Bach Choir performs ambitious concert with mixed success
There’s a line between a work that’s exciting and challenging and a work that’s too difficult for an ensemble. The Bach Choir of Pittsburgh toed that line this weekend, with two performances titled “HOPE” on Saturday and Sunday at St. Agnes Center in Oakland.
Music director Thomas W. Douglas led the the concert, which commenced with Britten’s “A Ceremony of Carols,” a bright festive work for harp and choir that showcased the choir’s dynamic strength to good effect. Harpist Sara Magill and mezzo soprano Loghan Bazan distinguished themselves with fine solos, and Mr. Douglas maintained excellent balances between soloists and ensembles throughout. “This Little Babe” was a particularly enjoyable movement — the choir maintained tight rhythms and a bright pace throughout.
In other movements, the choir started briskly but lagged in tempo and energy as the music went on.
A bassist, percussionist and keyboard player joined the choir for a highly topical rendition of Bernstein’s “Chichester Psalms,” composed as a response to the possibility of a peace settlement in the Middle East in 1965. The composer wrote a reduction from the original orchestration for choir, organ, bass and percussion, though using a synthesized organ didn’t do justice to the majesty of the composition. Fourteen-year-old Maksim Shcherbatyuk sang the boy soprano part capably.
The ensemble’s performance was strong overall. With 16 core professional singers and an additional 64 amateur artists, Mr. Douglas’ ability to lead the Bach Choir through Bernstein’s gorgeous, treacherous strains is commendable. There were moments of disconnect between instrumentalists and the singers. But they soldiered on to create something beautiful, an audacious, enjoyable performance. Before intermission and to close the concert, guest vocalist Et ta Cox took to the stage to perform Christmas songs including“Mary Did You Know ,” “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas ,”“Unto Us a Child is Born” and more. Her smooth, vibrant style was persuasive, but it clashed with the more buttoned-up Bernstein and Britten. The synthesized piano sounded inauthentic in the space.
Like the choir’s recent performance in the Hunt Armory, this program felt experimental. TheBach Choir doesn’t always deliver a flawless concert, but their performances are creative, entertaining. They have a well-deserved history of being edgy; keep an eye out for their next program in March.
Jeremy Reynolds: jreynolds@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1634; twitter: @Reynolds_PG. Mr. Reynolds’ work at the Post-Gazette is supported by a grant from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, the Getty Foundation, and the Rubin Institute.