SACRA/PROFANA, a San Diego professional vocal ensemble, presents Windows, featuring some of pieces from the choral canon paired with luminaries of contemporary choral music.
One performance only, Saturday, March 29, 7 p.m. at First United Methodist Church, San Diego (2111 Camino del Rio S). Tickets are $15-$40 at: sacraprofana.org.
“This concert is a thoughtful pairing of historical pieces with modern settings, allowing the audience to experience glimpses into the time and place of the composers,” said Juan Carlos Acosta, artistic director of SACRA/PROFANA. “These pieces offer windows into different historical moments, providing both a reflection on the past and a bridge to the present.”
Featured musical pairings in Windows will include:
Hildegard von Bingen and Katarina Giman: Hildegard von Bingen, was a pioneering medieval composer known for her sacred chant and wild theological treatises. Her work will be deftly woven into a lovely setting of “O Virtus Sapientiae” by Canadian composer Katarina Giman.
Giovanni Pierluigi de Palestrina and Louis Vierne: Giovanni Pierluigi de Palestrina’s “Kyrie” is a masterpiece of polyphony. This will be contrasted with French composer Louis Vierne’s “Kyrie,” recently featured in the reopening of the Notre Dame cathedral. Originally written for two pipe organs, this concert will feature the face-melting sound experience of the choir singing full out with the beautiful sound of the church’s 107-rank Blackinton Organ.
Franz Biebl and Reena Esmail: The romantic warmth of Franz Biebl’s “Ave Maria” in a setting made famous by Chanticleer will be contrasted with a contemporary setting by Reena Esmail, an Indian American composer based in Southern California. Esmail’s 2006 “Ave Maria” for treble voices reflects her unique background and experience growing up in Catholic schools.
Maurice Duruflé and Ola Gjeilo: The “Ubi Caritas” chant will be served up two ways, with a famous setting by Maurice Duruflé, a French composer of the early 20th century, and a modern setting by Norwegian-American composer Ola Gjeilo, who now lives in Southern California.
Henry Purcell and Moses Hogan: “Hear My Prayer” is an English Baroque anthem by Henry Purcell. It will be performed alongside a setting by Moses Hogan, a renowned arranger of African American spirituals – a compelling contrast highlighting the diversity of sacred music.
Thomas Tallis meets Henry Balfour Gardiner: Two settings of the ancient Latin evening hymn “Te Lucis Ante Terminum” will be performed. The first by Thomas Tallis, an English Tudor composer who lived during the tumultuous period of the English Reformation, navigating the shifts between Catholicism and Anglicanism. His setting reflects the complexities of his time. Tallis will be paired with a romantic setting of “Evening Hymn” by Henry Balfour Gardiner. The organ accompaniment in this piece is another mind-blowing experience.
Jake Runestad: The divergent piece from this evening of pairings is “A Silence Haunts Me” by Jake Runestad. This piece won the Brock Prize from the American Choral Association in 2018. It is inspired by a letter from Beethoven to his brothers, written but never sent, capturing his struggle with deafness and despair at not being able to hear his own music. The piece explores his internal conflict and concludes in a powerful and haunting experience.
The location of the concert also plays a part in exploring windows – both literal and metaphorical.
The First United Methodist Church is a fusion of ancient cathedral design and modern glass and concrete. With its cruciform structure, striking modern details, hundreds of glass pieces making up the windows, and its soaring glass arch, the church itself becomes a living part of the sacred music that will be presented.
(Foto de cortesía)
