Very gentle, despite the loud twanging of the electric guitar at the beginning. After the jarring introduction it soon settled into a comfortable monotony like most of these "modern" arrangements where the goal seems to be to flatten the dynamic range and sing the words with as little inflection possible so that nothing in particular in the text stands out as more important than the rest. This approach is very much opposed to the choral tradition in which I was raised, where every note, and syllable of each phrase was thoughtfully subjected to subtle changes in dynamic gradation aimed at emphasizing the meaning and, therefore, the mood of the text.
AOW shared a video of the Kings College Chapel Choir at Cambridge, England singing "In the Bleak Midwinter" -- a simple, straightforward strophic harmonization taken straight from the Episcopal Hymnal of a very quiet, contemplative poem. The subtle dynamic gradations, extraordinary sensitivity to the text, and slight-but-significant differentiation of emphasis among the four parts in each of several verses is wondrous to behold.
A flat, uninflected, mono-dynamic rendition by the very same voices would be almost unendurable.
Beautiful!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Finntann.
Very gentle, despite the loud twanging of the electric guitar at the beginning. After the jarring introduction it soon settled into a comfortable monotony like most of these "modern" arrangements where the goal seems to be to flatten the dynamic range and sing the words with as little inflection possible so that nothing in particular in the text stands out as more important than the rest. This approach is very much opposed to the choral tradition in which I was raised, where every note, and syllable of each phrase was thoughtfully subjected to subtle changes in dynamic gradation aimed at emphasizing the meaning and, therefore, the mood of the text.
ReplyDeleteAOW shared a video of the Kings College Chapel Choir at Cambridge, England singing "In the Bleak Midwinter" -- a simple, straightforward strophic harmonization taken straight from the Episcopal Hymnal of a very quiet, contemplative poem. The subtle dynamic gradations, extraordinary sensitivity to the text, and slight-but-significant differentiation of emphasis among the four parts in each of several verses is wondrous to behold.
A flat, uninflected, mono-dynamic rendition by the very same voices would be almost unendurable.
I guess nobody cares about The Magi anymore? What a shame! They have great significance, even if it's largely symbolic..
ReplyDelete