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Simon Carrington enjoys a long and storied relationship with the
Kansas City region. When his professional ensemble, the Simon Carrington
Chamber Singers, performs in Kansas City, choral music enthusiasts take
notice, especially since concerts are few and far between. Their
performance Saturday afternoon at Grace and Holy Trinity Cathedral was
well worth the wait.
Carrington was a founding member of the
King’s Singers, an outstanding vocal ensemble he co-founded at Cambridge
University. The King’s Singers performed more than 3,000 concerts and
made numerous recordings while Carrington was a member. And Carrington
spent seven years as director of choral activities at the University of
Kansas before leaving to take on similar roles at the New England
Conservatory and Yale University.
For Saturday’s concert,
Carrington’s singers comprised 24 professional performers, many of whom
were former students from KU. Some live locally, and others flew in from
around the country for a mere three days of rehearsal.
The
concert featured a program of British music and opened with Thomas
Tallis’ “Gaude gloriosa Dei mater” (“Rejoice, Glorious Mother of God”), a
challenging 17-minute Renaissance motet.
The work opened with a
remarkably clear and well-blended tone. Opening with an extended passage
for a portion of the choir, a subsequent section when all voices
entered was both powerful and dramatic.
The ensemble delivered
Tallis’ sensuous and sumptuous vocal lines with elegant and convincing
phrasing. Solo passages provided textural relief, although a
countertenor soloist overpowered his colleagues. An extended “amen”
provided a spirited and impressive ending.
Organist John Schaefer
joined the ensemble for Purcell’s “Jehova, quam multi sunt” (“Jehovah,
how many are mine enemies”). Tenor Matthew Swope exhibited a lyrical
tone but also displayed questionable intonation at the beginning of his
solo. Bass Christopher Gilliam was marvelous, with strikingly rich tone
and impeccable diction.
Once again the ensemble displayed a
stunning choral sound. Carrington evoked contrasting timbres and styles,
largely in response to the text.
Three part songs by Elgar
followed. “My Love Dwelt in a Northern Land” was extraordinary with its
beautiful opening unison.
The final part song set the text “go,
song of mine, to break the hardness of the heart of man.” It was hard to
imagine any hard hearts in the audience with the ensemble’s passionate
and moving reading of Elgar’s exquisite music.
A newly
commissioned work by Melissa Dunphy followed: “What do you think I
fought for at Omaha Beach?” Dunphy’s music was exceptional, with supple
lines effectively depicting the words of a veteran.
Lighter
selections ended the program, the most impressive being Carrington’s own
arrangement of “O My Love is Like a Red, Red Rose.”
As an
encore, the ensemble sang “Go, Lovely Rose,” by local composer Geoff
Wilcken
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