Jeffrey Quick's Blog

Liturgical concert at the Mac, 7/23, 3PM

Since the date is roaring down upon us, I thought I'd best blog about the project that's been soaking up my evenings:

Liturgical music by Cleveland composers and friends.
Sunday July 23, 3PM
Immaculate Conception Church
4129 Superior Ave. (at E. 43rd)

by the (augmented) Immaculate Conception Schola Cantorum
with guest artists Chris Toth (organ), Michael Leese (flute, conductor), Sean Gabriel (flute), Jocelyn Chang (harp).

The works on the concert are of varying styles. Some are very practical for everyday church use, some are more difficult to prepare. There's definitely a bias toward Latin liturgy (this is the Mac, after all), with nods toward old-style Anglicanism and a work written for Bay Presbyterian.

Here's the program, with a few comments:

William Fazekas: Justorum Animae
A minimalism-influenced piece in 8 parts.
Jeffrey Quick: Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis in D
A tomboy Magnificat followed by a Nunc of Victorian opulence.
Lisa Rainsong: Drop down dew from Heaven
Fazekas: Jesu dulcis memoria (organ)
Quick: Nocturn II from Responsoria for Maundy Thursday (Amicus meus, Judas mercator pessimus, Unus ex dicipulis)
Neo-Mannerist settings full of outrage and lamentation and (in Judas) a bit of modal disco.
Fazekas: Pavana Personae gaudium (organ)
Samuel Schmitt: Sanctus and Agnus from Missa sine nomine.
Sam is a new Clevelander, here from DC (where he was a sub organist at the National Cathedral) to marry Jana Draeger who teaches at the Lyceum. This mass is modal but with some refreshing twists of line.
Fazekas: Gloria Ambrosiana (TTBB, 2 flutes). This alternates between homorhythmic chant and twisting chromatic counterpoint.

Intermission!

Fred Lautzenheiser: In te speravi.
Chant-derived modal counterpoint with a twist
Quick: Prelude on Down Ampney (organ)
Straightforward decoration of the tune for manuals
Joseph Knapacius: Lord's Prayer
A minor-key, stark setting in 4 parts of the English ("forgive us our debts"), maybe more like Orthodox church music than anything else.
Andrew Bertoni: Sanctus, Agnus
from a Latin Mass for 2 parts (men, women) with organ. A bit Rutterish, but with minimalism-inspired development processes. Andrew was a student of mine and is a piano tech at Oberlin.
Fazekas: Gloria tibi Trinitas (TTB soli)
Rainsong: Psalm 91
An easygoing setting in English for SATB and organ
David Babcock: Kyrie and Agnus from Messe, Op. 65.
David was my old college room-mate now resident in Vienna (EU, not "Vy-enna" OH). SATB, fairly simple in texture but with a lot of harmonic sophistication.
Benjamin Tayor: In splendoribus sanctorum
Formerly of Cleveland, now Santa Rosa CA.

It's been interesting and educational working on this show. I've decided that my church music heretofore has just too much ego in it. "Look at me! Look how I can bring these words alive!" And I'm thinking that there are simpler means to get a given effect. I stand by my pieces on this concert, and think you will enjoy them. But my next ones will be different, I think.