If music be the food of love, play on, as Shakespeare suggested, or “sing on,” as composer David Dickau asks in the song with that title on the Arkansas Chamber Singers’ 2013-14 season-opening concert Friday night at Little Rock’s St. James United Methodist Church.
Just sing more of the music they sang on the second half.
With a program titled “Love’s Soaring Spirit,” the 69 singers (growing perhaps a little big for a “chamber” choir) and conductor John Erwin proved love can heal, but also burn.
That was via Stephen Paulus’ The Furnace of Love’s Fire, which featured a two-person percussion battery for accompaniment. Sometimes the music soared gorgeously; sometimes it battered the listeners above and beyond the percussion; and sometimes it was, as per one of Paulus’ lyrics, “needles in my ears.” A handful of audience members fell in love with the piece and stood while they applauded.
On the other hand, Johannes Brahms’ first set of 18 Liebeslieder Waltzes, op.52, right after intermission, couldn’t have been more lovely, even though Erwin and his singers performed it in the rather clumsy standard English translation. They made the most out of Brahms’ (large-R) Romanticism, and Leann Hatley and guest accompanist Kazuo Murakami provided excellent four-hand piano accompaniment. Tenor Jordan Bennet sounded particularly good in No. 17, “Don’t wander, my light, out yonder.”
UCA faculty member Blake Tyson, one of the Paulus percussionists, returned with three of his students for the world premiere of the chorus-and-keyed-percussion version of his absolutely beautiful Not Far From Here.
Erwin, Tyson and the singers will repeat the program at 7 p.m. Sunday in the Great Hall of the Clinton Presidential Center, 1200 President Clinton Ave., Little Rock. Ticket information is available by calling (501) 377-1121 or online at AR-ChamberSingers.org.
Arkansas, Pages 15 on 10/12/2013