The University Chorale filled Trinity Chapel on Newton Campus with the sounds of two different settings of the Catholic Magnificat on Friday night. The performance, dedicated to the late Rev. J. Robert Barth, S.J., featured arrangements by John Rutter and Antonio Vivaldi.
The chorale, lead by John Finney in his 13th year as director, started off with the Vivaldi piece, which is from the Baroque era. It was composed of nine movements, each of which explored a line of the Latin Magnificat, or Canticle of Mary. When the Virgin Mary discovered that Elizabeth, her cousin, had also been blessed with child, she responded with the lines that inspired both of these pieces of music. Vivaldi's piece was a more traditional, church-like presentation of the Magnificat, which lasted less than a half hour.
It featured three soloists, soprano Eileen Walsh, A&S '08, alto Caroline Marcotte, A&S '07, and tenor Christopher Hopkins, A&S '08. Walsh and Marcotte stood out during their duet in the "Esurientes" movement, and Hopkins gave a decent performance, though he seemed a little tense.
The Vivaldi piece on the whole was well done, especially when the strings in the orchestra came in strongly to support the chorale, as in the "Fecit potentiam" movement. The sopranos were almost too loud at several points, though the "Sicut locutus" movement had its moments; the melody was passed down the line, section by section, to the baritones and basses, who then sent it back to the women. The men were stellar throughout, offering depth and resonance to the entire piece.
The pace picked up with the Rutter arrangement. He is a 20th century composer, and as such, his setting offered a far less traditional and more risky piece. It started with energy, including joyous cymbal crashes. It soon shifted to a more somber tone, which the chorale accomplished with ease.
Rutter inserted a 15th century English poem called "A Lovely Rose," a flower to which the Virgin Mary is compared. The harmonies created a very soothing feeling, backed up by the woodwinds and harp of the orchestra. The following movement, "Quia fecit mihi magna," announced itself with horns and percussion, then softened to a melody reminiscent of ancient Gregorian chant. The sopranos once again could have been softer, as it was hard to hear the rich sounds of the men.
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