Welcome to
Brenchley Choral Society
REVIEW OF
HAYDN : THE CREATION CONCERT
by Chris Woodley
Any choir that decides to tackle one of the greatest works in the classical canon must possess a deep-seated confidence born of long experience, coupled to the kind of dedication that exceeds ordinary enthusiasm, and a cultivated taste for the sensuous colours only the human voice can produce. Such a choir are the members of Brenchley Choral Society which gave a thrilling performance of Joseph Haydn’s mighty oratorio The Creation (Die Schöpfung) on 25th April at All Saints’ Church. They were joined by three excellent soloists and a group of talented instrumentalists under the baton of Roland Millar, the Society’s dynamic music director. The gifts of the occasion, enjoyed by a large and appreciative audience, were moments of grand gestures, fine details, opulent sounds – and a jocular cameo from one of the infrequently heard instruments of any orchestra.
The Creation was completed in 1797 when Haydn was sixty-five years old, finally released from being a liveried servant and free to travel. On his second visit to London, where he had experienced the mammoth performances of Handel’s oratorios, he was presented with a text compiled mainly from Milton’s Paradise Lost, the Book of Genesis, and the Book of Psalms. It was thought to have been prepared for Handel, but was never set by that master. A German version was made by Haydn’s friend, Baron Gottfried van Sweiten, and the composer settled down to write a work of great beauty, full of the highly-expressive music illustrative of the rich sound palette invested in his late symphonies. The text, here retranslated into English, is a dramatic and colourful narrative of how God gave form to the universe out of chaos and darkness, created the Earth, endowed it with the riches of life, and, for a final flourish, “Male and female created he them”. It is set in three parts, drawing on the Handelian structure of choruses, solo arias and ensembles..
From the first entry of the choir the choruses bloomed with a mixture of intense passion and joyful animation, the former typified by the depiction of the unfolding drama of daily wonders, the latter by the call for the harp and the lyre to awake, raise their voices and “In triumph sing the mighty Lord!”. A burst of elation celebrated the completion of The Creation, marked by “Achieved is the glorious work”. The ecstatic cries of “alleluia, alleluia” reverberated emphatically; something miraculous had been accomplished and its inheritors gave due praise and reverence. On an equally elevated scale the sections where the chorus and soloists shared the spotlight formed the triumphant heart of the performance, illuminating some of Haydn’s most brilliant sonic utterances and summoning up that ineffable quality of the human voice conjoined with vivid instrumental harmonies. It was impressive.
All three soloists “turned up” on the night and gave eloquent testimony to their well-honed vocal skills and interpretive acumen. In combination Seohyun Go (soprano, who last year sang with the choir), Harry Jaques (tenor) and Jan-Magnar Gard (bass) achieved a fine balance of tone and expression. They were terrific in “The Lord is Great” with Go and Jaques revelling in the rhetorical flourishes counterpointed by Gard’s firm anchoring; the vocal acrobatics in the final section were breath-taking. Individually they gave real substance to their allotted roles of angels and mortals. In the habit of the former they drove the narrative in magisterial fashion, giving voice to divine commands (And God said) answered in the powerful affirmative (and it was so). Go and Gard sang a rapturous duet as Adam and Eve, savouring the composer’s expressive lines celebrating connubial bliss. Jaques had his finest moment with a tender rendition of “In native worth and honour clad”. The stand-out vocal contribution was from Go; her radiant instrument was secure in all registers and the top notes rang with the resonance of a peal of bells. She delivered “On mighty pens”, one of the celebrated arias, with a captivating charm.
All those vocal endeavours were expertly supported by the instrumental ensemble whose Leader, Andrew Bernardi, provided added gravitas to the occasion with his 1696 Amici Bernardi Stradivarius. From the opening the players found a range of colours to illustrate Haydn’s penchant for tone-painting. God’s command for Light to make its appearance was answered in a glorious shimmer. The summoning of life was vividly articulated: cooing birds; galloping stags; neighing horses; and, most spectacularly, galumphing “heavy beasts” – for which the contrabassoon (and its keeper, Nicholas Downs) produced a startling vignette. The star turn for the whole ensemble came with the magnificent blaze of light with which the work concluded.
Much credit is due to Roland Millar for crafting such an excellent performance. His enthusiasm for
the piece is evident in the dedication with which he prepared the choir, his attention to details of intonation and diction, his setting of tempi to bring coherence to both text and music, and his overall pacing of the performance. A small cut was made to Part Three which did not unduly disrupt the narrative flow – a judicious pragmatism that kept the performance within a sensible timescale. Kudos to him for that, for his quiet authority on the podium, and for the depth of his artistry.
Finally, congratulations to Graham Bignell and the company of willing hands behind the scenes and at front-of-house for so efficiently managing the logistics. Cheerful givers all.
Chris Woodley