Distinguished Concerts Orchestra; Distinguished Concerts Singers International
Mark Hayes, composer/conductor
Andrea Lynn Cianflone, soprano; Holly Sorensen, mezzo-soprano; Omar Najmi, tenor; Colin Levin, baritone; Karen Harvey, piano
Joseph M. Martin, composer/conductor
Sue Martin, soprano; Joshua Chai, piano
Stern Auditorium at Carnegie Hall, New York, NY
November 26, 2018
Distinguished Concerts International New York (DCINY) continued its series of holiday concerts on Monday, November 26, 2018 with a concert entitled A Winter Rose, featuring the music of two DCINY favorites, Mark Hayes (his sixth appearance) and Joseph M. Martin (his seventh appearance). For those who braved the cold, rainy night, with travel difficulties, the reward was a concert of music from two talented composers with a special gift for capturing the true spirit of the season.
Mr. Hayes and Mr. Martin also conducted their respective pieces. The Distinguished Concerts Singers International included choruses from Alabama, California, Colorado, Georgia, Illinois, Louisiana, Massachusetts, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, Tennessee, Utah, Virginia, Canada, and “individual singers from around the globe.” The featured soloists for the first half were soprano Andrea Lynn Cianflone, mezzo-soprano Holly Sorensen, tenor Omar Najmi, and baritone Colin Levin. Soprano Sue Martin (the wife of Joseph Martin) was the soloist for the second half.
Mark Hayes took the podium to conduct two of his works, Gloria, and the World Premiere of his Hodie Christus Natus Est, A Carol Fantasia. This listener was already an admirer of Mr. Hayes’s work from earlier reviews (his Requiem being a particular favorite), so one had hopes that these works would confirm that admiration – and they did!
Gloria opened the concert. The opening movement, Gloria in excelsis Deo, starts with a fanfare heralding Christ’s birth. Later, the music takes on a pastoral quality, with lyrical parts for soprano and tenor. The second movement, Domine Deum, Rex coelestis begins in Romantic style reminding one of Brahms, but later shifts to a more mysterious quality, with tone clusters in the chorus and a chant-like whispering in Latin. The final movement, Quoniam tu solus sanctus, pulls out all the stops, building enormous energy until a sudden pull-back recalling a motif from the second movement, which eventually settles on a low C major chord, which slowly dies away. The effect was striking. The texts throughout alternate between the Latin original and the English translation (an approach Mr. Hayes had also used with great impact in his Requiem).
It was a joyful twenty-minute journey. The four soloists, Ms. Cianflone, Ms. Sorensen, Mr. Najmi, and Mr. Levin were uniformly excellent. While giving them full credit for their fine work. it must be said that Mr. Hayes gave them all wonderful material to showcase their talents. Praise goes to the chorus as well, especially for the haunting effects of the middle movement. It’s no easy task to get two hundred plus voices to sound like a whisper, but they pulled it off.
Hodie Christus Natus Est, A Carol Fantasia, followed. Like the Mark Hayes Gloria, it is in three parts. The opening section is another setting of Gloria in excelsis deo, with the skillful addition of Angels We Have Heard on High. The second section, I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day, is based on a Longfellow poem from 1863. It begins in despair, but ends in the regained hope that good shall prevail. The final section is an exuberant setting of Mendelssohn’s Hark! The Herald Angels Sing. Mr. Hayes led with a simple, precise manner that focused all the attention on the players and the music. The second section, with Ms. Cianflone’s soaring voice, was the listener’s favorite. The powerful setting of the text was truly compelling, and while Mr. Hayes is skilled in all aspects of composition, it is his undeniable gift for melodic writing that is his calling card. The audience gave him, the orchestra, chorus and soloists a standing ovation at the end. Bravo!
After intermission, Joseph M. Martin took the podium for the second half to conduct the New York premiere his work The Winter Rose. About the title, Mr. Martin writes in his notes, “Today, the rose remains a vital expression of love and peace both inside the church and the outside world. Her appearance in the garden is a harbinger of the coming spring’s abundance. As a gift, the rose’s delicate beauty is usually reserved for the most meaningful expressions of the heart…It is in this spirit that The Winter Rose was written.” The Winter Rose is a thirty-five minute, eleven-movement work that could be aptly called an oratorio. Mr. Martin set the texts to tunes from traditional carols and folk songs in seven movements; the remaining four are on original themes. For the sake of completeness, the six carols and folk tunes are Es Ist Ein Rose (used twice, for the Prelude and finale), The Sally Gardens (set previously by Benjamin Britten and John Corigliano, among others), Un Flambeau, Jeanette Isabella (known as Bring a Torch, Jeannette Isabella), Veni Emmanuel (the Advent carol known as O Come, O Come, Emmanuel), Early American Song by C.E Horn and G.P. Morris, and The Rose Tree (traditional Catalan carol). Sue Martin was the fine vocal soloist for several.
Mr. Martin, like Mr. Hayes, is highly skilled as a composer, but his particular gift, in my opinion, is his dramatic sense and his ability to express this sense harmonically. He puts his mark on his settings of traditional/folk music with great individuality; one doesn’t forget the original sources, but he injects them with freshness and originality. This is a quality that I admire greatly. He is also an energetic conductor, whose energy is reflected back powerfully by the orchestra and chorus. These were memorable performances.
It is not practical to discuss all eleven movements, so I will mention a few favorites. The third When Will He Come (set to Un Flambeau, Jeanette Isabella), filled with excited anticipation of the arrival of Christ, was packed with infectious energy. It was the seventh, Dance into the Light (words by Mr. Martin and Maddy Winter), that won this listener over. With its big, bold sound (with hints of We Three Kings and God Bless Ye Merry Gentlemen making appearances) and the sheer exhilaration of the lyrics, it was a real showstopper!
Ms. Martin has a pure, child-like singing tone that perfectly captures the essence of these songs. One could not help being enchanted by her voice. The audience gave Mr. Martin, Ms. Martin, the orchestra and chorus an extended and enthusiastic ovation. It was a welcome and much needed respite from the chaos of the day, but also another reminder of the true meaning of the holiday season. Congratulations to all.
