Palestrina presents a mass to Pope Julius III.By Greg StepanichFORT LAUDERDALE -- In its previous seven seasons of music-making, the members of Seraphic Fire have presented hugely varied concerts that included everything from Purcell's Dido and Aeneas to American gospel, from all six Bach motets to world premieres of challenging contemporary music written just for them.But in … [Read more...]
Music review: Tableau Baroque elegantly demonstrates roots of Handel’s art
George Frideric Handel (1685-1759).By Greg StepanichA young four-man Baroque ensemble that was formed on the sidelines of a Seraphic Fire concert showed Saturday night that it approaches this music with the same sort of demystified engagement and crisply achieved performance of the choir that godfathered it.Tableau Baroque, formed when longtime Seraphic Fire continuo man Henry … [Read more...]
CD review: Composer Crabtree reimagines the cantata, compellingly
Composer Paul Crabtree.By Greg StepanichThe Anglo-American composer Paul Crabtree possesses the rare and admirable ability of being able to use the most unlikely artifacts of popular culture and fashion them into highly sophisticated art without mocking the sources or having them sound incongruous.He has, for example, written a choral song cycle called Five Romantic Miniatures … [Read more...]
Music review: Seraphic Fire’s ‘Jew and the Gentile’ a compelling voyage of discovery
The title page of Salamone Rossi's Songs of Solomon (1622).By Greg StepanichWEST PALM BEACH -- The moment of true cultural collision for Seraphic Fire's latest concert came in the middle of a hot Thursday afternoon, as a cantor rolled melismatically over words of praise to the Most High while choristers in the balconies above held a drone and let him have his say.But the music … [Read more...]
Weekend arts picks: May 14-17
A scene from Every Little Step.Film: A documentary about any Broadway show’s auditions would be an interesting look at the lives of performers and what they have to put themselves through to gain a job, but James D. Stern and Adam Del Deo apply that notion to the ultimate backstage musical, A Chorus Line, in their must-see film, Every Little Step. The subject is ostensibly the … [Read more...]
Music review: World premiere adds luster to Seraphic Fire’s Baroque offerings
By Greg StepanichWEST PALM BEACH -- A world premiere of a good piece of fresh contemporary music was the intriguing counterpart Thursday to a venerable piece from the core repertory as members of the Seraphic Fire choir opened their current series of concerts.Thursday afternoon's concert at the Harriet Himmel Theater in CityPlace was sparsely attended, but the music, even in a … [Read more...]
Music review: Seraphic Fire gives moving tour of Eastern Orthodox music
Seraphic Fire.By Sharon McDanielThe names Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninoff and even Ippolitov-Ivanov would raise few eyebrows among classical music lovers.But pair the Romantic-era Russians with two modern minimalists -- England’s John Tavener and Estonia’s Arvo Pärt -- and watch the confused looks proliferate.For direction, though, look not merely toward musical but the spiritual … [Read more...]