# Rossini "Stabat Mater"



## Lunasong (Mar 15, 2011)

Another season, another rehearsal diary.

Our orchestra chorus started work last night on _Stabat Mater_, a vocal work in ten movements. The chorus is scored for 5 of the movements. The piece also included four soloists, one for each vocal part.

Last night we did sightreading on mvt 1 _Stabat Mater_, mvt 5 _Eja, Mater_, and mvt 10 _In sempiterna_, which is a wonderful fugue.

Our director advised us to use the resources of Cyberbass rather than any one recorded performance to learn our parts. But it's OK to listen to multiple performances; just don't get fixated on one. I'm open for suggestions...

Our score is clearly marked (2nd Version - 1841) which prompted me to look up the composition history of the piece. From Wiki:

In 1831 Rossini was traveling in Spain in the company of his friend the Spanish banker, Alexandre Aguado, owner of Château Margaux. In the course of the trip, Fernández Varela, a state councillor, commissioned a setting of the traditional liturgical text, the _Stabat Mater_. Rossini managed to complete part of the setting of the sequence in 1832, but ill-health made it impossible for him to complete the commission. Having written only half the score (nos. 1 and 5-9), he asked his friend Giovanni Tadolini to compose six additional movements. Rossini presented the completed work to Varela as his own. It was premiered on Holy Saturday of 1833 in the Chapel of San Felipe el Real in Madrid, but this version was never again performed.

When Varela died, his heirs sold the work for 2,000 francs to a Parisian music publisher, Antoine Aulagnier, who printed it. Rossini protested, claiming that he had reserved publication rights for himself, and disowned Aulagnier's version, since it included the music by Tadolini. Although surprised by this, Aulangier went ahead and arranged for a public performance at the Salle Herz on October 31, 1841, at which only the six pieces by Rossini were performed. In fact, Rossini had already sold the publication rights for 6,000 francs to another Paris publisher, Eugène Troupenas. Lawsuits ensued, and Troupenas emerged the victor. Rossini finished the work, replacing the music by Tadolini, before the end of 1841. The brothers Léon and Marie Escudier, who had purchased the performing rights of Rossini's final version of the score from Troupenas for 8,000 francs, sold them to the director of the Théâtre-Italien for 20,000 francs, who began making preparations for its first performance.

Rossini's extensive operatic career had divided the public into admirers and critics. The announcement of the premiere of Rossini's Stabat Mater provided an occasion for a wide-ranging attack by Richard Wagner, who was in Paris at the time, not only on Rossini but more generally on the current European fashion for religious music and the money to be made from it. A week before the scheduled concert Robert Schumann's _Neue Zeitschrift für Musik _carried the pseudonymous essay, penned by Wagner under the name of "H. Valentino", in which he claimed to find Rossini's popularity incomprehensible:

"It is extraordinary! So long as this man lives, he'll always be the mode." Wagner concluded his polemic with the following observation: "That dreadful word: Copyright-growls through the scarce laid breezes. Action! Action! Once more, Action! And money is fetched out, to pay the best of lawyers, to get documents produced, to enter caveats.- - -O ye foolish people, have ye lost your hiking for your gold? I know somebody who for five francs will make you five waltzes, each of them better than that misery of the wealthy master's!"

At the time when Wagner wrote this, he was still in his late twenties and he had not yet had much success with the acceptance of his own music in the French capital. :lol:


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## principe (Sep 3, 2012)

There are some wonderful recordings of this quite significant in Rossini's output work. I can confine my self to 2 recent and 2 older ones:
- The most recent and with some mixed reviews is the one with Anna Netrebko and Joyce Di Donato as the two female soloists, with Pappano conducting, on EMI. Not very impressed, but I found it is very well recorded and as for the female parts, the Orchestra and the Chorus well served.
- The older but secure recording of Chandos with the late Hickox and some quite solid soloists (Della Jones, the alto, and Arthur Davies, the tenor).
- The even older recording of Riccardo Muti, on EMI too, with Malfitano and Baltsa (in the female parts). Muti is always exciting and a good bet for Italian music and he delivers here quite well.
- The superb legendary recording of mid-sixties by Decca, with a stellar cast (Lorengar, Minton, a young and bright Pavarotti and Hans Sotin, with LSO under Istvan Kertesz). For me, by far the best recording of the work with all the parts very well to brilliantly served. The recording is still vibrant and convincing.
I hope it can be of some help for your further appreciation and preparation of this quite interesting and too Italian Choral work.

Principe


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## Lunasong (Mar 15, 2011)

We started this week's rehearsal with tuning exercises. Our director stated that this is the best-tuned choir he's yet had at this point in the season; maybe because we did extensive tuning exercises in warm-ups all last year? We rehearsed mvts 1, 5, and 9.

We started Mvt 1, which has a rocking 6/8 (as in ..bye baby, not Led Zeppelin) feel to it, by singing our parts with "*one*, two, tee, *four*, five, six." Then we added the Latin. The score has several "fooler" measures where one measure takes up an entire stave. We had to get used to this (this is to accommodate the piano reduction). This movement alternates between chorus and 4-part soloists.

We ran through Mvt 5 with the same strategy. Mvt. 5 is a chorus recitative with a bass soloist, in common time with several measures of 6/8 stuck in for variety.

Mvt 9 is _a cappella_. Our director said it has not yet been decided whether this will be performed with a select group or the entire chorus, so we are all rehearsing it. It will be very _rubato_. We added several tempo markings.

I was not successful using the Cyberbass website for practice at home so I'll be using the piano


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## Lunasong (Mar 15, 2011)

http://users.belgacom.net/wagnerlibrary/prose/wagrosst.htm

A link to the aforementioned polemic by Richard Wagner. Warning: It involves a certain amount of pastry-eating.









In last night's rehearsal, our director had us mark our scores with the rehearsal numbers from the orchestral score, because they are not the same. After warmups, we divided into sectionals, men and women, to work on movement 10, the fugue.

Using count-singing, we women worked our way through the fugue led by the asst director, paying special attention to phrasing. In her words, "We want to allow a lot of light and space, and not make the texture dense." Considering we were rehearsing at about 1/2 speed, there was plenty of space to be had. We also focused on certain phrases which had "unexpected intervals."

After about an hour, we joined back together with the men and ran the entire movement. Our director had pre-marked our (copied) scores with a bit of the structure of the fugue, indicating the leading voices. He explained a bit more about the structure, showing us the subject (key of Gm), answer (key of D, the dominant), and the countersubject. The development starts at measure 30 in _stretto_ form, working its way in initial tones down the Gm scale to B flat), with entrances separated by only 1/2 measure and alternating between the soprano, alto, and tenor lines.
(If I got any of this wrong, it is my fault, because he certainly knows what he was talking about.)

I am interested in a structural analysis of this fugue if someone can point me to a source. I was unable to find one via Google.

This week, I intend to nail down my part in this fugue via practice at my piano.


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## Lunasong (Mar 15, 2011)

Last night during our warmup our director introduced a new exercise which purpose is to help smooth out our long melismatic phrases.

We began rehearsal by looking over the brief vocal parts for Berlioz's "Royal Hunt and Storm" from _Les Troyens_, where the chorus sings for 35 measures in a ten-minute piece. The vocal parts are marked as _Nymphes (Soprani & Contralti), Sylvanes (Tenori)_, and _Faunes (Bassi)._ We sing the scintillating lyrics:

*A-O A-O A-O--Italie! Ha! Ha! O-A O-A O-A.....!*

YouTube link. Vocals start at 7:00. As in all "hunt" pieces, this one has a very nice horn solo.
We will be performing this piece on the same program as _Stabat Mater_.

We rehearsed the _Stabat Mater_ Fugue again in the following steps.
1. Ran all the way through all four parts together count-singing at less than full speed.
2. Focused on each part separately (SATB). Focused part sang "da" whilst other parts count sang. Thus, x4.
3. Sang all parts together count singing at full speed (♩ = 132)
4. Sang all parts together using "da" (surprisingly more difficult than count singing) at full speed.
5. Sang all parts together using lyrics _In sempiterna sæcula, amen._
YouTube link, Fugue only.

I was glad that I had taken the time during the week to practice my part on the piano. As I mentioned, the fugue is highly melismatic and, based on my experience with step 5, I'm going to mark in my part where the syllable changes as an aid to rehearsal.


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## Vaneyes (May 11, 2010)

Lunasong, I look forward to reading more of your vocal adventures. Break another leg.
My favorite rec. is, ROSSINI: Stabat Mater. Katia Ricciarelli, Lucia Valentini-Terrani, Dalmacio Gonzales, Ruggero Raimondi, Philharmonia Orchestra & Chorus / Carlo Maria Giulini. (DG, rec. 1981/82)

View attachment 8497


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## Lunasong (Mar 15, 2011)

Thank you, Vaneyes. I write these mostly for my own benefit but it's nice to see other people read them as well, and might learn a bit about the process behind an amateur chorus that performs with a professional orchestra. Sticks and Drones stated it well in this post: 
One of the most challenging problems for orchestras in today's world is the perception of a disconnect between orchestras and audiences, whether this is real or not. If it is real, then the problem with the professional choir is that it puts yet one more barrier between orchestras and their constituency. Why? Because singing in a choir is the one and only way Joe Shmoe can actively participate with his local symphony.

One of the reasons I am in this chorus is because it is another way, besides donations and attendance, I can support my city's orchestra.

After warmups, this week we again split into men and women sectionals to rehearse mvts. 5 _Eja mater_ and 8 _Imflammatus et accensus._

_Eja Mater_ is an unaccompanied bass and chorus recitative. We ran through it several times using count singing.

_Inflammatus et accensus_ is a soprano aria with chorus. It has several sections where the parts are singing in unison, which is nice, but presents its own demands for precision in diction and note value.

We women also ran through the fugue again in our sectional. The men did not get this far but, in their defense, they have subdivided parts in mvt 5.

Joining together after the break, we rehearsed mvt 5 using count singing. Our director spent about 10 minutes reviewing the 6/8 passages (occurs 2x) _In amando Christum Deum_ with the sopranos. He used the metaphor of going up and down stairs when moving up and down pitches. When one is going upstairs, she raises her foot above the level of the step and then lowers it. Likewise, when making a jump to an upper pitch, it's best to mentally overshoot and land lightly on the pitch. When going downstairs, one anticipates where the level of the step will be and lowers her foot appropriately. The same applies when moving down pitches to keep from going flat.

There is a subtle difference between the first and second entrances in 4/4 after the 6/8 passages. The first uses a major third with the chorus in unison on A on the longest held note (_ut sibi complaceam_ and the second is a minor third on A flat to create a different modulation (first phrase ends on A major chord, the second on A flat major). Getting this note right sets up the whole phrase.

I think our basses have the dynamics of their first entrance _soli_ part nailed. Very nicely done!


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## Lunasong (Mar 15, 2011)

We spent our entire rehearsal on mvt 9 _Quando corpus_, which is an a capella "quartet," but current plans are to have the entire chorus (~120) sing. This will require precise diction, rhythm, and pitch.

Our warm-up consisted of an extensive tuning exercise using half steps. Tuning in vocal music is done on the vowel and, in a large group, correct formation and matching of vowel sounds is required. Vowel match is one element that sets great choirs apart from good choirs. The purpose of this exercise soon became apparent as we opened our scores to Mvt. 9.










Here's the opening bass line, which is repeated by three of the four voices within the first 13 measures. Note the downward moving pitch line in tiny 1/2 steps, interspersed with a downward interval jump. The trick here is to move downward in pitch without going flat. On a "du" syllable, we practiced the line without the interval jump, then alternated singing the line without the interval jump while another part sang the interval note only. Even the repeated pitches were a challenge to sing in tune.

We then broke into sectionals, men and women, for an hour. Our women's sectional was led by the director, who concentrated again on precision in tuning and rhythm, as additional themes also use this downward movement in pitch. Then we added in the actual lyric. We only got about halfway through the piece before being rejoined by the men. In the last half-hour of practice together, we again only got about halfway through the piece.








I just practiced the rest at home to a YouTube video; it will be okay. I hope. The remaining themes are the same or similar.

ps I like the piano reductions for this mvt and Mvt 5 (also _a capella_, because I can play them on the piano.
Orchestra reductions... :lol:
Vocal reductions of a cappela scores also make for a complete-sounding piece to enjoy playing at home.


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## sospiro (Apr 3, 2010)

Lunasong, I am enjoying reading about your progress and am in awe of what you guys are doing. It's so interesting for a non-professional like me to read how it's evolving.

I have to confess I don't know this music at all but after reading this & on principe's recommendation I've just ordered the Kertész.

Good luck.


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## Lunasong (Mar 15, 2011)

Sospiro, I'm also a non-professional. As noted in post #7, this is a great way for anyone who can carry a tune and wants to learn more to get involved with their local orchestra. Many professional orchestras have non-professional choruses.


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## sospiro (Apr 3, 2010)

Lunasong said:


> Sospiro, I'm also a non-professional. As noted in post #7, this is a great way for anyone who can carry a tune and wants to learn more to get involved with their local orchestra. Many professional orchestras have non-professional choruses.


I don't think I can even carry a tune 

However getting to know the CD whilst reading up your notes is going to make the experience twice as enjoyable


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## Lunasong (Mar 15, 2011)

After an uncharacteristically short warm-up, we rehearsed all five movements last night. The director was trying to get us out in time to see/hear the US presidential debate, so no break either.

Some of these we had not covered in several weeks. Some of these we had only count-sung. Results were a "bit" uneven.

Mvt 1 _Stabat Mater._ I have my score highlighted for the _tutti_ parts because the quartet soloists and choir parts are written on the same staves. Forbid that I should lose focus and sing a solo part! Emphasis was on the end of the piece; singing the detached _dum pen-de-bat _ like a plucked string, all together with attention on the conductor.

Mvt 5 _Eja Mater._ This is an unaccompanied movement and the basses lead, getting their note as a fourth above the ending chord of the 4th mvt. We screwed up the tonal differences between the first and second occurrences of the unison phrases (post #7 and the _ff_ "Fac ut ardeat cor meum, in amando Christum Deum".

Mvt 8 _Inflammatus._ We really had done very little work on this movement besides count-singing, and it showed. We had not rehearsed coming in after the soprano soloist starts; we had not reviewed the Latin text. Weak!

Mvt 9 _Quando corpus._ Sounds pretty good; of course we worked on this last week. Muddled through the unrehearsed ending adequately. Again unaccompanied and started by the basses; this time they have to find the fifth.

Mvt 10 _In sempiterna._ At tempo, this is a beast but oh so fun to sing. I can't say I got every little note right yet.

In conclusion, this rehearsal identified some of my weaknesses which I shall address this week. I went ahead and highlighted the beginning staff of my part in each of the systems so that I can unerringly find my part. I'll also review all Latin and listen to all the movements while reviewing my score. My score is quickly becoming an interesting summation of all our rehearsals with the notes I am taking.


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## sospiro (Apr 3, 2010)

I recently got this & listened on my way to work this morning.










I have the Pappano already & don't know which I prefer.










However reading through your rehearsal notes has made such a huge difference to my understanding of the piece. I look forward to your updates!


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## Lunasong (Mar 15, 2011)

Tonight I learned that Saverio Mercadante, a composer introduced to me by Delicious Manager, wrote a paraphrase titled _Fantasia (Sinfonia) su motivi dello Stabat Mater di Rossini_. Take a listen; you will hear several familiar themes.




Rossini premiered his second version of _Stabat Mater_ in Paris Jan 1842. Also in 1842, Gaetano Donizetti conducted the premiere of Rossini's _Stabat Mater_ in Bologna, Italy. Mercadante premiered "Fantasia" in 1844.

Now I have a mystery.
Music Timeline states a *third* version of Rossini's _Stabat Mater_ premiered in Paris Nov 1844. I was unable to find any additional info. Does anyone have the scoop?


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## Vaneyes (May 11, 2010)

Lunasong said:


> ....Now I have a mystery.
> Music Timeline states a *third* version of Rossini's _Stabat Mater_ premiered in Paris Nov 1844. I was unable to find any additional info. Does anyone have the scoop?


Mistake, rather than mystery.

For reference...

http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/mal/summary/v090/90.4.everist.html

*http://tinyurl.com/d8arhll*

http://www.orsymphony.org/concerts/0910/programnotes/cl11.aspx


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## Lunasong (Mar 15, 2011)

Vaneyes, after your post, I emailed the website author, asking for a reference. I have not heard anything.

Due to an appointment, I was a half hour late to rehearsal last night and missed the warmup. It included a tutorial on how to tell, as a group, when we are going out of tune and how, as a group, to fix it. Sounds interesting, but everyone else will need to save me.

We spent a half hour working on Mvt. 9 _Quando corpus_. The emphasis was on tuning, of course (_a cappela_), following the director (_con rubato_), and dynamic difference.

We then proceeded to Mvt 8 _Inflammatus_. The tricky motif in this movement is singing a double-dotted quarter note with sixteenth note against the rapid triplet pattern in the orchestra.

In Mvt 5 _Eia Mater_, also _a capella_, we seemed to be struggling with the same factors as before--the tempo changes in and out of the 6/8 and the modal differences between the repeated phrases. The very last line will be directed with subdivided beat.

We concluded our rehearsal with a quick run-through of the Fugue. _Maestro_ is coming to work with us next week, and the following week we have serveral rehearsals with the soloists and orchestra. Our performance dates are Nov 9-10.

I also started rehearsing this week with an _ad hoc_ chorus which will perform Handel's _Messiah_ the first weekend in December. I am fortunate to be working with two gifted and respected choral directors at the same time!


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## Lunasong (Mar 15, 2011)

I worked on the movements over the weekend along with Youtube videos, then figured out that Cyberbass (a chorus resource website mentioned earlier) is only supported by Internet Explorer (I use Chrome). So I also used that website to practice, although I haven't yet figured out how to change the balance to include/exclude parts. Apparently this functionality is dependent upon what Microsoft product you are running. What I came up with was usable, and I'm glad I put in the extra time to somewhat figure out Cyberbass. I went into last night's rehearsal with confidence.

_Maestro_ came to work with the chorus this week. _Maestro_ advised us that this is a romantic, dramatic, and somewhat operatic piece, and to be aware of tempo changes both from him and the soloists.

After a warmup that included the half-step exercise from post #8, we dug into *Mvt I*.

He wants the initial bass entrance to be somewhat percussive (keeping in mind they are _pp_ at that point). He also wants the initial vocal entrances to be dark, supported, and intense. The "sa" in _dolorosa_ is released like a sigh. He wants the unison _dum pen-de-bat fi-li-us_ to be bell-like, not like a sforzando, but the accent held just a bit longer. Same effect for _jux-ta cru-cem la-cry-mo-sa._ He added some dynamic markings for clarity. The final separated _dum pen-de-bat_ all start with "explosive" consonants. We need to be precise to sing this phrase effectively.

In *Mvt 5* the chorus provides background accom. for the bass soloist. Most of our parts are in _sotto voce._ I have some new rehearsal notes written in various places: dark, light, warm, float, lift. Believe it or not, we missed the same A, Aflat change AGAIN!

_Maestro_ liked our unison parts in *Mvt 6*, having just the right amount of power. We were a bit "punchy" at _conforveri gratia_ and we need to make sure we do not accent the final "_a_." We need to be very precise with the sixteenth notes. Again reminding us that we are just accompaniment (the orchestra also plays on this one), _Maestro_ said the soprano soloist gets to take all the time she wants! (As a general note for all movements, Rossini often repeats a theme twice. _Maestro_ said he will typically take the first one in a more straight tempo and the second one more _rubato_.)

Our pronunciation was pretty bad on *Mvt 9*, and our conductor again reminded us to cross out all the ending "Rs." _Maestro_ discovered a wrong note printed in the soprano line in our scores. We go right from this _a capella_ movement into (hopefully) the same key in...

...*Mvt 10*, started by the orchestra. _Maestro_ said this is really a nice piece of writing from Rossini, and should wow people who only know him from _William Tell Overture._ He spent a bit of time talking about the structure (I really would like to see this written down somewhere; anyone???). He inserted some sections where the soloists will sing instead of us.

Finally, we looked at the Berlioz piece, which we had not looked at since one of the very first weeks, and then just briefly. It was pretty bad, but _Maestro_ did not seem concerned, saying that it will be fixed in our rehearsal with our conductor next week. He told us the story of the opera (_Les Troyens_) this piece is from, and his amusing story of how our chorus happened to get included in this performance (when he was researching the offstage horn part, he discovered there was also a chorus part! It is not in his score.)

***

I am reminded of when I have played pit in musicals, and you never know how the whole thing is going to sound (and sometimes it doesn't even make sense) until _sitzprobe_. I am sure these pieces will sound fabulous (and be easier to fit together and sing) when we rehearse next week with the soloists and orchestra. We will have three rehearsals next week.


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## Lunasong (Mar 15, 2011)

Our soloists will be:
Adrienne Danrich, soprano
Layna Chianakas, alto
Jason Slayden, tenor
Matthew Burns, baritone.

All but Slayden have previously sung in opera productions in my city. This will be Slayden's local premiere.

Local press article about the upcoming concert.

Our Maestro talks about _Stabat Mater_:
"Rossini is one of the most misunderstood composers mostly because most of us know only a very narrow segment of his musical output. We know the 'William Tell Overture' and a handful of his comic operas and their overtures. So when we read something like the story of Verdi's 'Requiem,' how it grew out of a project to create a grand requiem mass to be performed on the first anniversary of Rossini's death, most people think 'Why would Verdi bother honoring a light and fluffy composer like Rossini?' Well, when you hear the 'Stabat Mater' you get a sense of why Verdi revered Rossini so. It's amazing, powerful, dramatic music, probably the most operatic concert piece outside of the Verdi 'Requiem.' "

Also on the program are (previously mentioned) Berlioz's "Royal Hunt and Storm" from _Les Troyens_, and a work from a contemporary composer, Michael Daugherty. "Troyjam," a musical fantasy, depicts the Greeks bringing a symphony orchestra to Troy instead of an army, which results in a jam session instead of war.

"This is a really fun piece. It's a kind of fractured fairy tales retelling of the Trojan War with a hilarious yet also strangely beautiful text by Anne Carson. The basic twist of the story is that instead of fighting with weapons, the Greeks and Trojans fight with musical instruments. The 'Troyjam' of the title is a big battle scene with musical themes for Hektor, Achilles and so on. It's a wonderful romp."


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## Lunasong (Mar 15, 2011)

Ugh! Last night's rehearsal with the orchestra lasted from 6-10:15. We rehearsed on stage to adjust to the venue. _Maestro_ ironed out several problems in the orchestra and answered questions. It was a bit grueling. The orchestra was dismissed before us, so that we could rehearse our _a capella_ movements.

We had a very intensive warmup tonight with our choral director; taken in the spirit that he is doing everything he can to make us better. He drilled us on our vowels and dropping the internal r's in words. Tonight's rehearsal only lasted until 8:30. All four soloists were present tonight so we finally got to hear the movements with all their parts.

Tomorrow night we have rehearsal, and then performances Friday and Saturday.


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## Vaneyes (May 11, 2010)

Lunasong said:


> Ugh! Last night's rehearsal with the orchestra lasted from 6-10:15. We rehearsed on stage to adjust to the venue. _Maestro_ ironed out several problems in the orchestra and answered questions. It was a bit grueling. The orchestra was dismissed before us, so that we could rehearse our _a capella_ movements.
> 
> We had a very intensive warmup tonight with our choral director; taken in the spirit that he is doing everything he can to make us better. He drilled us on our vowels and dropping the internal r's in words. Tonight's rehearsal only lasted until 8:30. All four soloists were present tonight so we finally got to hear the movements with all their parts.
> 
> Tomorrow night we have rehearsal, and then performances Friday and Saturday.


Lord. Bathe those tired doggies in epsom salts, and perhaps an anti-infammatory and muscle relaxer for the rest. And sleep until the next rehearsal. There is no other life. 

Comfortable shoes?


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## Lunasong (Mar 15, 2011)

I am the line leader for the chorus and will be the first person on stage tonight.


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## Vaneyes (May 11, 2010)

Lunasong said:


> I am the line leader for the chorus and will be the first person on stage tonight.


Have fun, and good luck!


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## Lunasong (Mar 15, 2011)

Thanks for your good wishes and cheer, Vaneyes. 
I spoke too soon. All rehearsal season, I'd been the end of the 4th row, which is line leader, but because of absences, last night I got bumped to the end of the fifth (top) row, which enters from the other side of the stage. It's funny how you get used to singing with those around you but, if you get moved, it sounds totally different.

Concert!
Our call time was 6:30 for an 8PM start. The chorus spends our pre-concert in an attached theater in the Performing Arts Center. The Center was constructed with two theaters: a main and a smaller "black-box" type. They are acoustically separated by separate building foundations and an air space. There can be two events going on at the same time and no sound bleed. We did warm-ups and a focused study of how to stay in tune no matter what (my take on the purpose of this later). Meanwhile, our chorus manager is busy reviewing attendance and the balanced look of the chorus, and making seating adjustments. She is responsible for communicating with the stage manager/union exactly how many chairs are placed on the stage risers.

The first half of the concert consisted of Berlioz's "Royal Hunt and Storm" and Daugherty's _TROYJAM_ (note to CoAG: Daugherty studied with Ligeti for two years). The chorus sings only for the Berlioz. We started the concert on stage and rose before the start of the piece. As mentioned before, this is a lovely tone poem (not its original purpose) depicting a forest where a hunt takes place. Berlioz has written specific notes in the score (in French) depicting exactly what action is taking place when. Birds chirp, and naiads and other forest nymphs are playing in a stream as we hear the hunters' horns draw nearer. Amid the hunt they skies darken, a storm breaks out, and Dido and Aeneas (of Greek legend) seek shelter in a cave where their relationship is consummated. The chorus plays the part of the sylvan inhabitants. At the conclusion of the piece, after applause, we exited the stage quickly and quietly while _Maestro_ introduced the next piece.

Our stage directions from the chorus manager:


> Berlioz:
> 
> Open your folders before the music begins.
> 
> ...


We returned to our theatre and thus did not hear TROYJAM at all. My son, who attended, said it was his favorite on the program. The piece includes a narration to a poem by Anne Carson. It was premiered in 2008 and you can read more about it here. The composer was in attendance and says about his piece:


> With TROYJAM I wanted to emphasize that the instruments of the orchestra are used for making peace, not war: a message most needed today in this age of raging warfare around the world.


I am looking forward to hearing TROYJAM in two weeks when one of this weekend's concerts will be broadcast on our local classical station.

During our off-stage time, we did not get much of a break. We reviewed our _a cappela_ movement, and making definitive entrances into phrases. Then we went back on stage about 1/2way through the intermission. I picked out where my husband and son were sitting in the front row of the loge level (first balcony).
Again, our stage directions:


> We will go back on stage about halfway through intermission.
> 
> Open your music right after we are seated.
> 
> ...


I thought everything went beautifully. The entire piece takes about 1:15 to perform and it's a nice balance of standing vs sitting parts, singing vs not; so it's not especially fatiguing. Our position from the conductor is pretty far (which the orchestra in-between), so it is very difficult for us to tell if everything is balanced between the chorus, orchestra, and soloists. I thought the choral movements were excellent.
Afterwards, our chorus director got to take a bow alongside the soloists.

*Why I think we worked so hard on keeping in tune this week: I hadn't said anything earlier because I have mentioned his name in this thread, but I think the bass soloist is having problems with intonation in the _a capella_ solo piece he does with the chorus. His parts just seem off, and there is one entrance that he has yet to start on the right note. I'll say it now because he's a professional and thus I have the right to be critical of his performance (not his rehearsals). You can imaging how difficult it is to keep an _a capella_ piece in tune when the soloist is not solid. 
By the way, he does his aria very well.

Our beautiful performance hall:








The Mead Theatre represents the heart of the Schuster Center. It is a state-of-the-art facility designed to accommodate a diverse array of performing arts, including orchestral music, opera, theatre, and dance. Jaffe Holden Acoustics, the acoustic engineers on the Schuster Center, have designed the acoustics for some of the world's most important concert halls, including the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. and Severance Hall, home to The Cleveland Orchestra.

The goal was to create an auditorium that would provide excellent acoustics for orchestral works, while still maintaining an intimate setting for theatrical productions. The result is a multi-purpose hall in which no seating tier is more than nine rows deep, and the last row is a mere 120 feet from the stage.

Paying homage to Dayton's place in the history of flight, the new concert hall has a special Starfield in its grand dome ceiling that is an exact replica of the star pattern Orville and Wilber Wright saw on the night before their first flight. Interestingly, the width of the Starfield is the exact width of the Wright Flyer's wingspan, and the length from the ground floor of the performing arts center to the tip of the Starfield is the exact distance as the first successful flight made by the Wright Brothers.

Architect Cesar Pelli's design invokes the feeling of an evening in the southwest under the stars. The cool blues and orange-reds of the theatre's interior reach to the magnificent domed ceiling, called the Starfield. Concentric circles of fiber-optic lights in the Starfield depict the Dayton sky as it appeared on the eve of the Wright Brothers' first flight, December 16, 1903.


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## Lunasong (Mar 15, 2011)

I was justified last night in my feelings about the bass soloist.
My singing partner on the fourth row got bumped also to fifth row last night and she confirmed my thoughts.
Then, our choral director rehearsed us on Mvt 5, sang that particular entrance incorrectly with a big smile on his face, and said, "What? What?!"
Finally, the soloist came in whilst we were still rehearsing and stated, "I'd really like to practice this with you because I'm not getting it right." I respect that he did that, but I wish it had been corrected sooner.

At the first night's performance, we'd had some clatter when rising from our chairs. We are supposed to rise from the edge of our chairs, but another problem is that clothing, especially men's jackets, get caught in the chairs. A demonstration was given my one of the men how he holds his jacket up at the sides and then gathers the excess material to his front as he sits. We do multiple stand/sits during the performance and last night's was much quieter.

There was more coughing in the audience, though.

We had snacks during intermission provided by the Arts Alliance board: cookies, cut fruit, and peppermints. I had an orange slice followed by a peppermint.








_Stabat Mater_ went very well. We really have had fun singing that ending fugue.

I waited to eat my cookie until after the concert 

Our concert will be webcast on Saturday, Nov 24 at 10 AM EST and I will provide a link and reminder closer to that time. I'm looking forward to hearing how the vocal sounds on "Royal Hunt..", TROYJAM (since I haven't heard it yet), and the blend of the orchestra, soloists, and chorus on _Stabat Mater._

***
Now I can concentrate on melismatic _Messiah_ for a few weeks.


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## sospiro (Apr 3, 2010)

Have just caught up with & have now read the full story of your concert. I found your description fascinating & some of the stage directions had me laughing out loud.

I had never appreciated that your movements on stage would be choreographed to such a degree. I loved the description of how the men hold their jackets when they sit. Next time I go to a concert with a choir & I will make a note of how they hold their music and how they sit & stand! 

You say it was recorded - will it be released on CD?


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## Lunasong (Mar 15, 2011)

No, it will not be released on CD, but will be webcast and there are ways to accomplish what you are asking about.


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## Lunasong (Mar 15, 2011)

Webcast will be this Saturday, Nov 24 at 10 am EST. Weblink http://dpr.org/ , click on "listen live."


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## sospiro (Apr 3, 2010)

Lunasong said:


> Webcast will be this Saturday, Nov 24 at 10 am EST. Weblink http://dpr.org/ , click on "listen live."


Thank you! That's a good time for me as well - 3.00 pm UK time.


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## Lunasong (Mar 15, 2011)

It was nice to listen to the broadcast with balanced parts and no performance adrenaline to worry about. It was a good performance and I thought the best movement was the one the chorus did with the soprano soloist (mvt 6). I heard several parts in the orchestra that I had not previously noticed.

Oh, of the other pieces on the program...I loved "Royal Hunt and Storm." Did not care for "Troyjam." I got bored...


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## sospiro (Apr 3, 2010)

Lunasong said:


> It was nice to listen to the broadcast with balanced parts and no performance adrenaline to worry about. It was a good performance and I thought the best movement was the one the chorus did with the soprano soloist (mvt 6). I heard several parts in the orchestra that I had not previously noticed.
> 
> Oh, of the other pieces on the program...I loved "Royal Hunt and Storm." Did not care for "Troyjam." I got bored...


My internet speed was really poor yesterday so I could only hear short snatches of it.  So disappointed as it's always nice to hear a performance involving someone you 'know'. Pleased you were able to enjoy it without the nerves.


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