The Words We Sing--The Message We Bring

On This Day Earth Shall Ring

The Symphonic Choir at Festival of Carols, 2011

(Tim Carlson, photo)

Tonight at our meeting of the Board of Directors of the Indianapolis Symphonic Choir, I used part of the time for my Artistic Director's Report to reflect on some of the beautiful and potent lyrics we hear in our favorite carols.

"What Child Is This," with words by William Chatterton Dix is familiar to us all of course in the GREENSLEEVES tune. It was the text selected by Shane Monds, a young composer commissioned to write a work for the Symphonic Choir's Festival of Carols performances this month. Shane's beautiful treatment of the words brought contextual poignancy to the Passion reference in verse two: "Nails, spear shall pierce him through, the cross be borne for me, for you."

GK Chesterton's text "A Child of the Snows" was the lyric for the ISC's other world premiere this month, and beautiful anthem by California-based composer Christina Whitten Thomas. Her masterful treatment brought into sharp relief the oh-so-humble rustic-ness of the Christ-child's birthplace: "We follow the feet where all souls meet at the inn at the end of the world....The gods lie cold where the leaves lie gold. And a Child comes forth alone."

Finally, an old favorite, "It Came Upon the Midnight Clear," from American poet Edmund H Sears. As a choir director, I'm especially drawn to the final line of each of the five stanzas: "...the angels sing"! Sitting around the board room table this night, we looked at the poem, verse by verse. We noted its frank assessment of humanity's struggle at establishing a lasting peace: "Yet with the woes of sin and strife the world has suffered long; Beneath the angel strain have rolled two thousand years of wrong" (sadly this verse is often omitted from hymnals). And we were warmed by the hopeful message of the final verse: "When peace shall over all the earth its ancient splendors fling, and the whole world send back the song which now the angels sing."

And would you believe it, my courageous, trusting board members joined me in singing an a cappella verse, right there in our spartan meeting room. We got some respectable harmony going too! Amen to board members, angels, choirs, kids, audiences, anyone who keeps these great songs alive.

Christmas, December, the holidays...a season for singing.

Merry Christmas, friends!

On the Fourth Day of Festival of Carols, My Dear Choir Gave to Me...

...splendid intonation, heartfelt text delivery, wonderful dynamics--and a gorgeous tone that lingers in my ear!

Yup, we've finished our fourth Festival of Carols rehearsal just this past week, and boy, how the show is coming together! The large group of singers (not certain about this, but it feels like we've got the biggest Festival of Carols group ever this year) is singing so beautifully. Wednesday morning, I awoke with the sounds of ISC still playing in my head. It was fantastic!

A couple highlights thus far: Healy Willan's "The Three Kings" with its jaw-dropping drama and beauty...imagine, a humble new-born baby with the power to compel royalty to remove their shoes and bow down; Jackson Berkey's "Il set Né" (you may remember this from our recording FROM EAST TO WEST)...the familiar French carol over a bolero rhythm is so beguiling; and "A Child of the Snows" by Christina Whitten Thomas...this piece is this year's composition contest winner, and what a piece! So moving and honest. We can't wait to share it with you.

Tom Scurich, baritone

We have a number of special elements in this year's performances: the Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra, the talented singers from our very own Manual High School (Spencer Lloyd, director), TWO world premieres, and other surprises as well. And we're delighted to be joined by an old friend, Tom Schurich, baritone, who will join the Choir and Orchestra for Vaughan Williams's "Fantasia on Christmas Carols." Whether you join us on Friday night at Saint John the Evangelist Catholic Church (downtown, across from the convention center) or on Saturday at Saint Elizabeth Seton Catholic Church (in Carmel, on Haverstick Road), I know you'll love how the ISC sounds in both these superb spaces. Surrounded by friends, family and the beautiful music of the Symphonic Choir, it's sure to be a great way to kick off the holiday season! (Tickets and more info at the Choir's website: www.indychoir.org)

In Search of...a Few Good Tunes!

BEHIND THE CURTAIN
PREPARING FOR FESTIVAL OF CAROLS | DR. ERIC STARK

This year the Symphonic Choir celebrates the 75th anniversary of its founding, so we knew we had to plan a Festival of Carols concert that would be worthy of this impressive milestone. And, since having an orchestra on hand to accompany the choir always makes us feel special, we knew that having a group of professional orchestral musicians was the first step. Once our good friends at the Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra confirmed they were on board, it was time to start the long process of choosing the music!

I suppose every choral conductor is always on the prowl for good Christmas music. In fact, at nearly every conducting conference I attend, “What’s your favorite Christmas piece?” is a question my colleagues and I ask each other...suffice it to say, the bartenders at the conference watering holes are probably surprised to hear their conductor-patrons talking about antiphonal anthems, Renaissance motets and Latin prayers over their fermented beverages!

For me, those conferences can yield a trove of potential works for our concerts. I usually fill my carry-on bag with CD’s I’ve picked up, as well as stacks of printed music. Then, over the summer months, I wade through it all...listening, playing, singing and studying to see what will work the best.

This year’s process was unique, since I did most of my music study at my suite at the Hotel Santa Cruz during my 2-week residency in Bolivia in July. In between rehearsals, interviews and master classes, I studied and listened. And, since fortunately my hotel room had wi-fi, I had the entire World Wide Web at my fingertips for further exploration if a composer or text interested me. I suppose you could say it was the South American winter that inspired me...high temps just in the 50s each day, and no heat in any of the buildings anywhere. I was bundled up in my sweater and a borrowed jacket, so it sure felt like Christmas was just around the corner.

I’ve always loved the way British composer Ralph Vaughan Williams sets familiar tunes for voices and orchestra. I’ve been hoping to do his “Fantasia on Christmas Carols” for chorus, orchestra and baritone soloist for some time, and thus we have our first winner for this year’s concert!

Other works you’ll hear and in many cases recognize: John Rutter’s setting for chorus and orchestra of the exuberant “On This Day” made famous by Holst, a nod to Bing Crosby with “White Christmas,” the beautiful “Ubi Caritas” sung at the April wedding of Prince William to Catherine Middleton, and a haunting work by one of the founders of The King’s Singers, “Put Memory Away,” by Bob Chilcott. This year will be the third year of our composition competition...a way the Symphonic Choir can highlight the impressive work being done by the new generation of composers...and I’m delighted to say that our winning composer will be with us to hear the world premiere of her creation (we’ll “unwrap” that present later!)

The singers in the Symphonic Choir look forward to rehearsing Festival of Carols every year. This is music that speaks to us, that evokes special memories, and that communicates our common wish for hope and peace. And of course, the singers - and I - will be thinking of YOU during our rehearsals, eager to share the music, the joy and the spirit of season at one of our Festival of Carols performances. Whether you choose to hear us in downtown Indianapolis at St. John Catholic Church or on the north side at St. Elizabeth Seton in Carmel, we look forward to sharing the Choir’s 75th anniversary, the magic of the season and the music with each of you.