatic ensemble than to madrigal.
Of the three madrigals on tonight's programme, the first two are early, unaccompanied examples, but they show that Monteverdi had already grasped the essentials of the form and was able to suit his music to the chosen text with remarkable aptness. The third madrigal is part of a madrigal setting of the Lamento d'Arianna. The lament is
the remaining fragment of Monteverdi's opera Arianna (1608), and in its madrigal setting it illustrates the intrusion of opera into the madrigal. The first section contains declamatory passages as Ariadne curses Theseus for deserting her. Then Monteverdi reverts to a more madrigalian style as Ariadne sorrowfully pleads forgiveness for her harsh words.
conductor - Bryan Dowling
harpsichord - John Collis
'cello - Nicholas Short
INTERVAL: Refreshments will be served in the foyer.
4. FOUR SLOVAK FOLK SONGS (1917) Béla Bartók (1881-1945)
Wedding Song from Poniky.
Song of the Hayharvesters from Hiadel.
Dancing Song from Medzibrod.
Dancing Song from Poniky.
For one who spent so much time collecting folk songs, Bartók produced comparatively few vocal and choral works, and amongst those he did produce, there are only three works for mixed chorus. The Four Slovak Folk Songs for mixed chorus and piano illustrate that Bartok's interest in folk music was not constrained by linguistic boundaries. He was convinced that all the peoples of the Danube basin shared a common musical heritage.
The folk tunes which form the basis of the work are reproduced precisely from Bartok's original ethnomusicological records, the 'creative' element being confined to the addition of harmony and piano accompaniment. The tunes themselves are characterised by strongly modal outlines and typically slavonic rhythmic vitality. Bartók shows his customary distaste for exact repetition in setting each stanza differently and the piano accompaniment is admirably adapted to the character of each of the songs.
Tonight's performance will be given in the Slovak language.
conductor - Mark Hyman
piano - Geoffrey Lancaster
5. TWO CHANSONS Paul Hindemith (1895-1963)
La Biche.
En Hiver.
Hindemith wrote for virtually every instrument and combination of instruments, and was the champion of Gebrauchsmusik, roughly translated as 'utility music'.
Among his large output are settings of twelve French poems by the German poet Rainer Maria Rilke. Here Hindemith eschews the somewhat dry, colourless style of much of his writing and the settings match their evocative texts with freshness and verve. The two short songs on tonight's programme reveal more than a hint of Debussy; perhaps the latter was a good influence, for Hindemith was rarely lighter or more directly enjoyable than in these little pieces.
conductor - Steven Carnie
6. MISSA LUBA arranged by Guido Haazen
Kyrie - Gloria - Credo - Sanctus - Agnus Dei.
The Missa Luba is an adaptation of traditional Congolese music to the Latin liturgy. It was originally performed by Congolese musicians, and later popularised, by performances and recordings throughout the Western world.
The work makes use of many of the elements of African music. Over the unvarying percussion ostinati, soloist and chorus sing repeated call-and-response patterns. The choral parts, and particularly that of the tenor soloist, are phrased in loose rhythmic groupings against the firm beat of the percussion parts. Elements of improvisation appear through the work - indeed Father Haazen emphasises in the forward to the work that each performance can be considered a 'new creation' of the original, depending both on the forces available and the inclination of singers and conductor.
conductor - John Collis
gourd and tom-toms - Sue Baldwin
Mark Hyman
tenor soloist - David Gibson
Programme Notes: Mark Hyman
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Burgmann College
University House
Mr Robert Wills
Mr Bruce George
Mr Stephen Cole
Ms Sue Baldwin, rehearsal pianist
Mr Mark Hyman, assistant conductor
Rehearsals for SCUNA's next concert will commence at Burgmann College on Tuesday, 23 May at 7.30 p.m. New members are always welcome. For information about SCUNA, phone Michael Ryan on 52.2607 or 48.6954(A.H.).