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8th Glebe Music Festival
13 to 18 December 1998
Cora Innominata and Ensemble
Directed by David V. Russell
Associate Conductor Carl Rosman
St Scholastica's, 1 Avenue Road, Glebe
Sunday 13 December 1998 at 1500hrs
Dixit Dominus: Motets at Christmas
Programme
T L Victoria: O magnum mysterium
David Morris: Iter Christ! (The Journey of Christ) [Excerpts]
David Morris: Alleluya
Robert Parsons: Ave Maria
Thomas Weelkes: Gloria in Excelsis Deo
Benjamin Britten:A Hymn to the Virgin
G F Handel:Dixit Dominus
Texts (translated text appears in italics)
O magnum mysterium T.L. Victoria (1S48- 1611)
O magnum mysterium,
et admirabile sacramentum,
ut animalia viderent
Dominum natum,
jacentem in praesepio.
O Beata Virgo,
cujus viscera meruerunt
portare Dominum Christum.
Alleluia.
O great mystery,
and wonderful sacrament,
that beasts should see
the newborn Lord
lying in a manger.
Blessed Virgin,
whose womb was worthy
to bear Christ the Lord.
Alleluia.
Iter Christi (The Journey of Christ) David
Morris (1964 - )
I Veni Redemptor Gencium
As holy kirke makes mind
Intravit ventris thalamum • He entered the dwelling of a womb
From heav'n to earth to save mankind
Pater misit filium, • The Father sent the Son
Of Mary mild Christ would be born
Sine virili semine • Without the seed of a man
To save mankind that was forlorn
Prime parentis crimie • Because of the sin of the first father
To Mary came a messenger
Ferens salutem homine • Bearing salvation to mankind
She answered him with milde cheer
"Ecce ancilla domini" • Behold the handmaid of the Lord
Meekly on thee the Holy Ghost
Palacium intrans uteri • Entering the palace of the womb
Of alle thing meekness is most
In conspectu altissimi • In the sight of the Most High
When he was born that made all thing
Pastor creator omnium • Shepherd and creator of everything
Angelles they began to sing
Veni redemptor gencium • Come redeemer of the nations
II Rejoice, rejoice
Rejoice, rejoice with heart and voice.
In Christes birth this day rejoice.
From virgin's womb this day did spring
The precious Seed that only saved man:
This day let man rejoice and sweetly sing,
Since on this day salvation first began.
This day did Christ man's soul from death remove,
With glorious saints to dwell in heav'n above.
Rejoice, rejoice...
This day to man came pledge of perfect peace,
This day to man came love and unity,
This day man's grief began for to surcease.
This day did man receive a remedy.
For each offence and every deadly sin
With guilty heart that erst he wandered in.
Rejoice, rejoice...
In Christes flock let love be surely placed,
From Christes flock let concord hate dispel
Of Christes flock let love be so embraced,
As we in Christ in us may dwell,
Christ is the author of all unity,
From whence procedeth all felicity.
Rejoice, rejoice...
O sing unto this glit'ring glorious king,
O praise His name let every living thing:
Let heart and voice like bells of silver ring,
For comfort that this day to man did bring.
Let lute, let shawm, with sound of sweet delight
The joy of Christes birth this day resight.
Rejoice, rejoice...
III The Song of Simeon (Nunc Dimittis)
Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace:
according to thy word.
For mine eyes have seen thy salvation,
thou hast prepared before the face of all people;
To be a light to lighten the Gentiles,
and to be the glory of thy people Israel
Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace.
IV An Hymn
Drop, Drop, slow tears, and bathe those beauteous feet,
which brought from Heav'n the news and Prince of Peace:
cease not, wet eyes, His mercies to entreat;
To cry for vengeance sin doth never cease.
In your deep floods drown all my faults and fears:
nor let His eyes see sin, but through my tears.
V The Lord's Prayer
Lord teach us to pray. When you pray, pray like this:
Our Father, which art in heaven, Hallowed by thy Name.
Thy kingdom come. They will be done, in earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day out daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses,
As we forgive them that trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation; But deliver us from evil
For thine is the kingdom, The power and the glory,
For ever and ever, Amen
VI O my harte is wo!
When that my sweet son was thirty winter old,
The the traitor Judas waxed very bold;
For thirty plates of money his master he had sold.
But when I it wist, Lord, my heart was cold!
Upon Shere Thursday then truly it was,
On my sonnes death that Judas did compass.
Many were the false Jews that followed him by trace,
And there before them all he kissed my sonnes face.
My son before Pilate brought was he,
And Peter said three times he knew him not, parde.
Pilate said un to the Jews, "What say ye?"
They cried with one voice, 'Crucify'
On Good Friday at the mount of Calvary
My son was done on the cross, Nailed with nailes three.
Of all the friendes that he had never one he could see,
But gentle John the evangelist that still stood him by.
Though I were sorrowful, No man have at it wonder;
For huge was the earth-quake, horrible was the thunder.
I looked on my sweet son on the cross that I stood under;
Then came a soldier with a spear and cleft his heart in sunder.
Ave Maria R. Parsons (c.1530-1570)
Ave Maria, gratia plena, Hail Mary, full of grace,
Dominus tecum, the Lord if with you,
benedicta tu blessed are you
in mulieribus, among women,
et benedictus fructus and blessed is the fruit
ventris tui. of your womb.
Amen Amen
Gloria in excelsis Deo Thomas Weelkes (c. 1575-1623)
Gloria in excelsis Deo Glory to God in the highest
Et in terra pax And peace to
hominibus bonae voluntatis His people on earth
Laudamus te We praise you
Benedicimus te We bless you
Adoramus te We adore you
Glorificamus te We glorify you
Gratias agimus tibi propter We give thanks to you
magnam gloriam tuam. for your great glory.
Sing my soul to God the Lord, all in glory's highest
key
Lay the Angel's choir abroad, in their highest holy day
Crave thy God to tune they heart unto praise's highest part.
Gloria in excelsis Deo. Amen.
A Hymn to the Virgin Benjamin Britten (1913-1976)
Of one that is so fair and bright
Velut maris Stella • like a star of the sea
Brighter than the day is light,
Parens et puella: • mother and maiden
I cry to thee, thou see to me, Lady, pray thy Son for me,
Tam pia, • •
That I may come to thee.
Maria! • Mary
All this world was forlorn
Eva peccatrice, • through Eve the sinner
Till our Lord was y-born
De te genetrice. • of thee, the mother
With "Ave" it went away, Darkest night, and comes the day
Salutis: • of salvation
The well springeth out of thee
Virtutis. • of virtue
Lady, flower of everything
Rosa sine spina • rose without a thorn
Thou bare Jesu, heaven's King,
Gratia divina: • by divine grace
Of all thou bear'st the prize,
Lady queen of paradise
Electa • chosen one
Maid mild, mother
es Effecta • you are proved
Dixit Dominus (Psalm 110) G.F. Handel (1685 - 1758)
I Dixit Dominus
Dixit Dominus Domino meo: Scde a dextris meis,
donee ponam inimicos tuos, scabellum pedum tuorum
The Lord said to my lord Sit at my right hand
until I make your enemies your footstool
II Virgam virtutis
Virgam virtutis tuae, emittet Dominus ex Sion: dominare
in medio inimicorum tuorum.
The Lord shall send the rod of your strength out of Sion:
Rule in the midst of your enemies
III Tecum principium
Tecum principium in die virtutis tuae in splendoribus
sanctorum:
ex utero ante leciferum genui te.
You shall have sovereignty in the day of your power
in the beauties of holiness:
you are my son, born before the morning star.
IV Juravit Dominus Juravit Dominus, et non poenitebit
eum:
The Lord has sworn and will not repent:
V Tu es sacerdos
Tu es sacerdos in aeternum secundum ordinem Melchisedech
You are a priest for ever of the order of Melchisedech
VI Dominus a dextris tuis
Dominus a dextris tuis, confregit in die ireae suae reges.
The Lord at your right hand has broken kings in the day of his anger.
VII Judicabit in nationibus
Judicabit in nationibus, implebit ruinas:
conquassabit captia in terra multorum
He shall sit in judgment over the heathen,
he shall bring about destruction,
he shall strike down heads in may lands.
VIII De torrente in via bibet
De torrente in via bibet:
propterea exaltabit caput
He shall drink from the brook by the wayside:
therefore shall he lift up his head.
IX Gloria Patri
Gloria Patri, et Filio, et Spiritui Sancto: sicut erat in principio
et nunc, et semper, et in saecula saeculorum
Amen
Glory be to the father, and to the Son, and to the
Holy Ghost.
As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen
Handel in Rome 1707 and in Sydney 1998
What relevance can such a work as Handel's Dixit Dominus
have for us? Such an amazing work of passion and rigour - but at Christmas-time?
Well good music shouldn't be prevented from being heard
just because of the season and to perform all these works in the marvellous
acoustics of St Scholastica's chapel makes it an even better reason!
With our Christmas music we have chosen music that may
be familiar to some, motets from the 17th century particularly with an
interest in the Virgin and her central role in the drama of Christmas.
However we have placed before you as well a modern piece by one of our
choristers, David Morris. While not the complete work (it is to performed
by Innominata next year) the bulk of his piece deals with the Christmas
story and in an interesting and modern re-working of well known texts
both Biblical and poetical. Coupled with David's piece is a work by the
17 year old Benjamin Britten - using the mixture of early English and
Latin in a piece of remarkable subtlety, beauty and command; and not surprisingly
a favourite with our choir.
Naturally the centre-piece of this afternoon's performance is the Handel
Dixit Dominus - a work stunning in its daring and typically the
product of a young and unfettered boy. While the psalm has quite a challenging
text there is enormous scope for the exuberant Handel to try his hand
at all the new skills he was learning while living in Italy. It has been
said that Handel came into his own as a composer because of this leaving
of cold Germany, crossing the Alps and being exposed to the vigour and
dynamism that was to be found in the Rome of Corelli and Scarlatti.
There is little doubt that Dixit was to influence Handel
in his later years of composition such is the wealth of musical ideas
contained therein. His response to the texts is nothing short of wonderful
and the daring (and at times brutality) of his choral writing challenges
even the great Bach. It is probably safe to say that Handel never wrote
better or more thorough fugues than in this work but also never achieved
equal dramatic impact in the choral figure form either!
Enough of musicology - enough to say that we are blessed
to have before you today fine young soloists and players as well as a
committed choir who have seen the greatness of the young Handel and who
have often made mention that Handel never wrote better than for the Dixit
text: most influential commentators on the composer agree!
Notes by David V. Russell
David V. Russell studied at the University of Melbourne
and the Victorian College of the Arts. Formerly a full-time member of
The Song Company, David has also worked for Opera Australia and has recorded
CDs on several labels.
"Iter Christi", composed between 1989 and
1995 to texts from Tudor, Stuart and Restoration England, is a set of
nine anthems and solos tracing the life of Jesus as celebrated in the
Church's Year. Today's selection of items takes us from Advent through
Christmas to the Presentation of Christ in the Temple as an infant. Lent
is summarised by texts on penitence and prayer, and St Mary sings her
recollection of Good Friday. (The remaining items celebrate Easter, Ascension
and Pentecost). Eight of the movements were performed in Orange in October
1996. The first complete performance will be presented by Innominata early
next year.
'Alleluya' was written in January this year, and first
performed by the Lutheran Choir of Chicago in March.
Notes by David Morris
The performance of 'Iter Christi' is dedicated to
the memory of the composer's grandfather, Lyle Livingston (29 March 1903
- 29 November 1998).
The performance of 'Alleluya' is dedicated to the
composer's father, Richard Morris, on the occasion of the 40th anniversary
of his ordination as an Anglican Priest.
Cora Innominata
Director David V. Russell
Associate Conductor Carl Rosman
Sopranos
Liz Bernard
Nicola Bevan*
Jane Cateris**
Helen Matterson**
Sally Smith
Moira Thompson
Lisa Willett
Altos
Kirsten Allison
Joy Bowles*
Eleanor Brickhill
Melinda Collie-Holmes
Sarah Drury
Sarah Dunn
Roslyn Kennedy
Marie-Louise Stokes
Tenors
Malcolm Day
Shane Doohan
Marcus Hodgson
David Humpheys
Peter McKee
Carl Rosman**
Basses
Francis Dorman
David Kelly***
David Morris
David Stephenson
Kevin Wolfe
*Soloist - Iter Christi
**Quartet - Hymn to the Virgin
Soloist - Dixit Dominus
Soloists
Miriam Allan Soprano
Katherine Kemp Soprano
David V. Russell Counter Tenor
The Ensemble
Violin
Fiona Ziegler (Leader)
Mark Ingwerson
Brook Green
Matthew Bruce
Viola
Nicole Forsyth
Anna Maguire
Cello
Kate Morgan
Bass Elizabeth Harre
Harpsichord Luke Green
The orchestra for this concert will be playing
on period instruments.
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