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Alix Goolden Performance Hall
December 22, 2017
It was during the third chorus, "Et misericordia eius", that I became certain that Vivaldi's Magnificat, RV610, was indeed, as I had suspected, the opening work in my very first concert singing with my local choral society. (The other piece, since you ask, was Haydn's "Nelson" Mass.)
That would have been around 1965; I next heard the work on the radio in 1991; Friday's performance was my third encounter with the work. At this rate of one hearing every twenty-six years, I am not convinced that I will manage a fourth.
And, while I would undoubtedly have enjoyed participating (and reliving part of my, sadly, not-particularly-misspent youth) there were two good reasons why I was in the audience and not on the stage: firstly, even at the height of my singing career, I am not convinced that I would have been good enough for this chorus; secondly, I would have been disqualified for possession of a Y-chromosome.
For this concert, in recognition of the fact that most of Vivaldi's music was composed for performance at the Ospedale della Pietà and thus would have been performed entirely by young women, was sung and played similarly.
It was a nice conceit and, in the event, one which worked superbly.
The concert opened with a brief, and largely unfamiliar, choral work: "Laetatus Sum", RV607.
This was an absolutely delightful start to the evening; Monica Huggett, for once eschewing her violin, conducted a wonderfully light and airy orchestral accompaniment to the choir's excellent, exuberant singing. Although only a few minutes long, this alone was worth the price of admission.
There are, we are told, two extant versions of the Concerto in D, RV536; one for two oboes and one for two trumpets. Friday's performance neatly split the difference by employing one of each instrument.
Debra Nagy and Kris Kwapis made the technical challenges seem trivial and gave a performance that brought a smile to the lips. Huggett directed from the leader's chair: the outer movements bounced but were not over-quick, while the slow movement (in which the trumpet remained silent) revealed that even the early oboe had a decidedly wistful air and the accompaniment, alternating the full body of strings with a solo quartet (plus theorbo), was charming.
My old friend, the Magnificat closed the first half of the programme. From the slow majesty of the opening "Magnificat anima mea" to the final fugal "et in saecular saeculorom" Huggett directed a marvellous performance. I was particularly taken with the slow unfolding of the aforementioned "Et misericordia eius", with its exquisite dynamics and tremendously powerful crescendo.
After the interval Nagy and Huggett gave us the Concerto in B flat, RV548, for oboe and violin; despite its jovial opening and perky final movements, the highlight was the slow movement, with Nagy's sinuous oboe accompanied by Huggett's delicate pizzicato, once again demonstrating Vivaldi's unquenchable originality.
The final work was the Gloria, RV589 — the better-known of Vivaldi's two surviving settings of the text — a work I do not recall ever having sung, yet the music was so familiar that I began to wonder if there wasn't a performance lurking somewhere in my career.
Once again Huggett directed a superb performance. Highlights included the joyful opening chorus, the gorgeous overlapping phrases in "Et in terra pax", the delightful duet of sopranos Arwen Myers and Danielle Sampson, whose voices might have been made to sing together, in "Laudamus te", Laura Pudwell's poignant "Domine Deus", Vicki St. Pierre's forceful "Qui sedes" and the glorious double fugue that is "Cum Sancto Spiritu".
Vivaldi is not necessarily the first composer I would think to spend an entire evening with, yet my interest did not flag for a single, solitary second.
Which I attribute not just to his genius (of which I am in no doubt) but to the outstanding performances.
An exceptional evening's music-making.
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