Bach, Es ist vollbracht (St. John Passion) J.S. Bach wrote two Passions: The Passion According to St. John and The Passion According to St. Matthew. A Passion presents the Gospel texts for Good Friday in dramatic form. Passion plays became popular in medieval times as a … Read more
The media flows with genuine tears over the catastrophic fire at Paris’ Notre Dame Cathedral. Historians would be quick to point out that such awful fires have occurred with dismaying regularity across the centuries. The difference here was the possibility of limiting the damage through … Read more
Rodríguez, Crucifixus Sergio Rodríguez was born in Tenerife in 1982 and studied at the Professional Conservatory of Music in Santa Cruz de Tenerife. While his compositions include works in numerous genres, he clearly has some focus on sacred choral music. His setting of Crucifixus was composed in … Read more
Yes, children have a natural love for opera. I make that statement confidently because I’ve never seen it fail. When exposed to staged music dramas of appropriate lengths (two to three hours) with costumes, a modest amount of action, and an actual band or orchestra, … Read more
Franck, Prelude, Fugue and Variation This reflective work has a melody that I find endlessly intriguing. Its 9/8 meter, groups of three within groups of three, gives it a seamless feel rhythmically (just as that meter does to Bach’s well-known Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring). … Read more
On a beautiful spring day I’m enjoying a rare moment of quiet while working on a book I hope will be ready by summer’s end. The subject is art and the text could be titled “How I Learned to Grasp Art After I Grew Up … Read more
Josquin, Missa Pange lingua (Kyrie) How did we go so long in this series without something by Josquin Desprez (c. 1440 – 1521), universally acknowledged as one of the masters of the Renaissance? If you could listen to only one composer of sacred polyphonic music in … Read more
Who’s my favorite composer? When I am asked this question, my answer may disappoint. “No one. don’t have a favorite composer.” If the questioner looks crestfallen, I hasten to add, “From my teens until my early 30s, I did have a favorite composer, namely Sergei … Read more
Bruckner, Geistliche Chorwerke I began writing the description for this week’s performance pick not at all sure what I can say that would be useful. Austrian composer Anton Bruckner (1824-1896) is best known for his rather lengthy symphonies. I think of him as a bit … Read more
Today’s methods of communication afford instant feedback. Whereas my generation (especially girls) grew up talking on the phone for hours before getting to the point, youth today flip information back and forth faster than a ping-pong volley. We adults do it too, tablets and phones … Read more