CD171 Music by Giancarlo Aquilanti
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Music by Giancarlo Aquilanti Stanford Chamber Chorale Stephen M. Sano, conductor
CD171 $15.95
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| CONTENTS | |
| Mass: A Celebration of Life (1989, rev. 2007) | |
| Georgia Dunn, soprano • Mark Bonney, tenor | |
| KYRIE | 1. Kyrie eleison |
| 2. Christe eleison | |
| 3. Kyrie eleison | |
| GLORIA | 4. Gloria in excelsis Deo ... |
| 5. Laudamus te ... | |
| 6. Domine Deus ... | |
| 7. Qui tollis peccata mundi ... | |
| 8. Amen. | |
| 9. Intermezzo for Strings | |
| SANCTUS | 10. Sanctus ... |
| 11. Pleni sunt cœli ... | |
| 12. Hosanna in excelsis ... | |
| 13. Agnus Dei ... | |
| Ubi Caritas (2007) | |
| Magnificat (2006) | |
| Kimberly Johnson, soprano • Jessica Hu, alto Mark Bonney, tenor • Sylvan Baca, bass |
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| 15. Magnficat anima mea ... | |
| 16. Et exultavit ... | |
| 17. Misericordia ejus ... | |
| 18. Fecit potentiam ... | |
| 19. Et exaltavit humiles ... | |
| 20. Esurientes implevit ... | |
| 21. Gloria Patri ... | |
Notes by the Composer
Mass: A Celebration of Life
This composition is dedicated to Massimo Archetti. He was one of my dearest friends whose life was cut short by a car accident. He was twenty-nine years old. His death left a great gap in my life; for all that was both unsaid and not done during the short journey we experienced together. So this Mass came to fill that gap and to nurture his memory through the voices of the choir in which we both sang. The front page of the score reads:
Dedicated to Massimo Archetti
Friend of the days happened
Advisor of tomorrow
Mass: A Celebration of Life was originally written in 1989 for soloists, choir, piano and percussion. In the following fifteen years it went through several revisions - the addition of the Intermezzo for Strings, the omission of parts that were no longer necessary to the composition - which at the end saw two different orchestrations: a version for chamber orchestra and the other for full orchestra. The entire Mass is based on joyful, syncopated rhythms: the melodic lines are straightforward, especially in the soprano and tenor solo parts. The choral part is very candid, using traditional four-part writing. The orchestration is at times thick, relying heavily on the percussion instruments. The Intermezzo contrasts with the rest of the composition by using intricate contra[untal writing for divided string orchestra.
Ubi Caritas
Ubi Caritas was written in November of 2007. The text echoes a pre-existing liturgical hymn that celebrates the signficance of charity as the recepticle of God's love.
The soothing flow of the music enlightens the meaning of the text. A tuneful melody is passed throughout the four voices with a straightforward hamonization. Tension is created by the extensive use of suspensions and added tones usch as sevenths and ninths to the pure major and minor triads. The piece begins in a tranquil mood, and slowly builds up to the high point where the text Ubi Caritas is repeated. The serene atmosphere of the opening is re-established in the last section.
This composition was commissioned by Robert Schuneman for the Stanford Chamber Chorale.
Magnificat
In Italian religious literature, in which life and culture are dominated by male figures, the Virgin Mary stands out as a docile woman who communicates a range of emotions that leave no space for fear. The highest expression of her unconditional love is conveyed in the words Magnificat anima mea Dominum which she pronounces after she is informed that, indeed, she will become the mother of God. From the composer's human and musical perspective Mary is perceived first as a woman who must have been so puzzled and worried when the Archangel Gabriel announced to her that she would bring to light the Son of God. Did she ever regret accepting the heavy duty while crying under her son's cross? It is not a hypothetical answer to this question that would make us understand her initial choice. The key that lets us enter the door of her holiness lies in the moment in which, with grace and humility, she opens her soul to the unknown, willing to fill the absence of God with her genuine humanity. When pronouncing "Magnificat" she marked the beginning of a human and holy journey which will see no end.
The composition is scored for four soloists, double choir, complete orchestral brass section and four percussionists. The music begins with a lyrical melody setting the word Magnificat, and becomes more intricate in the section quia fecit mihi magna, reaching the high point with dispersit superbos mente cordis sui. The climax of the melody is deeply embedded with the text: they both symbolize a sense of confusion in the image of the proud scattered by God in the conceit of their heart. The music suddenly returns to a very expressive counterpoint setting of the text et exaltavit humiles which re-establishes a solemn and balanced atmosphere, exalted by a flourished and communicative trumpet solo that emerges from the choir. The composition ends with a recapitulation of the initial theme: at first it is a mere repetition, but later it develops into the subject of the final fugue which conveys the joyfulness of the text Gloria Patri, et Filio, et Spiritui Sancto.
The piece was commissioned in 2006 by The Stanford Chamber Chorale.
Recorded April 7, 8 and 9, 2008, Stanford Memorial Church, Stanford University, CA
Recording Engineer: Edward J. Kelly, Mobile Master, Burtonsville, MD
Editing, Mastering & Production: Robert Schuneman, Arsis Audio, Boston, MA