February 2, 2004
Professor hopes to promote musical connection
with Monterey through Carmel concert
By Scott Rappaport
UCSC music professor Nicole Paiement is particularly looking forward
to a rare appearance by the UCSC Chamber Singers at the Carmel Mission
on February 21.
|
The historic Carmel Mission as seen through
the front gates. Photo by Bruna Odello |
The 24-voice ensemble will perform an evening of early music featuring
Renaissance and Baroque styles from England and Franceincluding
works by Thomas Morley, John Dowland, John Wilbye, and Marc-Antoine
Charpentier. But it is the opportunity to finally perform at the mission
that excites Paiement the most.
Its a beautiful space; I think the walls are meant to
have music within them, observed Paiement, the conductor of UCSCs
acclaimed choral ensemble since 1988.
Ive always wanted to bring the Chamber Singers to the Carmel
Mission because its a great place acoustically to sing, and theres
an audience nearby that enjoys early music. And Im also very interested
in establishing a musical rapport between UCSC and that part of Monterey
Bay, she added.
Paiement noted that every building brings a different texture to live
music, depending on the materials used in its construction.
Because the mission is a combination of wood and stone, it will
bring a very warm color to the sound, she said. Its
such an inspiring place. Its a building from an earlier time,
and we are bringing music from an earlier timeso the setting fits.
|
UCSC music professor Nicole Paiement will conduct
the UCSC Chamber Singers in a special February 21 concert at the
Carmel Mission. Photo by: Steve DiBartolomeo |
But the same qualities that make the Carmel Mission such a grand and
majestic concert venue also present the biggest challenges for UCSCs
choral ensemble.
Voices will float very beautifully there, Paiement said.
But because there is a lot of reverberation, the singers have
to work on having extra clear diction and enunciationotherwise
it just becomes a big wash of sound.
To prepare for the delay of sound, the vocalists must also sing
extremely rhythmically, she added. They need to practice
singing on the beat and also be very aware of articulation--how long
each note is held.
A great deal of the repertoire that will be performed at the February
concert was not originally sung by choirs, but rather by one singer
for each harmony part. But over the years, choral tradition has made
it acceptable for larger ensembles to perform these compositions. Although
the UCSC ensemble will have six people singing on each harmony line,
the goal is to create a sonic texture that will be as light and transparent
as just four voices singing in harmony.
Musical enjoyment is what were aiming for, Paiement
observed. Its not pretentious musicit definitely wont
be heavy or difficult to listen to.
The upcoming performance will include a difficult composition that
requires the Chamber Singers to re-create the sound of birds.
We plan to perform a Renaissance piece titled Le Chant des
Oiseaux by Clement Janequin, Paiement noted. This is
a popular work that is technically challenging for an ensemble since
it involves imitating bird calls. When well executed, the audience members
feel as if they are surrounded by birds.
In addition to her role as conductor of UCSCs Orchestra and Chamber
Singers, Paiement is the founding artistic director of the California
Parallele Ensemble, which specializes in performing contemporary music,
as well as compositions by lesser-known composers of other periods.
Founded in 1994, it is now the resident professional ensemble of the
San Francisco Conservatory of Music. Paiement will travel with several
members of the ensemble to Australia this summer for a series of concerts.
Paiement is also the founder of the BluePrint Project in San Francisco,
a series of new music concerts and collaborations, which she began last
year in an effort to promote contemporary music from around the world.
Paiement recently traveled to Seoul, Korea, where she conducted the
world premier of Chan-Hae Lees opera Back to the Origin.
She has also recently guest-conducted the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra,
Ensemble Kochi of Japan, and the Monterey Jazz Festival Orchestra. Paiements
work can be heard on more than 20 CDs on such labels as Helicon and
New Albion Records.
The UCSC Chamber Singers will perform at the Carmel Mission on Saturday,
February 21, at 8 p.m. Tickets are $10 general, $8 seniors, $6 students,
available in advance at the UCSC Ticket Office, (831) 459-2159.
Return to Front Page
|