MARLBORO — Your “Musical Antidote for a Vermont Winter” [Arts, Jan. 11] proved itself in more ways than one!
The New England premiere of Bob Chilcott's Salisbury Vespers at First Baptist was the latest rouser from the Brattleboro Concert Choir, which prides itself on deft performances of choral works that are off the beaten path.
This was an exciting piece, done well, with huge brass, percussion, and Estey pipe organ accompaniment to match an otherwise matchless, well-trained, and well-singing choral ensemble.
Traditional Latin canticles and psalms were supplemented with “smaller” and quieter Middle English texts, which provided some of the performances' most enjoyable moments.
And there was plenty of snow to go with it!
The Baptist organ is so good it's also used at the Latchis! After a successful baptism with Holst's Planets in 2010, there will be a second First Baptist Church organ airwaves transmission to the Latchis Theatre when the Windham Orchestra plays the Saint-Saëns Organ Symphony at 3 p.m., Sunday, March 25.
The chorus will follow up with a performance of Larry Siegel's Kaddish on May 19 and 20, using text from survivors of the Holocaust. Both Kaddish and Vespers date from 2008.
As in the BCC's Ernest Bloch Hebrew Service in 2010, organist Clark Anderson made the pipes sing.
The Baptist Church venue is an acoustic masterpiece in itself. It enables several hundred fans of fine choral music to hear and appreciate works that are not necessarily well known. The romantic Estey organ is a marvel.
In fact, it makes you wonder if this community asset is not worth community investment to make sure both the building and the organ itself are universally available well into the future.
Bravo, everyone!