Claudia Alvarez Calderón |
Father Kristian Paver |
Not only were the previous audience keen to hear more, but word had got around and the Church of St Mary & St George was packed with eager music lovers.
After a brief introduction by Father Kristian, Claudia introduced all the pieces to be performed. Over one blissful hour they shared baroque, classical and romantic masterpieces by Tisserand, Stradella, Handel, Mozart, Schubert, Mercadante, Álvarez (no relation), Bizet & Fauré
Claudia Alvarez Calderón & Father Kristian Paver |
After opening with Handel's "Thine be the Glory", the fourteenth century composition of Jean Tisserand, "O Filii et Filiae" (O Brother's and Sisters), made a splendid gothic introduction to the theme of the concert: "Alleluia". This was immediately followed by Mozart's motet "Exsultate, Jubilate" from 1772 which is a captivating cadenza of elaborately enunciated 'Alleluias'.
Claudia Alvarez Calderón |
Another Italian Easter hymn, "Salve Maria" by Saviero Mercadante, took us forward to the nineteenth century with equal passion, and led into another prayer, this time from nineteenth century Spain: "Plegaria" by Fermin Maria Álvarez. To the accompaniment of a pondorous funeral march on piano, Claudia began a deferential supplication to the Virgin Mary, imploring 'misericordia' (mercy) before extolling the many virtues of the Virgin engagingly in Spanish to a more lively piano accompaniment.
Claudia Alvarez Calderón |
What a sweet ending that was! The captivated audience members were quite mesmerised by the beauty of the music, and only very timidly expressed the hope that there might be more. Claudia, quite in her element now, responded in just one word - 'Surprise.' The surprise was a reprise of the beautiful piece which had featured in the previous concert "Pie Jesu Domine, Dona Eis Requiem" (Dear Lord Jesus, Give Them Peace) from Gabriel Fauré's "Requiem in D minor".
What a splendid, celestial, sensation of a concert. Claudia's Easter selection, ably assisted by our accomplished accompanist Father Kristian, delighted us again with the wonders of coloratura singing, and took us on a fabulous journey through Europe, and through the centuries.
There will be a chance to hear recordings from the concert this Sunday (15 May 2016) on Soundart Radio (102.5 FM in Totnes/soundartradio.org.uk worldwide), during the "Classical Journey Redux" programme from 3-6pm. Even more exciting - Claudia herself will be in the studio to discuss the music, and to talk about her opera work in Italy. A red-letter day!
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