University choir revives 15th century madrigals
By Arif Suryobuwono
JAKARTA (JP): The Parahyangan Catholic University choir of Bandung, West Java took listeners on a lively journey from the 15th century madrigals to modern times during unaccompanied voices (a cappella) performances on Friday and Saturday at Erasmus Huis, the Dutch cultural center in Jakarta.
The choir brought 15th century madrigals back from the dead to join a series of contemporary songs, including a "rap" presentation titled Supermarket Minuet by American composer Bayne Dobbins.
Of course, the conservative, respectable choir -- winner of the compulsory song contest in the mixed big choir category at the 1995 Dutch International Choir Festival -- did not actually rap the way today's rappers do.
Instead, its female members -- in long, black dresses with maroon brocades -- were involved in a husband-and-wife conversation with their male counterparts about what to buy in a supermarket.
The song basically had no melody and was spiced with, among other things, portions of The First Noel and Blue Danube. This speech song was the only performance of this type in the program.
Choirmaster Avip Priatna told The Jakarta Post he included some contemporary songs such as the Supermarket Minuet in the concert because he wanted people to know the choir did not only sing religious, Gregorian or gospel songs.
Besides, the songs, covering a wide time span and featured chronologically in the program (from the 15th century to the 20th century), were also meant to showcase the choir's large repertoire, said Avip, who won a scholarship in 1992 to study at the Academy for Music and Performing Arts in Vienna, Austria.
The other songs were six madrigals (from 14th to 16th centuries), which included Thomas Weelkes' Hark All Ye Lovely Saints, Michael East's Quick, Quick, Away, Dispatch and Clement Janne quin's Le Chants des Oiseaux.
Four songs from the romantic period followed: Felix Mendels sohn's Andenken and Entflieh mit Mir, Johannes Brahms' In Stiller Nacht and Waldesnacht, and Gioacchino Rossini's Toast pour le Nouvel An. They were more difficult than the madrigals in that they required longer interval jumps and more advanced breathing techniques.
After a 15-minute break, seven 20th century songs were presented, including Claude Debussy's Trois Chansons and Ralph Vaughan Williams' Three Shakespeare Songs. Of the seven, Dennis Kam's Two Moves and the Slow Scat was particularly impressive. The song produced various sound effects, including the noise of a crowd and a shouting woman. The Supermarket Minuet ended the concert.
Jakarta Art Council chairman Otto Sidharta, who organized the event, commented that the 34-year-old choir sang better last year. "The choir is not exactly the same as last year. It has been rejuvenated. But its new members are getting better."
Only two songs -- Albert Ammond and Mike Azelwood's I Am a Train (which imitates the sounds of a train) and Neri Per Caso's Le Ragazze -- had been prepared as encores. The two encores proved insufficient because the audience, at the conclusion of the concert's opening Friday evening, gave a standing ovation, clapping incessantly and whistling, demanding more songs.
However, the concert ended because the choir had not prepared any other songs. Actually, Avip had considered Carl Orff's Quando Corvenvont as the third encore, but decided not to rehearse it.
After all, the choir had sung a total of 27 songs during the concert. In terms of time, the songs ranged from one-and-a-half minutes to six minutes.
However, it seemed that none of the songs -- despite their secular nature to cater for a wider audience -- were familiar to the ears of most of the Indonesians in the audience.
However, Avip said it was his intention to expose the audience to the relatively unknown songs. Moreover, even though the songs may have sounded alien to the audience, Avip had said a day before its opening that after all, the concert featured human voices and hence, he was sure the audience would enjoy the choir. He was right.