Home  Entertainment Reviews De Profundis Concert
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Written by D.S. Crafts
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last updated Wednesday, February 28, 2007, at 14:33:38
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The Christmas season has officially begun, and the first out of the gate with its holiday concert is Albuquerque's a cappella men's ensemble De Profundis. Titled "Awed by the Beauty," the program draws from traditions ranging far and wide, beginning with a Quechuan (Peruvian native) language text and finishing off with a set of traditional carols and spirituals.
Led by David Poole, the 14-voice choir takes a group of strong individual voices and combines them into a sonorous blend, equally matched from top to bottom. In Sunday's concert, the group gave energetic and elegant demonstration of whispery pianissimos up to full-voiced outbursts, harmoniously filling the cathedral ceiling of the St. Michael and All Angels Episcopal Church.
Hanacpachap Cussicuinin, an anonymous work from the 17th century, is believed to be the first polyphonic choral work written in the new world. Translated as "For the happiness of the world," it bears a clear Spanish influence. Group member Jim Rasmussen combines two chants, one from the Santo Domingo Pueblo and another from the Gregorian repertoire to create A Hymn to the Sun with its underlay of repeating rhythms.
From the Jewish tradition, Hawhee's For All to See added ostinato handbells and piano, performed by Amy Butterfield, to the texture of voices.
Even pagans get their due here with a celebration of Samhain (pronounced Saw-wen), the New Year of the Druids and more modern Wickens, in a short, atmospheric work by group leader Poole, which he says was inspired by the "mist-shrouded crags, hollows and verdant groves of the Scottish Highlands." The concert's title was taken from a work by British mystic John Tavener with its unusual lilting melodic line.
Jacob Handl (not to be confused with G.F. Handel) wrote a variety of Christmas works still performed today, the short Natus est nobis being perhaps the most well-known by tune if not by name. That piece, along with Noskowski's Veni, Creator Spiritus with its rich late 19th century harmonies, led into Golovanov's It is Truly Fitting, all three works manifesting a resounding polyphonic opulence.
The second half of the program brought to the stage a sampling of traditional carols sung in arrangements, some more conventional-sounding than others. Blow, Blow, Thou Winter Wind by Theron Kirk sets the lyrics from Shakespeare's As You Like It, depicting a harsh winter landscape through vigorous rhythms. The arrangement by William Dawson of the spiritual Mary Had a Baby was given a warm and luminous reading, reflecting the question and response format of that tradition. Logically enough, it was followed by the bluesy Behold that Star! by Thomas Talley in which the ensemble really let loose, bringing the concert to a rousing close.
A hushed and touching rendition of Silent Night served as an effective encore.
This concert repeats Saturday, December 3, 7:30pm at the Immanuel Presbyterian Church. 266-4240
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About Reviewers D.S. Crafts (Website) Composer Daniel Steven Crafts came to New Mexico from San Francisco where he had hosted a classical music radio program on KPFA. His first commission from opera star Jerry Hadley, "The Song & the Slogan" based on texts by Carl Sandburg, was made into a TV program for the PBS network and aired nationally in 2004 and won an Emmy for Best Music. His latest opera La Llorona is a collaboration with novelist Rudolfo Anaya based on his play "The Season of La Llorona." Mr. Crafts is currently working on another commission from Jerry Hadley for a piece about the American Southwest which includes texts by Rudolfo Anaya and V.B. Price. Two CDs of his music, Contemporaries (short, satirical keyboard works) and ARIAS (excerpts from his various operas) have been released on the BACAT label in San Francisco.
David Steinberg David Steinberg has covered state government, the courts, city and county government in Santa Fe for the Albuquerque Journal. He's been an arts writer for the past 20 years, and serves as the book editor, for the Journal. Over the years, he's also acted in plays, sung in choruses and played trumpet.
Jennifer Noyer Jennifer Noyer has been writing dance reviews for the Albuquerque Journal for 17 years, as well as contributing articles for Dance Magazine and other art journals. She trained in dance with Hanya Holm in New York City and Colorado Springs, and studied several dance techniques at the graduate level at the University of Michigan. After teaching dance at Wayne State University she entered and completed a Masters Degree in Humanities there. In New Mexico Ms. Noyer has taught, directed, and choreographed contemporary dance for several years. Her writing on dance includes a monograph accompanying the video of choreographer Bill Evens’ ballet “The Legacy.” An overview of Evans’s world wide career, it was written and published during his tenure at the University of New Mexico. Ms. Noyer’s studies in the humanities, and her studio dance work influence her approach to dance as an integrative art form in the United States.
Barry Gaines Barry Gaines has taught Shakespeare in the University of New Mexico English Department for over twenty-five years and has received two outstanding teaching awards. He has written theater reviews for the Journal since 2000. He has attended theater all over the world including Shakespeare productions in Russia, South Africa, Denmark, and Poland. He has also served as literary advisor for two professional theater companies and written performance reviews for Shakespeare Quarterly. Gaines has taken two years of acting with Paul Ford and appeared in small parts in three plays at the Albuquerque Little Theater. He believes that he is probably a better reviewer than actor.
Joanne Sheehy Hoover Joanne Sheehy Hoover, music critic emeritus of the Albuquerque Journal, has written for NPR, PBS, the Lyric Opera of Chicago, the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Symphony, among others. She has also been a music lecturer for the Smithsonian Associates and a music critic and arts writer for The Washington Post. She was director of the Levine School of Music, one of the country’s largest community music schools, in Washington, D. C. 1980-1993. She and her husband moved to Corrales, New Mexico in July 1993. Also a poet, her fifth collection, “Einstein in New Mexico,” was published in 2002.
Marissa Greenberg Marissa Greenberg is a member of the faculty of the University of New Mexico English Department, where she teaches Shakespeare and early English literature. A prior guest reviewer for the Albuquerque Journal, Greenberg will be reviewing theater while Barry Gaines is out of town. She also composed and edited the program notes for last year’s Albuquerque Shakespeare Festival and has written performance reviews for Shakespeare Bulletin. A graduate of Columbia University and the University of Pennsylvania, Greenberg has been performing and studying drama for most of her life. She is thrilled to have this opportunity to review for the Journal.
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