'A beautiful, inspring evening' - 10.09.03

[Review: Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis, USA] Sarah Bryan Miller: 10 September 2003

It’s not often that St. Louis hosts a significant American debut, but it happened on Friday night at the Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis. Tenebrae, a 28-voice British chorus founded and directed by former King’s Singer Nigel Short, gave its first concert on this side of the Atlantic under the auspices of Cathedral Concerts, as a part of the English Festival. Judging by the high quality of the performance, it will not be the last time we hear them.

Tenebrae (the word means “shadows” or “darkness,” and is the name of a candlelit service held during Holy Week) used the great space of the Cathedral Basilica better than any other group heard there in recent years. Under Short’s direction, they turned the room’s enormous reverberation time into an asset. The performance was lit primarily by candles, creating an evocative atmosphere and setting a tone of mystery.

The performance began with four basses processing down the center aisle singing a plainchant Requiem, then it segued seamlessly into John Tavener’s gorgeous “Song for Athene.” Singers were posted in different parts of the church, adding to the auditory interest level.

The chorus, young and attractive, sang with a fine, rich sound throughout. The blend was admirable, except in the alto section, which is half male and half female; countertenors tend not to blend. Much of the ensemble’s singing is done unaccompanied, and they usually stayed right in tune.

Highlights of the concert included the U.S. premiere of Tavener’s “Mother and Child,” a work commissioned by Tenebrae, with Tavener’s trademark hypnotic patterns and progressions in evidence; a lovely rendition of the Allegri “Miserere,” notable for the exceptionally pure and true high notes of soprano Natalie Clifton Griffith; and a just-about-perfect reading of Benjamin Britten’s quirky, tricky “Hymn to St. Cecilia.”

Another U.S. premiere, Short’s church opera “The Dream of Herod,” closed the first half. A musically spare but effective composition with a moving final chorus, it featured a superb bass, Dan Jordan, in the title role.

It all made for a beautiful, even inspiring, evening, a reminder of great music’s ability to reach us in our hearts, minds and souls. Tenebrae is planning to make a 2004 Christmas tour in this country, and St. Louis may hope to have them back.