Choral Color
February 8, 2008
Walking out of Granoff Music Center after the “The Creature’s Choir,” I wondered about the performance I had just seen. It was a strange presentation; very unique. I realized that “The Creature’s Choir” had shown me two things: a new perspective on animals, and that John McDonald and Jessica Bowers are extremely talented musicians.
The concert, written and co-performed by Mr. McDonald, was presented by the Tufts Community Concert Series. It is based on a series of poems by Carmen Bernos de Gasztold, translated by Rumer Godden. Each song or interlude in the presentation is based on a different poem, each of which is a short prayer to God from the perspective of — you guessed it — animals.
Musically, the suite is largely atonal. It also has little to no tempo or rhythm. Due to the complexity of the music and the extensive interplay between voice and piano, the musicians had to have been very well rehearsed. The overall sound, despite the difficulty involved, was spotless. From flitting sparrows to burrowing moles, from prancing gazelles to overstretched mother hens, the music was written perfectly for each poem. Quick arpeggio-like piano work accompanied by hurried singing provided the sound for “The Caterpillar,” simulating the fast movements of the animal’s many legs. All the songs worked to create the feel of the animals. By “feel,” I mean Gasztold’s interpretation of each creature; loneliness, joy, dejection, pride, and exhaustion are all concepts covered by Mr. McDonald’s music.
In addition to the virtuosic piano parts, the vocal parts were also incredibly difficult and emotional, and Jessica Bowers was absolutely perfect. She displayed fantastic versatility as she sang each progressive song, changing characters every few minutes. She sang with disgust as the toad, and she sang with arrogance as the lion. I was deeply impressed with Ms. Bowers’ ability to change her performance every few minutes. Rehearsing and performing under such conditions must be extremely taxing and draining, and I commend Ms. Bowers for her endurance and unwavering skill.
A particular highlight of the performance was “The Mother Hen.” Most of the other songs in the piece end with the word “Amen,” — only two songs end in a different manner. “The Mother Hen” ends with the sentence, “Lord, my heart is so choked with loving care, how can I say amen?” These lines offered new perspectives on the plights of average animals. Another high point of the suite was “The Swallow.” This particular piece ends with the lines, “Lord, a day will come, a chill gold day when my babes will take wing on their own affairs./Oh! On that day, when there will be nothing more to bring,/Console me with the call of countries far away. Amen.” The point of this piece was to focus on the simple loneliness of a bird with nowhere else to fly. The raw beauty packed into this piece, as well as the others, was astounding.
However, as stated before, the suite was very atonal, and no song fully resolved or finished on a tonic. This helped to heighten the tension and hold the audience’s attention for subsequent pieces. At points, the atonality could bring the music to the dark depths of the ocean, while at other times, it could take it to the top of the trees. The piano and vocal parts relied heavily on one another, as either would have sounded disjointed without the other. Somehow, though, when they combined, they made a fantastic and enjoyable presentation that flowed from song to song. I would highly recommend John McDonald’s “The Creatures’ Choir” to any classical or modern music fan, as it has so many fantastic attributes that most enjoy, but no one can deny.