The Vallejo Choral Society will perform selected choral works at the “Shakespeare in Song” concert and gala on March 10 at the Masonic Temple. (Submitted photo by Rebecca Gulick).
Whether it's the outdoor Globe Theater or seasonal park performances over the coming months, Shakespeare's works are inextricably linked to the outdoors and warm weather. All you need is one line from him. “Why don't you compare yourself to a summer day?'' And the playwright becomes synonymous with fair weather.
The Vallejo Choral Society's annual “Shakespeare in Song” concert and gala, which features a series of Shakespeare performances plus its own choir, will herald the arrival of spring weather with its March 10 performance.
The symphonic choir sings a program of choral works inspired by and set to Shakespeare's texts. With views from the Masonic Temple, the splendor of nature is reflected in both song and stage.
“Nearly all of our productions draw entirely on Shakespeare's text,” said Artistic Director Julia Morris. Many of these choral works exist as imaginary musical additions to the original text. “You can also insert these songs directly into a Shakespeare play where the characters start singing,” Morris said.
The program will also feature a less literal work by David Dickau, originally composed based on a poem by Henry Heveningham. Using the opening line of Twelfth Night, “If music be the food of love,” Heveningham wrote this poem to achieve a more romantic atmosphere rather than the gloomy and melancholy atmosphere of the play. I did.
While the overall attitude of the program is uplifting, the breadth of Shakespeare's writings brings a variety of human experiences. Morris describes how themes such as unrequited love, requited love, expressions of admiration, life's hardships, appreciation of nature, silliness, comedy, and the mystical are all reflected throughout the program. I explained.
The program includes nostalgia for Morris, who fondly remembers his Shakespeare classes in high school. When she was a teenager, her aspirations were more focused on theater, as she considered stage work before learning to conduct.
“I still have an affinity for Shakespeare because it reminds me of myself when I was younger,” Morris said.
A vast library of Shakespeare's choral works requires an enormous amount of work. When narrowing down the material for the program, Morris focused on one composition in particular that distanced itself from traditional arrangements.
George Shearing's Songs and Sonnets became the focus of Morris' overall program. Shearing lifted the texting moment and set it to jazz. This arrangement stood out to Morris as unique and fresh. “There are also many references to spring in the pieces Shearing has selected,” she added.
The gala begins with an hour of refreshments and a silent auction, and features a six-night stay in downtown Kailua-Kona, whiskey tastings, stained glass classes, themed baskets, and more. The concert begins with a full symphonic choir performance of three of Shakespeare's pieces, followed by his four duets and trios with a large choir. The lottery winners will be announced during the concert intermission.
The second half of the concert will feature a set by a small group of members who auditioned for the chamber choir. Finally, Shearing's set concludes with the symphonic choir taking the stage again for a grand finale.
Morris looks back on his first concert with the choir in December and notes the growth that has occurred between then and now.
“The first concert you do with an ensemble is exciting, but the good work comes from continuing to work together,” she said. Morris says she recognizes that building her sound and technique takes time and effort.
“The work we did in December showed everyone's dedication,” he said. The work the members were working on outside of rehearsals encouraged them to work a little harder during rehearsals. Ultimately, we found that this allowed us to create programs that were a little more difficult, Morris said.
“This is not the kind of song I would pick for just a community choir,” Morris said.
Shearing's work was not only a unique choice in terms of jazz, it was also in many ways more difficult because of it. Jazz harmonies are difficult for many people, especially those without a jazz background, Morris said. In some cases, the song will break out into his six parts beyond the usual four parts of soprano, tenor, alto, and bass, requiring great confidence in your part.
There's another reason why this concert's uplifting feeling was necessary. Morris, who programmed “In Aeternum'' featuring Michael Haydn's Requiem in C minor for the choir's May concert, needed to balance its melancholy and meditative tone.
“We wanted to do a program in March that was in contrast to that,” Morris said. If “Shakespeare in Songs'' is an early celebration of spring, “In Eternum'' will be a time of mourning before it leaves.