By Márcio Bezerra
Seraphic Fire, South Florida’s preeminent vocal ensemble, started its 23rd season this past week with a program billed as “The Best of Seraphic Fire.”
Its performance on Sunday, Oct. 12, at Boca Raton’s St. Gregory’s Episcopal Church provided the audience with some old-time favorites performed with the usual technical accuracy and refined musicianship that have become the sonic trademarks of the group.
The program started with William Billings’s “Invocation,” a short work that inspired the group’s founder Patrick Dupré Quigley to call his newly created ensemble “Seraphic Fire.” Conducted by James K. Bass, the group’s balance and refined phrasing set the tone for a satisfying afternoon of exquisite music-making.
Bass, who will be taking over for Quigley in 2026, is not only a great conductor, but also a great communicator; his short introductions to each set of pieces were informative and, at times, amusing.
Seraphic Fire’s encyclopedic grasp of choral music from a wide historical span, however, resulted in a program that felt superficial. Indeed, there were so many offerings in short succession, from medieval music by Hildegard von Bingen to the closing rumba by Rafael Hernández, that the end of each set sounded as an unfulfilled promise.
To be sure, there were moments of sheer beauty, such as the Funeral Ikos by the English composer John Tavener. Another high moment came with the Salve Regina and Regina caeli, both by the late Renaissance composer Tomás Luis de Victoria. Here Bass’s command of the singers impressed thanks to his ability to render the most intricate imitative counterpoint in a clear, yet deeply spiritual manner.
Unfortunately, the listed Ave Maria by the great Josquin des Prez was not performed. Not performed either was My Lord, what a mornin’, that was supposed to be in the African American Spiritual set.
The program peaked with I Am, by Dominick DiOrio, a technically demanding piece that requires total control by the singers because of its highly dissonant lines. Its performance was nothing short of virtuosic and one wishes it had closed the program, which was actually finished with two rather pedestrian compositions by Alvaro Bermudez (Padre Nuestro) and Rafael Hernández (Cachita).
To be sure, this was a good concert. But, having attended so many concerts of Seraphic Fire over the years, it was easy to realize that this was not, by any means, “the best of Seraphic Fire.”