Chorale sings about Christmas ‘Love Came Down’
Published 6:13 am Friday, December 9, 2011
The Louisiana Choral Foundation’s Masterworks Chorale will present its Christmas concert, “Love Came Down,” at 7:30 p.m. today in Lake Charles’ Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception and at 3 p.m. Sunday in the sanctuary of Immaculate Conception Church in Sulphur.
The chorale will feature music of American composer Mark Hayes and British composer Karl Jenkins.
Hayes wrote “Magnificat” for a Carnegie Hall debut. This work, sometimes referred to as “Mary’s Song,” depicts the joy that Mary feels when told that she will be the mother of the Christ child. Hayes comments, “I knew I wanted to compose a work that expressed the unrestrained, yet quiet joy, which Mary expressed to God. I chose a triple meter and wrote much of the work in 6/8 because it seemed to create a musical space that allowed for a wide range of emotions.”
This work, with texts written both in Latin and English (macaronic text), appeals to a variety of audiences because of the strong musical writing and its easily accessible text.
Hayes writes in many diverse styles from gospel to jazz, pop, folk and classical. He has written more than 450 published original compositions. He also has served as an adjunct professor of composition at Midwest Baptist Theological Seminary in Kansas City, Mo.
Les Petites Voix, under the direction of Kari Proksch and accompanied by Annette Larsen, will perform “Medieval Gloria” by Vijay Singh; “How Brightly Shines the Morning Star” by J.S.. Bach; “See Amid the Winter’s Snow,” arranged by Susan Brumfield; and “Go Where I Send Thee,” arranged by Paul Caldwell and Sean Ivory.
“The Boar’s Head,” arranged by Jason W. Krug; “March from the Nutcracker” by Tchaikovsky and arranged by Kevin Chesney; “Christmas Carol Fantasy” by Derek Hakes; and “The Angel Gabriel from Heaven Came,” arranged by Joel Raney, will be performed by the Bayou Bell Choir under the direction of Bruce Allured.
Jenkins’ “Joy to the World” is a choral sequence of nine traditional Christmas carols from England, Germany, France, Spain, the United States and the Caribbean. This composition combines the voices of Masterworks Chorale and Les Petites Voix along with trumpet, keyboards and percussion.
The trumpet part will be performed by David Scott, associate professor of trumpet at McNeese; percussion parts will be by assistant professor of percussion Lonny Benoit and McNeese percussion students Matthew McMillen and Taylor Teague; and the keyboards will be played by Abbie Fletcher and Larsen (synthesized strings).
Jenkins’ recordings have resulted in 17 gold and platinum discs, while his “The Armed Man: A Mass for Peace” has received almost 1,000 performances since its premiere in 2000. He was awarded a CBE ranking (Commander British Empire) by Queen Elizabeth in 2010.
The final selection will be the traditional “O Holy Night,” arranged by Roy Ringwald and sung by Masterworks Chorale and Les Petites Voix.
The chorale is under the direction of artistic director Darryl Jones and will be accompanied by assistant artistic director Fletcher.
Tickets are $15 for adults and $5 for students in advance from any chorale member, Swicegood Music Store or by calling 491-9348, or at the door.
Getting ready for the Louisiana Choral Foundation’s annual Christmas concert are
