Trunghieu (Alex) Nguyen

MUS 1005 Fundamentals/Theory

Concert Review #1

Stevenson and Shakespeare: Corey Crider (Baritone) with Tracy Cowden (Piano)
October 10th 2016 – 7:30 Recital Salon

The voice of Corey Crider truly defies the typical assumption of the baritone curse. While
Crider was accompanied by piano, played by Tracy Cowden, he was able to deliver an enjoyable
and emotional performance where the volume and control of his voice easily traversed
throughout the recital salon. Throughout the night, Crider performed various songs from
Stevenson and Shakespeare to vary the performance while not having to “reinvent the wheel”.
This was refreshing as songs varied from the 19th and 20th centuries.
While wearing a neutral gray suite, standing center stage, he performed Songs of Travel,
capturing the essence of the lyrics as he stood in front of the piano. Crider’s appearance and
emotional delivery easily made the performance of 9 songs, back to back, enjoyable as he made
his presence known to the audience. Particularly the last portions of Songs of Travel, such as
Bright Is the Ring of Words, had moments of triumphant that transformed into soft vocals and
vice versa in Whither Must I wander.
With baritone’s ranges sitting in between bass and tenor, I was surprised that along the
compositions his voice was not lost to the piano. Crider had great volume control which reflected
when songs entered mezzo-piano/pianissimo and progressed into forte/mezzo-forte. This control
easily made the performance memorable. His ability to belt out the notes triumphantly and
enthusiastically in This is the Moment was truly memorable and was easily my favorite.
As a baritone and amateur pianist myself, I thoroughly enjoyed being able to attend
Crider’s performance and hearing his voice in action. Personally, I feel that being a baritone, my
own voice and vocal range is limited. However, after listening to Crider control his voice so
well, my opinions have altered slightly. Although I never attend performances like this, in
addition to not having a fondness of Shakespeare, I believe Crider performed these songs
excellently and gave an enjoyable experience for someone who seldom attends concerts.