Critic’s Pick … Chor Leoni /

Wandering Heart, Erick

Lichte, Artistic Director
T. J. Harper, DMA, choral conductor and teacher

Chor Leoni / Wandering Heart

Erick Lichte, Artistic Director
Chan Center for the Performing Arts, Vancouver, British
Columbia
(2016; 1:07:17)
https://chorleoni.org/

Recorded in the stunning acoustic setting of Vancouver’s Chan

Centre for the Performing Arts with GRAMMY award-winning
producer Steve Barnett, Wandering Heart is simply beautiful.
This is the choir’s first recording since 2011, and its first
recording under the direction of Erick Lichte. Founded in 1992
by acclaimed conductor Diane Loomer the Chor Leoni Men’s
Choir, which is “known internationally and loved locally”, is
recognized as one of the world’s foremost male vocal
ensembles. Chor Leoni prides itself on its musical
ambassadorship for Vancouver and Canada and has performed at
major festivals and concert venues across Canada and the
United States. Internationally, the choir has shared its music
in Italy, Croatia, Bosnia, Germany, and the Czech Republic.

Erick Lichte has carved out a distinct niche in the vocal

music world and concert life in North America. As a founding
member, singer and artistic director of the male vocal
ensemble Cantus, Lichte created and sustained one of only two
full-time vocal ensembles in the United States. His work with
Cantus garnered the 2009 Margaret Hillis Award for Choral
Excellence, the highest honour for the professional choral
organization Chorus America. As a choral conductor, Lichte has
served as conductor for many professional, educational and
amateur choral ensembles. In January of 2013, he began his
tenure as Artistic Director of Chor Leoni Men’s Choir. Lichte
is an active clinician and guest conductor, and is especially
passionate in his work to get young men singing. Lichte is a
published composer and arranger, especially known for his
writing in All is Calm: The Christmas Truce of 1914 which has
been taken on seven North American tours.

Stars (track #1) by Ēriks Ešenvalds with text by Sara Teasdale

(1884-1933) is published by Musica Baltica. This is the male
choir world premiere recording. Composer Ešenvalds recalls the
inspiration for this work: “I remember being out in the
country in my native town in Latvia to celebrate Christmas
with my parents. After dinner, I went out to have a silent
walk in the cold winter night and, in my 30 years, I was never
as impressed by the view in the sky — the stars were so
bright! I couldn’t believe that in my youth I hadn’t seen such
a powerful sky-scape before. Now there was something very
special speaking to me from the sky. I couldn’t name it.”

I Saw Eternity (track #2) by Paul Mealor with text by Henry

Vaughan (1621-1695) from The World is published by Novello &
Company, Ltd. “Henry Vaughan’s poetry stands alongside the
works of Donne and Herbert as metaphysically inclined and
spiritually rich. Mealor sets the opening lines of Vaughan’s
poem ‘The World’ for male choir, soloists, wind chimes and
soprano saxophone to create a dense but luminous texture. The
choir’s role provides not only a cosmic backdrop for the work
but also a swelling one.”

Wandering Heart (tracks #3-#5) by Ēriks Ešenvalds with text by

Leonard Cohen (1934-2016) from The Spice Box of Earth is
published by Musica Baltica and commissioned by Chor Leoni
Men’s Choir with funds from the Diane Loomer Commissioning
Fund. This is the world premiere recording and stands as a
testament to the lasting memory of singer, songwriter, poet,
painter, Leonard Cohen. In Ešenvalds own words, “My cycle of
three songs to words of Leonard Cohen has become, in the
voices of Chor Leoni and through the hands of Erick Lichte,
like a symphony with a true orchestral, multi-dimensional
depth. Wandering Heart is a symphony where the instruments —
the real Canadian singing men — have opened the books of their
life-stories. We can hear pages from their childhoods, sweet
memories, their first-love stories, their life-long dreams and
their destinies.”

Adspice Domine (Vespergesang: tracks #6-#9) Op. 121 by Felix

Mendelssohn (1833, published posthumously in 1874). “The
Vespergesang, Op. 121, is one of the few medium-scale works
for male choral forces written by Mendelssohn and for this
alone, Wandering Heart is well-worth the price of admission.
Mendelssohn’s score provides parts for only a four-part male
chorus and a cello and double bass accompaniment. The work
sets the liturgical texts of the Vespers for the 21st Sunday
after Trinity. The first and third movements feature Baroque-
inspired imitative polyphonic textures. The very short second
movement presents the prescribed plainchant from the liturgy,
which Mendelssohn then develops and illuminates in the third
movement. Finally, the dawn breaks through the darkness with
the chorale-like setting of St. Ambrose’s O Lux Beata
Trinitas.”

Even When He Is Silent (track #10) by Kim André Arnesen with

text by an anonymous source is published by Walton Music. This
is the male Choir world premiere recording. “This male choir
premiere recording of Even When He Is Silent takes the
composer’s setting for female voices and lowers the pitches by
a 7th. While most male choral works voice their chords in root
position, this adaptation of an SSAA work features tight low
harmonies in first and third inversions, which brings out both
the darkness and the light of this anonymous 20th century
text.”

Sure on This Shining Night (track #11) by Morten Lauridsen

with text by James Agee from Description of Elysium is
published by Hal Leonard. This is a beautiful, thoughtful, and
solid performance of a contemporary classic by America’s
composer laureate.

Yahrzeit (track #12) by Robert Moran with text by James

Skofield is taken directly from the manuscript. This is the
world premiere recording. “The text of Yahrzeit was written by
James Skofield in memoriam to his 40-year-old partner,
Michael, who died from AIDS. When his many friends couldn’t
agree upon a time for his NYC memorial service, James
commissioned me to write a work in his memory. Yahrzeit is the
Jewish celebration, in any manner, of the departed person on
the anniversary of his or her death. This could be a concert
‘in memory,’ a poem shared by all, a party, etc. and happens
on that death date of that specific person. It is a lovely
idea. I wish to have Yahrzeit as a musical reflection on
“someone, something no longer with us….but just a memory.”

Long Road (track #13) by Ēriks Ešenvalds with text by Paulīna

Bārda (1890-1983) and translated by Elaine Singley Lloyd is
published by Musica Baltica. Set for male choir and
commissioned by Chor Leoni through the Diane Loomer
Commissioning Fund. “Much of Paulīna Bārda’s poetry speaks of
loving him as does Long Road. When reading it, I felt for a
moment that her memories of their past had become so real.
There are not many words in the poem, so after the last word
was said I turned the music into a sound-scape or picture;
painting one’s eyes gazing towards the sky, searching for the
star, and whispering the heart’s prayer for the beloved one.”

Edited by Eviano George, Mexico

The ACDA International

Conductors Exchange
Program: Building
International Bridges in
Choral Music to Make the
World a Better Place
By Dr. T. J. Harper

“To inspire excellence in choral music by expanding our reach

to create positive social change, foster community, and create
opportunities for the next generation of choral leaders.”

Beyond the borders of the United States, choral music

continues to grow and redefine itself as it continues to be
informed by the cultural traditions inherent to a region, and
by the passion of individuals actively engaged in its
creation, its performance and its scholarship. Across the
globe, centers of choral music are emerging and continuously
reinventing and challenging traditional notions of what choral
music can look like and sound like. The ACDA International
Conductors Exchange Program (ICEP) is committed to leading the
world in the creation of opportunities for intercultural and
artistic dialogue with these choral communities from around
the world. This dialogue is the key to creating connections
and forging stronger relationships between ACDA and the rest
of the world. It is an ongoing exchange program for emerging
leaders from the U.S. and their international counterparts to
interact with choruses and choral musicians from one another’s
respective countries.

Founded in 1959, the American Choral Directors Association has

always advocated for excellence in choral music performance.
The core of this idea is excellence through education,
sharing, and the promotion of best practices. The very first
ACDA Choral Journal announced the formal introduction of a
choral music exchange program where ideas and teaching methods
could be shared and discussed. In 1975, ACDA added to its list
of official Purposes, the following: To foster and promote
international exchange programs involving performing groups,
conductors, and composers. The addition of this language into
the canon of official objectives for the association marked a
watershed moment in the US choral profession as it
acknowledged the global community as a critical partner to
foster cross-cultural dialogue and broaden artistic horizons.

Maestra Carmen Collado,

ICEP 2012, Cuba

Almost thirty years ago, ACDA embarked upon its first official
international conductor exchange project with partner
countries Germany, Sweden, Venezuela, and Argentina. This
early project engaged some of the most well-known choral
conductors from each country. Following these highly
successful international exchanges, this program was not
pursued for many years, although international relationships
and collaborations continued in the US and abroad. However,
these partnerships were localized to those conductors with the
desire and means of creating a successful international
experience. It would be many years before ACDA would
prioritize this type of exchange program at the national level
for its membership.

In 2010, upon the advice of ACDA Executive Director Dr. Tim

Sharp, past national president Dr. Jerry McCoy led a renewed
effort that established a new steering committee for an
International Conductors Exchange Program to fulfill the
official mandate of the 1975 ACDA Purpose. This ICEP Steering
Committee was charged with the creation of a vision, a set of
objectives, and a timeline for the implementation of this
international initiative. The committee was composed of
leadership representing all seven ACDA divisions and led by
Dr. James Feiszli, Dr. Bruce Browne and Dr. Jerry McCoy. In
2012, Dr. T. J. Harper was appointed the national director for
the ACDA International Conductors Exchange Program. Since the
launch of this initiative in 2010, ACDA has planned and
successfully executed international exchanges with Cuba in
2012, China in 2014, Sweden in 2015, and South Korea in 2016.
2017 will witness the most ambitious ICEP exchange to date
with collaborations ranging from North America (Canada and the
United States) to Central America (Costa Rica, Puerto Rico,
and Mexico), and South America (Venezuela, Brazil, and
Argentina).
Dr. Nicole Lammartine &
Professor Wu Lingfen, ICEP
2014

The ACDA International Conductors Exchange Program is a one-

to-one exchange of conductors from partner countries. This
means that for every conductor selected to participate from
one country, the identical number of conductors will be
selected from the partner country. The selected ICEP
Conducting Fellows will then participate in a professional
residency lasting anywhere from seven to fourteen days. Each
residency is designed to expose the Conducting Fellows to a
broad view of the choral culture of the host country. In the
US, Visiting International Conductors (VICs) coordinate their
professional residencies with either an ACDA Division
Conference (even years), or the ACDA National Conference (odd
years, i.e. 2017 in Minneapolis, MN). Each ICEP Conducting
Fellow is required to purchase their own round-trip airfare
but the host country is responsible for all expenses related
to housing, meals and transportation.

One of the most significant outcomes of this initiative is the

impact felt by choral communities around the world long after
the ICEP residency is completed. There are nearly 90 alumni
from the ACDA International Conductors Exchange Program. Each
ICEP Conducting Fellow represents hundreds of singers from
their own local community and choral organizations.
Additionally, each ICEP residency represents interaction,
learning and cross-cultural exchange with thousands of singers
from around the world. The relationships that are fostered
through this program continue to build upon themselves and
form fertile ground for the creation of new partnerships and
collaborations beyond the original scope of this initiative.

ICEP Conducting Fellows are in essence goodwill ambassadors

for the choral profession whose primary focus is
simultaneously artistic and humanistic. On behalf of all of us
in ACDA, these USA conductors are connecting every member of
their own singing communities with their international
partners. The influence of this program becomes exponential.
As a result of these ACDA initial international residencies,
ICEP alumni are creating new opportunities for collaboration
and meaningful dialogue beyond the borders of the original
exchange. Additionally, the ICEP alumni are beginning to work
together to explore the ways in which people are using choral
music to create positive social change, promote mental well-
being, and foster community. Through the International
Conductors Exchange Program and its related activities, our
membership is provided numerous opportunities to directly
engage with conductors, choirs, repertoire and choral
traditions from around the world.

Edited by Karen Bradberry, Australia

An Interview with Argentinian

Composer Eduardo Andrés
Malachevsky
by Dr. T. J. Harper

(Excerpts taken with permission from a June 2015 interview by

María Elina Mayorga – San Juan, Argentina -The full interview
is available at
http://es.calameo.com/read/004422631c2c9d3f6a99d-)

www.malachevsky.com.ar

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SHW6iqpn420

While a worldwide platform or repository for all choral music

does not yet exist, the International Federation of Choral
Music and the American Choral Directors Association are making
positive strides towards increased accessibility for all
choral musicians. This is especially true in the case of
choral music from Latin America. For many years, the
availability of and access to Latin American choral music has
been a challenge for many in the international community.
Unless a conductor or ensemble has a direct connection to a
Latin American choral music publisher or composer, many works
from this region remain undiscovered. In this, the second of
three articles focusing on new choral music from Latin
America, I have chosen a composer and conductor with a unique
voice who is fairly new to the world of choral music, but has
been composing for many years. The choral music of Eduardo
Andrés Malachevsky is at once powerful, sublime, exuberant,
and intimately connected to the text, and this is profoundly
evident in his sacred settings.

Eduardo Andrés Malachevsky is a Latin-American composer and

choral conductor from Argentina (of Ukrainian, Danish, Italian
& Spanish descent). He was born in Santa Fe in 1960 and is now
living in Bariloche, Patagonia. He holds degrees in choral
conducting, harmony and counterpoint, flute, orchestral
conducting, composition, and organ performance. For fifteen
years, he lived as a Trappist Cistercian Monk and this
contemplative life in the solitude of a monastery has had a
profound impact on his compositional style and focus. He has
received more than twenty awards and honors for his choral
compositions including, among others, First Prize for Aunque
es de Noche at the 2010 Concurso Internacional de Composición
Coral de Cámara de Pamplona in Pamplona, Spain; First Prize
for Do Not Pass By Like A Dream at the 2010 Esoteric’s
Polyphonos Competition for Choral Composition in Seattle, USA;
First Prize for Return to Him at the 2008 TRINAC event
(Tribuna Nacional Argentina De Compositores) in Buenos Aires,
Argentina; First Prize for In Pacem Tuam (Sero Te Amavi) at
the 2006 Premio De Composición Juan Bautista Comes in Segorbe,
Spain; First Prize for Il Pleure Dans mon Coeur at the 2004
Concurso de Composición Polifónica Tomás Luis de Victoria,
Ávila, Spain; First Prize for Dios Pequeñico at the 2004
Premios a la Composición y Expresión Coral de Canarias,
Tenerife, Spain. He was honored in 2013 by the Universidad
Nacional del Litoral (Argentina) for his contributions to
choral music. He is the founder and conductor of the Coro de
Cámara Patagonia (Bariloche, Argentina), and President of
AdiCorPat-RN (ADICORA´s Patagonia subsidiary division /
ADICORA: The Association of Choral Conductors of Argentina).

What is your primary motivation for composing choral music?

As well as being a composer I am a choral conductor, which

gives me inside knowledge of the technical and musical
possibilities of the human voice. Composing choral music is as
natural to me as breathing. I’m also drawn to the close
relationship between choral music and poetic text,
particularly to the wealth choral singing can bring to the
interpretation of the written word.

Do you feel particularly attracted to sacred or secular music?

“From the sublime to the ridiculous”, this is how I like to

define my creative contribution. I feel attracted as much to
the sacred as to the secular. Actually, I like to alternate
between composing something with a serious, deep and/or dense
theme and something with an element of humor, irony, and even
the ridiculous. After composing something that requires the
sort of energy intrinsic to the creation of a more serious or
‘highbrow’ work, I need to come down to earth, chill out,
laugh, be more light-hearted and outgoing, and it helps me to
compose something that keeps me grounded. However, I do admit
to having a natural inclination towards the spiritual – I’d
say spiritual rather than sacred – the deep, the serious. I
should mention here that I was a Cistercian Trappist
(contemplative order) monk for fourteen years, so the sacred
or spiritual is always present in my music one way or another.

How would you describe your compositional language?

Melodically, I might describe myself as an expressionist and I

am very careful to accurately represent the text in the
melodic lines. Rhythmically, my music is relaxed,
unstructured, playful and irregular. Harmonically, I am a neo
– neo-tonal, neo-modal, neo-classical, and a lover of the
consonant disharmony or dissonant consonance. However,
although I like experimenting, I’m very far from the avant-
garde. In terms of formal construction, I am absolutely free
and intuitive, which ends up being irrationally rational. I
never decide beforehand on any particular form for my music;
the form of the text or poem tends to lead me towards the form
of the work, which becomes clear as I compose it.
I’d like to return to the expression “irrationally rational”,
which is closely linked to all things intuitive. By
irrationally rational I mean that, even though I don’t
rationally structure the form of the work from the beginning –
actually, I use a stream-of-consciousness process – when I
finish the piece I discover with awe a deep formal
rationality. Experience and time have led me to the conclusion
that intuition and apparent irrationality have more reasons
than reason itself. In fact, I couldn’t agree more with Blaise
Pascal’s famous «Le cœur a ses raisons que la raison ne
connaît point» (The heart has its reasons which reason does
not know).

A significant aspect of my creative process is the idea that I

am being a translator of a resonant silence full of meaning.
To me composing is not simply an artistic or intellectual
task. As I mentioned before, for fourteen years I had the
immense privilege of living fully the life of a contemplative
monk, and I can recognize in my composing experience internal
processes between the creative act and the act of
contemplative meditation that are very similar to the
priesthood. When I compose, I put myself in a spiritual state
analogous to meditation or contemplative prayer where silence
speaks and very subtly suggests a particular direction. The
crucial task in this process is to identify those ideas that
originate from the intellect and those that originate from
another place. This understanding always ensures a successful
end, and the irrationally rational happens! I have named this
process ‘inercia del corazón’ (inertia of the heart).

Do you recognize an evolution, or different stages in your

trajectory as a composer? If so, can you pinpoint a reason, or
is it just due to a deep desire to explore new possibilities?

Without any doubt, I may certainly recognize three different

stages in my trajectory as a composer. The first dates back to
the years when I was a student at the conservatory. The second
one covers my Trappist period, between the ages of twenty-four
and thirty-eight years, where my creative production was
strictly focused on liturgical and monastic pieces; and the
third, post-monastic, stage, which begins in 1998 when I leave
monastic life, up to the present. The first was shy and
experimental, the second was enclosed, liturgical and
introverted (completely so in the case of a Trappist
monastery!) and the third is entirely free, open and
extrovert.

Which of your pieces to your knowledge have been most sung by

choirs from Argentina?

By Argentinian choirs? There is no doubt that choirs abroad

have sung my music more than those in my own country (no-one
is a prophet in their own land…). There are only a few
Argentinian choirs who have performed a few select works.

What do you believe is the reason for this?

It seems to me there are several reasons:

The level of difficulty that my music demands is too

challenging for many Argentinian choirs. I do not
consider my pieces to be extremely difficult; however,
they are not easy. Still for most choirs it seems that
my music requires rehearsal time that the conductors in
Argentina usually do not wish to or cannot take.
Until recently, my scores were not published: however,
starting this year, I am able to offer my music through
my own personal website. I hope this will increase the
circulation of my creative choral contributions.
There are only a few recordings of my music available
and no CD entirely devoted to my choral music.
Finally, in your opinion, is there a choral language that may
be identified as uniquely Argentinian? If so, what are its
distinctive elements?

If we consider only what we call ‘academic music’, I

absolutely don’t believe that we can identify any kind of
musical language, choral or otherwise, as uniquely
Argentinian.

In my opinion, we might be tempted to see, in the inclusion of

musical elements taken from Argentinian folk music or tango,
for example, an Argentinian musical identity, but I think this
is a serious mistake. Every composer is himself or herself and
his or her circumstances. They may or may not develop those
circumstances linked to the culture of their country, city
and/or the place where they live (for someone who lives in
Buenos Aires, for instance, everything related to a tango
might be one of these ‘cultural circumstances’). But from this
assertion to extrapolating about the existence of a
significant number of composers highlighting the same
circumstances, and hence sharing a common, uniquely
Argentinian, language, there’s still a long way to go,
particularly in choral music where there are only a handful of
composers.

In short, the act of creating something is essentially

intimate and personal, and the higher its value and artistic
quality, the farther it will be from the norm – such as the
musical language of a country. It may happen that a country
will adopt the musical language of this or that artist as its
own, but not the other way around.

Selected Repertoire

De Profundis, Magnificat!
“Out of the depths my soul magnifies the Lord!”

Composed in 2004 for an international composition contest to

celebrate the hundredth Anniversary of Berlin Cathedral (and
awarded a prize in this competition) this piece aims to
underline the very narrow link between the prayer of
deliverance and the prayer of praise so particularly present
throughout the Holy Bible and especially in the book of
Psalms. Having this in mind, I have chosen to develop, beside
the main verses of the Psalm “De Profundis” (Psalm 130), the
first verse of the “Magnificat (Luke 1:47). The first movement
is a heartbreaking cry of supplication and the second movement
is an ecstatic shout of joy. Little by little, both movements
convey a profound expression of faith and gratitude: “De
Profundis, Magnificat!” “Out of the deep, my soul magnifies
the Lord! Out of the deep, my soul magnifies YOU, my Lord!”

Edited by Gillian Forlivesi Heywood, Italy/UK

Beneficence Refined
An Exploration of Sacred Choral Settings by Women Composers
from Northern Europe

T.J. Harper, choral conductor and teacher

Throughout history the more complex activities have been

defined and redefined, now as male, now as female, sometimes
drawing equally on the gifts of both sexes. When an activity
to which each could have contributed…is limited to one sex, a
rich differentiated quality is lost from the activity
itself.[1]

– Margaret Mead

In this statement, noted cultural anthropologist, Margaret

Mead (1901-1978) speaks to a universal challenge affecting all
people in all disciplines. In choral music, Mead’s “rich
differentiated quality” has historically been absent from both
the composition of choral music and from subsequent
performances. Though there have been a number of women
composers who have made great contributions to the canon of
choral repertoire over the centuries, the majority of choral
music currently being composed, studied, and performed is
still written by men. As far back as 1880, music critic George
P. Upton argued, “it does not seem that woman will ever
originate music in its fullest and grandest harmonic forms.
She will always be the recipient and interpreter, but there is
little hope she will be the creator.”[2] Moving forward, it is
the responsibility of choral musicians to advocate for and
seek out exceptional choral compositions by both women and
men.

In recent decades, the number of women composers has grown

considerably around the world. While it may be shortsighted to
assume the tradition of choral composition continues to
progress simply because there are more women composers, there
can be no doubt that the trend towards equality in this field
exists. Three women who are at the vanguard of this trend and
enriching the landscape of sacred choral composition with
their unique vision are Kristina Vasiliauskaitė (Lithuania),
Agneta Sköld (Sweden), and Maija Einfelde (Latvia). The
authenticity expressed in the music of these composers is born
out of a clearly defined personal faith, and by the socio-
political hardships they witnessed in their respective
homelands. These composers are contributing to and
representing an emerging corpus of substantive sacred choral
music that is contributing to the “rich differentiated
quality” of the choral art.

Kristina Vasiliauskaitė (b. 1956, Vilnius, Lithuania)

Coming from a large family of

musicians, Kristina Vasiliauskaitė
has emerged as one of Lithuania’s
most prolific composers of sacred
choral music. She studied musicology
with Jadvyga Čiurlionyte (1974-1975)
and composition with Eduardas Balsys
(1975-1980) at the Lithuanian Academy
of Music. Upon graduation from the
Academy, Vasiliauskaitė was appointed
the editor of musical programming for
the Lithuanian Radio and Television
network (1980-1983). She taught at the M. K. Čiurlionis
School of Art and in 1993, she was appointed the head of the
piano program at the Vilnius Ąžuoliukas Music School where she
also began teaching composition in 1996. In 1998, she was
granted the title of Senior Teacher of Lithuania.

The unique quality in the compositional style of Kristina

Vasiliauskaitė has established her as one of the leading
composers of her generation. As such, she has been recognized
for excellence for her compositions Porcupine’s Home, A
Breath, Snowflakes Talk, Let’s Sing Alleluia, and From Your
Hands. In 2001, she gained international recognition for

Magnificat, which received first prize at the ‘4 th Annual

Juozas Naujalis Composition Competition for Sacred Music’.

The choral music of Kristina Vasiliauskaitė is unique with

lyrical warmth that comes from attention to an approachable
harmonic style and rich textures. Rolandas Aidukas, describes
her music thus:

“Vasiliauskaitė’s musical style is an alternation between

diatonic modes and various chromatic detours and modulations.
The translucent and delicate musical texture of her
compositions exhibits beautiful melody [sic] permeated by
romantic emotion. The scores are aesthetically pleasing and
capture the ear and understanding of a wide variety and age of
listeners. Her vocal compositions display a close relation
between the liturgical text and the music, a natural
imaginativeness, and clarity of form.”[3]

This “natural imaginativeness” is clearly witnessed throughout

the five-movement setting of the Magnificat, which is scored
for mixed choir, flute, oboe, trumpet, and organ. In the first
movement, Vasiliauskaitė employs various major keys, an
unhurried tempo (moderato maestoso), and tonal motion in equal
values that confer “nobility and stability to the melody” as
musicologist Daiva Tamošaitytė correctly observes. There is an
accumulated energy that accompanies each rising sequence of
ascending semi-tone phrases, which in affect, expands the
tonal landscape to the end of the movement providing adequate
space for the joyous text, ‘My soul doth magnify the Lord.’
(Figure 1)

(Click on the image to download the full score)

Figure 1. Vasiliauskaitė, Magnificat, mvt. 1, Lithuanian Music
Information www.mic.lt

Selected Compositions

Stabat Mater (2006) – SATB, fl, vln, va, vc, db, org,
manuscript*

Magnificat (2005) – SATB, fl, ob, tp, org, manuscript*

Nine Motets of the Good Friday (2005)– SATB, manuscript*

Mass in Honour of St. Cecilia (2003) – SATB a cappella,

manuscript*

The Canticle of the Sun by St. Francis of Assisi (1997) – SATB

double choir a cappella, manuscript*

Missa Brevis in Honorem Beatae Mariae Virginis (1992) – SATB a

cappella, SBMP 265-268

*Available on loan from Lithuanian Music Information

www.mic.lt/en/classical/persons/works/139
Agneta Sköld (b. 1947, Västerås, Sweden)

Also from a family of musicians,

Agneta Sköld is most widely
recognized as a member of the
contemporary Swedish Liturgical
Movement. She studied at the
Royal College of Music in
Stockholm and graduated with
concentrations in music
education, organ performance, and choral music. From 1967 to
1976, she sang professionally in the Swedish Radio Choir and
the Eric Ericson Chamber Choir. In 1991, after teaching Music
Theory at Ingesund College of Music in Arvika, Sweden, she was
appointed the conductor of the Mariakören and the Assistant
Organist of Västerås Cathedral. In 1998, she was honored with
the distinction of being named the Swedish Choir Leader of the
Year. In 2006, Sköld was appointed the Director of Music and
Organist of Västerås Cathedral.

In pursuit of a greater understanding and appreciation of her

art, Agneta Sköld has been the recipient of numerous research
grant awards. In honor of her accomplishments as a composer,
she has received prestigious awards including the Johannes
th
Norrby Medal in 2003, and the Royal Medal of the 8 Grade from
th
the hands of His Majesty, King Carl-Gustaf the 16 .

Gloria is an exhilarating expression of joy and faith, which

gave the composer a sense of hope during a time of personal
hardships. The unrelenting intensity of this work is marked by
authentic expressivity and conviction. Sköld employs a
textural device of motivic layering that along with ascending

16th note ostinati drive the music forward through a gradual

increase in both texture and rhythmic activity. (Figure 2)
 (Click on the image to download the full score)

Figure 2. Sköld, Gloria, Walton Music HL08500321

Selected Compositions

Corpus Christe Carol (2004) – SATB, Gehrmans musikförlag,

10623, Stockholm

There is no Rose (2004) – SATB, Gehrmans musikförlag, 10553,

Stockholm

Magnificat (1998) – SSAA, harp or piano/cello, Sveriges

Körförbund/Gehrmans musikförlag, SK877, Stockholm

Kyrie/Gloria (1990) – SSAA, piano, Sveriges

Körförbund/Gehrmans musikförlag, SK 656, Stockholm, Walton,
USA

Go Crystal Tears – SSAATTBB, Gehrmans musikförlag

Jubilate Deo – SATB, Gehrmans musikförlag, 10624, Stockholm

Maija Einfelde (b. 1939, Valmiera, Latvia)

Maija Einfelde’s introduction to music
came at an early age. Her father was an
organ builder and her mother was a local
church organist. She began her music
education in Cēsis, at the Alfrēds
Kalniņš Music School and then at the
Jāzeps Mediņš College of Music in Riga.
She studied composition with Jānis Ivanov
at the Latvian State Conservatory where
she graduated in 1966. In 1968, she began
to teach composition and music theory at
the Alfrēds Kalniņš Cēsis School of
Music, the Jāzeps Mediņš College of Music, the Emīls Dārziņš
School of Music, and the Evening Music School of Rīdze.

Primarily focused on creating works for choirs and for chamber

ensembles, Maija Einfelde has received numerous honors and
awards. In 1997, she won the Barlow Foundation Composition
Competition for At the Edge of the Earth. In this same year,
she also received the Latvian Great Music Award. In 1999, she
received the Culture Award of the Republic of Latvia. In 2000,
she received the Copyright’s Infinity Award by the Latvian
Author’s Union. She also achieved distinguished success from
the UNESCO International Music Council’s Competition,
‘Rostrum’ for her work, Maija Balāde (May Ballad) for four
clarinets and 8-part mixed chorus.

There is a stark quality to the compositional style of Maija

Einfelde that goes beyond simple dissonance and stridency.
Rather, her music seems to be informed by an acceptance and
ever-present acknowledgement of the suffering and pain all
must endure. Writing for the Latvian national daily newspaper,
Diena (The Day), Inese Lūsina summed up the music of Maija
Einfelde this way:

“Since childhood, the bitter life of the composer has

materialized in valuable art that is characterized by an acute
pain all the way to the bone, the kind that the westerner,
expecting a certain European comfort standard, will not be
accustomed to. It is a bright dream about small things, which
will not be revealed to a maestro spoiled by life and a
delicate environment. She reveals a Latvianness [sic] that
never shows itself as primitive. In principle, it is a new
approach to a person’s voice, which assuredly shows a
refinement that is not simply academic.”[4]

At the Edge of the Earth was composed in 1996. Written in four

sections, this work is based upon text from the play,

Prometheus Bound by the 5th century Greek dramatist Aeschylus.

The opening of Pie zemes tālās is stark. The reserved
counterpoint, which actually creates momentum, never betrays
the ominous weight of the Aeschylus text: “Here we have
reached the remotest region of the earth, the haunt of
Scythians, a wilderness without a footprint.” (Figure 3)

(Click on the image to download the full score)

Figure 3. Einfelde, Pie zemes tālās (At the Edge of the Earth)

Einfelde’s most recent composition, Lux aeterna, provides a

glimpse into what can be seen as a significant departure from
the ‘bitter life’ of a composer who once said, “Life is not
beautiful, that I would be able to write beautiful music.”[5]
In this new work, which is taken from the Communio section of
the Missa pro Defunctis, or Requiem Mass, Einfelde
demonstrates a level of balance and restraint that speaks to
the unifying and communal message of this portion of the
Requiem Mass. Moving into the end of the first choral section,
the texture opens to twelve parts at …quia pius es, and the
universality of the text is coupled at largo with an
undulating rhythmic augmentation which recalls what
musicologist Baiba Jaunslaviete referred to as Einfelde’s
“particular attraction to the sea.”[6] The text is treated
with care but the depth of expressivity cannot be denied.
(Figure 4)

(Click on the image to download the full score)

Figure 4. Einfelde, Lux aeterna (manuscript)

Selected Compositions

Lux Aeterna (2012) – manuscript

Cikls ar Friča Bārdas dzeju (Three Poems by Fricis Bārda)

(2003) – SATB a cappella, Musica Baltica MB0061

Ave Maria (1998) – SATB, org, Musica Baltica MB0059

Psalm 15 (1998) – SSAAATTBBB a cappella, Musica Baltica MB0564

Pie zemes tālās (At the Edge of the Earth) (1996) –

SSSAAATTTBBB a cappella, Musica Baltica MB0356

Ave Maria (1995) – SSAA, org, Musica Baltica MB0060

[1] Margaret Mead, Male & Female: A Study of the Sexes in a

Changing World, (New York: William Morrow & Company, 1949),
pp. 345-346.

[2] Carl E. Seashore, “Why No Great Women Composers?” Music

Educators Journal, March 1940: 21, 88; and George P. Upton,
Woman in Music (Boston: James R. Osgood, 1880)

[3] Rolandas Aidukas, Musica Sacra: Sacred Choral Works by

Kristina Vasiliauskaitė, Notes taken from CD jacket,
translated by Vytenis M. Vasyliunas, performed by Atlieka
choras “Vilnius”, compact disc.

[4] Inese Lūsina, Maija Einfelde: Latvian Composers, Notes

taken from CD Jacket, Musica Baltica, Compact Disc.

[5] Baiba Jaunslaviete, 20 th Century and the Phenomenon of

Personality in Music, 39 th Baltic Musicological Conference:

Selected Papers. Riga: Latvijas Komponistu savientba, Musica
Baltica, 2007, pp. 19-28.

[6] Ibid.
T.J. Harper is the Director of Choral
Activities and supervises the Secondary Music
Education curriculum at ProvidenceCollege in
Providence, Rhode Island. He conducts the
college’s three choral ensembles as well as
courses in Conducting, Secondary Choral
Methods, Applied Conducting, and Applied
Voice. Dr. Harper received the Doctor of Musical Arts degree
from the University of Southern California where he graduated
with honors. Dr. Harper’s interests have led to extensive
research of the Nazi influence on German choral music and the
music of Hugo Distler. His dissertation entitled, Hugo Distler
and the Renewal Movement in Nazi Germany focuses on the
juxtaposition of Distler’s personal beliefs and his
political/professional obligations to the Nazi Party. Dr.
Harper is also a contributing author to the recently
published Student Engagement in Higher Education: Theoretical
Perspectives and Practical Approaches for Diverse
Populations (Routledge). Email: harper.tj@gmail.com

Light and Love: New Vocal

Works for the Sonux Ensemble
(Hans-Joachim Lustig,
director)
Featured Instrumentalists: Stefan Kuchel, saxophone; Sirius
Quartet: Fung Chen Hwei, violin; Gregor Hübner, violin; Ron
Lawrence, viola; Jeremy Harman, cello

Hans-Joachim Lustig, director

Rondeau Production GmbH – Petersstraße 39-41 – 04109 Leipzig

(2013; 62’ 08”)

The Sonux Ensemble takes its name from the hybridization of

the Latin words sonus (sound) and lux (light). This men’s
choir from Northern Germany is made up of the tenors and
basses from the Chorknaben Uetersen directed by Hans-Joachim
Lustig. While the performance repertoire for this group spans
all periods and genres, this CD is dedicated to modern
compositions specifically written and arranged for the Sonux
Ensemble. Light and Love: New Vocal Works for the Sonux
Ensemble is a collection of world premiere compositions and
arrangements. All but a few of the works in this recording
were written specifically for the group. The hallmark feature
of this CD is that every selection, including a new
realization of Eric Whitacre’s Five Hebrew Love Songs, stands
as a premiere performance. In the never-ceasing struggle to
program new music for male choirs, this recording is a must
have. Each selection addresses the subtle relationship of
light and love as concept.

The over-arching vocal characteristic of this CD is defined by

its youthful vitality, which is achieved to great effect under
the direction of Mr. Lustig. The choral tone is warm, round
and at once sensual and mature. The depth of tone is
substantiated in each selection through a high level of vocal
artistry demonstrated by each singer. Mr. Lustig establishes a
clear concept of textual understanding and interpretive
strength throughout the CD without degeneration into faux
emotionality and gravitas.

At first glance, Light and Love is an eclectic meandering

through remembrances of familiar aural landscapes. Upon deeper
investigation, the listener is compelled to embrace organic
realizations of how these two elements define the human
experience. There is beautiful symmetry in the opening and
closing selections of Light and Love, and all works speak
directly to the limitless, incorruptible power of love as seen
through the eyes of youth. In this way, it is no wonder that
the Sonux Ensemble is able to provide an authentic rendering
that is capable of communicating the delicate dimensions of
light and love.

The opening track, Light, my light by Vytautas Miškinis (b.

1954) with text by Rabindranath Tagore is luminescent. I Saw
Eternity by Paul Mealor (b. 1975) with text by Henry Vaughan
comes across as celestial and inward. In the liner notes,
Holger Haushahn states that To the Light, by Latvian composer,
Uģis Prauliņš (b. 1957), “is about different levels of
awakening: from illusion to truth, from darkness to light,
from death to eternal life”. With text by Brhadaranyaka
Upanisad, this is a powerful expression of a universal journey
defined by hope. Sacred Light by Ola Gjielo (b. 1978) with
text by George Herbert depicts manifestations of perceived
light: powerful, dancing, muted, intermittent.

Charles Anthony Silvestri penned the eponymous poem Light &

Love for this premiere recording, which is set twice. The
first by Tobias Forster (b. 1973) and the second setting is by
Alwin Michael Schronen (b. 1965). These two compositions are
seemingly diametric visions of the Silvestri text. Silvestri
states that he is “bridging the gap between the two concepts
just as white light is dispersed by a prism.” Saxophonist
Stephan Kuchel is extraordinary throughout this CD. Five
Hebrew Love Songs by Eric Whitacre (b. 1970) with text by Hila
Plitmann there is warmth with this arrangement for men’s
voices. Aleksandar S. Vujić’s (b. 1945) setting of the
anonymous text Dû bist mîn, is carefully composed with
symmetrical scaffolding and punctuated by dissonance in
willful contrast to the sentiment of the text. Fragmente aus
dem Hohelied des Salomons (Fragments from the Song of Songs)
by Gregor Hübner (b. 1967) contains multiple verses from the
Song of Solomon. Influenced by the improvisatory nature of
jazz, this work highlights the virtuosic abilities of the
Sirius Quartet while never losing sight of its relationship to
the intimacy of the text. This work can best be described as a
vivid daydream. The four movements, or fragments of this set
express the essence of love in bloom, from the first
movement’s sense of urgency and hope; the physical longing and
anticipation of movement two; the third movement’s turmoil and
passion; and finally to the boundless joy and exuberance of
the fourth and final movement.

Light and Love: New Works for the Sonux Ensemble was collected
from recordings made between November 2012 and May 2013 in the

Katholischen Kirche Uetersen in Wedel, Germany. This early 20th

century structure provides a surprisingly honest acoustic,
which illuminates the strength of ensemble as well as the
virtuosic partnership with Stephan Kuchel and the Sirius
Quartet.

Info: http://goo.gl/dcAJMs

Jubilatio: The Riga Cathedral

Girls Choir
by T.J. Harper, DMA, teacher and conductor.

Jubilatio: The Riga Cathedral Girls Choir

Featuring Vita Kalnciema, organ
Aira Birziņa, Artistic Director
Riga Cathedral
(2011/2012; 63’ 29”)
www.girlschoir.lv
The Riga Cathedral Girls’ Choir (RCGC) is the premiere
ensemble of the Riga Cathedral Choir School, which was founded
in 1994. The singers, who range in age from nine to nineteen,
display tremendous vocal technical facility and their
attention to detail is at times astonishing. Under the
direction of Artistic Director Aira Birziņa since 2000, this
ensemble has toured throughout Europe and has won numerous
awards for excellence in choral performance. In their debut
recording, Jubilatio, the Riga Cathedral Girls’ Choir presents
a rich diversity of sacred compositions from the early
Renaissance with Ave Regina Caelorum by Guillaume DuFay to
modern compositions like the four-movement Missa de Spiritu
Sancto by Rihards Dubra, and O Salutaris Hostia by Ēriks
Ešenvalds. The rich assortment of choral offerings in this
recording includes a small number of familiar selections like
Sound the Trumpet by Henry Purcell, and The Lord Bless You and
Keep You by John Rutter. Rather than diminish the overall
quality of this recording, these familiar works provide
increased awareness of this CD’s central tenet: to have faith
is cause for celebration.

Jubilatio is a celebration that opens the door to a complex

musical exposition of faith through the lens of three
cornerstone concepts: supplication, praise, and glory. The
entire CD allows the listener to enter into a thoughtful
exploration of faith where they are never pulled too far from
these three conceptual cornerstones, which serve to enlighten
and inspire, never to condescend or judge.

Representing the first cornerstone concept of faith and

supplication, the following four works are performed with
intensity by the Riga Cathedral Girls’ Choir and a controlled
vocalism that rarely imposes itself on the listener. Hebe
deine Augen auf by Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847), sets a
notable tone of reliance on the Lord and is performed with
surprising vocal strength. Salve Regina by Hungarian composer
Miklós Kocsár (b. 1933), is one of two Marian antiphons
featured in this recording. This is a substantial composition
by a composer deserving a much wider audience and is performed
with tremendous skill. Miserere, by Basque composer Eva Ugalde
(b. 1973), is piercing in its text setting and demonstrates
the concept of supplication with acute conviction. In O
salutaris hostia by Ēriks Ešenvalds (b. 1977), the RCGC
realize a full expression of earnest supplication just as the
turba chorus cries to God, “O salutaris hostia…O redeeming
Sacrifice…give us strength, send aid.”

The second cornerstone concept, faith and praise, is

represented by a tremendous diversity of composers. There is a
vocal vitality in these selections that benefits from the
youthful vigor and brighter sonority of the Riga Cathedral
Girls’ Choir. Sound the Trumpet by Henry Purcell (1659-1695),
is brought to great life and is extremely effective in its
musical phrasing and in conveying a clear sense of
celebration. The second Marian antiphon on this recording, Ave
Regina Caelorum by Guillaume Dufay (1397-1474), is sung with
confidence marked by rhythmic precision and clarity. Rounding
out the earlier works, Ecce Maria by Michael Praetorius
(1571-1621), is the third selection in this collection devoted
to Mary and is performed with a power and sensitivity not
often observed in this setting. Laudamus in Domine by Ieva
Alenčike (b. 1976), sings well and maintains an appropriate
sense of vitality. Greatest and last of all the psalms, is
Psalm 150, Laudate Dominum. Composed by Rihards Dubra (b.
1964), this is a very compelling treatment of the litany.
Accompanied by accomplished organist, Vita Kalnciema, The Lord
Bless You and Keep You by John Rutter (b. 1945), reaffirms the
strength of conviction through the thoughtful use of
unassuming organ registrations that convey an almost staid
imagining.

Representing the third cornerstone concept, faith and glory,

the following works are performed with emotional substance
informed by thoughtful phrasing and a clear understanding of
the text. Gloria by Danish composer Michael Bojesen (b. 1960),
is a succinctly nuanced tripartite composition that captures
the essence of the resurrection text. Composed for the Riga
Cathedral Girls’ Choir, Exsultate Deo by Vytautas Miškinis (b.
1954), brilliantly captures the complexities of the
resurrection text while simultaneously showcasing the vocal
abilities of the ensemble. Finally, composer Rihards Dubra is
featured again with a composition that brings all of the
Jubilatio concepts of faith (supplication, praise, and glory)
together in his Missa de Spiritu Sancto. The performance of
this missa brevis is reason enough to add this CD to your
collection. Dubra’s musical sensibility and textual
comprehension combine to create a compositional voice that is
rooted in tradition and still speaks with an authentic voice.
Scored for organ and women’s choir, this four-movement work
(Kyrie-solemn and mysterious, Gloria-hymn of praise, Sanctus-
acclamation and honor, Agnus Dei-supplication) is
appropriately a celebration that skillfully balances the organ
with the choir. The RCGC possess a youthful vitality and a
rare sense of maturity that brings this work alive. The
members of the ensemble are to be commended for their
exemplary vocalism and dedication to each composition.
Artistic Director, Aira Birziņa and organist Vita Kalnciema
have collaborated to great effect and realized the full
potential of this work.

Jubilatio was collected from recordings made in 2011 and 2012

at the Riga Cathedral. Built in 1211, the cathedral boasts
architectural offerings from the Gothic, Romanesque and
Baroque periods. The acoustic is obviously reverberant and
bright, but does not obscure aural clarity for the voices or
the organ. Of special note is the Riga Cathedral Walcker organ
famous throughout Europe, which has 124 stops, 4 manuals, and
6,718 pipes.