Note: In the interest of honest disclosure all reviews are presented without omission of any relevant material.
Seattle Choral Company turns 'Vespers' into a moving concert
Special to the Post Intelligencer, June 1, 1998
Philippa Kiraly
For anyone familiar only with Rachmaninoff's symphonies and piano concertos, his "Vespers" (more literally translated as his "All-Night Vigil') is an unexpected departure.
Written to be sung a cappella, since the Russian Orthodox Church didn't permit instruments during worship services, the work is harmonically rich, and full of subtle changes in rhythm, texture and key which keep it constantly arresting to listen to, while leaving no doubt that this is a devotional work.
What it doesn't have is any trace of the torrents of notes and the flamboyant opulence of the instrumental works. In Seattle Choral Company's performance Saturday night at First Presbyterian Church, the "Vespers" reached a clear, sweet purity of tone more reminiscent of British church choirs than of anything Russian. But, like the music of Bach, which can sound great on anything from a bunch of zithers to a steel drum, Rachmaninoff's "Vespers" sounded exquisitely beautiful sung in this style.
The choir's conductor, Fred Coleman, had made every effort to get the Russian pronunciation correct. Except at the end, when the 80-plus member chorus sang full out, it was possible to follow the words with ease in the translation and Russian transliteration thoughtfully given in full in the program: a feat in this huge church.
It was also possible to follow all the individual lines of the music, and hear how they wove and interwove together in an endlessly fascinating tapestry. The chorus sang more expressively as the work continued, and it became a moving experience. The singers' pitch sense was excellent. Again and again, the different voices would come together on a perfectly pitched chord, such as can give intense pleasure.
Coleman made sure each of the fifteen sections of the work started on the right note by using a pitch pipe. It's understandable that he would do so, but it was intrusive to hear. Paul Karitis made a competent job of the brief tenor solos.
This is an amateur chorus, albeit one of the best in Seattle, and Coleman paced the singing with care so that the voices would hold up until the end. The full chorus sang for 90 minutes with only brief breaks and one intermission, and only in the last two sections did the sopranos sound a little tired on their topmost notes.
The concert began with 17th century chant, a dull performance; and two brief sacred works by Bortniansky and Rachmaninoff, both well sung.
