ACDA Reverberations 3: Alfred Schnittke

It was an "O my God" moment for me in the middle of a choral work . . . . a chord so rich and vibrant that it took my breath away. It was sung by the superb Millikin University Choir and composed by Alfred Schnittke. I had heard of composer but had never heard his work. The incredible chord came from Movement IV of Schnittke's Choral Concerto and was entitled "Complete This Work."

I MUST find that music. Who publishes Edition Sikorski 825? Take my money, now!

If you missed the performance, buy the recording. It was a choir to be lauded and music to be praised. And sung . . . again and again.

Read about the composer here and here. A short bio here and list of works here.



UPDATE: Publisher found. Edition found.

ACDA Reverberations 2: Choirs that Really Impressed

Here are the choirs that really impressed me at the ACDA National Convention (in no particular order):

1. University of Miami. Wow--what tone, what incredible chords. Their first three pieces were incredible and I found myself wishing that they hadn't been asked to do the 18-minute Brock commission piece. Although the work was nice, I'd rather have heard what Miami had proposed to do on the concert. When you agree to do the commission work, do you have a chance to recant if the work takes up all of your performance time?

2. Millikin University. Wow--what programming and tone diversity and humor. They were pure pleasure to watch and proof (to me, anyway) that a performance can electrify an audience. I couldn't believe how exciting they were--it was a performance that I will always remember (and try to emulate).

3. University of Houston. I've already dedicated a post to their performance. To me, this was the choir that connected emotionally with the audience . . . or maybe it was just me.

ACDA Reverberations 1: Choral Music of Zdenek Lukas

There is much to be said about the recent national ACDA convention in Miami. In short, I loved it for everything that an ACDA convention can be. I hope that this blog will be a place to feature many of the wonderful events, concerts, conversations, and discoveries.

I'm quite sure that my contributions will be random--today is on the composer Zdeněk Lukáš. I heard his short unaccompanied Requiem by the University of Mississippi Concert Singers and found it to be a stunning work. I had heard portions of it before, but this was the first time I heard it in it's entirety. (Actually, Ole Miss didn't perform the entire work. Don Trott kindly pointed out that he only performed five of the seven movements. I’m going to take a short break from blogging and review my music history.)

Ole Miss did a fabulous job with their aggressive performance of the work. I had a chance to personally commend Don Trott on the groups exciting singing. Trott called it a perfect opening work . . . and I strongly agree.

As I looked to purchase the Requiem, I saw that it was published by Alliance Publications. This is NOT the Alliance that is based in Texas (also a very fine company). This is the Alliance Publications, INC based in Wisconsin.

I called Wisconsin's Alliance and spoke with Anita Smīsek who told me that the work was composed immediately after the composer had lost an orchestrated version of the very same text. Somehow, the composer either lost or had his briefcase stolen on a trip to a larger city. In his dismay, he returned home and wrote the Requiem that I am so fascinated with today.

Zdeněk Lukáš deserves to be better known in the world of choral music--at least in the United States! Read more about him here (scroll down for the English version) and recordings are available here.

ACDA Report: University of Houston Simply Outstanding

An early blog from the first day of concerts at the National ACDA Convention in Miami.

I heard the University of Houston Concert Choir today and I want to "tell the world" that they were absolutely stunning.

In my opinion, they had it all:

• balanced, rounded program
• superb technique
• musically interpreted
• emotionally moving

I don't have the program in front of me, but they began with a Monteverdi and ended with an especially well sung and well crafted work by James Mulholland. The first tenor section floated the most beautiful high G several times during the work and surprised at the end with an exquisite Bb (at some point in the work).

If you ever have the opportunity, take a listen to Houston's Concert Choir conducted by Betsy Cook Weber. It was my first time to meet her and hear the group sing. I hope it isn't my last.