Completed
in 1594, three weeks before his death, Lasso's last work consists of 20
spiritual madrigals in Italian and a Latin motet, sung a cappella. As
the former Dean of Concordia's Faculty of Fine Arts explains, recording
the complicated work represented quite a challenge for his SMAM group.
"I put it on the shelf about 15 years ago, saying when I had the right
group to perform it with, I would do it," Jackson recalls. "It's very
strict a cappella music, very austere, and extremely confined in its
expressive possibilities. But it's very beautifully put together."
Over the years, the SMAM group of singers evolved to the point where
Jackson realized it was time to revisit Lasso's compositions. After the
group performed the Lagrime di San Pietro at the Lanaudière festival,
Alex Benjamin, the festival's artistic director, encouraged them to make
a recording.
The resulting album received rave reviews in the
press. "The Studio de Musique Ancienne de Montréal, led by veteran
period-music leader Christopher Jackson, brings this music to vibrant
life," wrote John Terauds in the Toronto Star. "Jackson's singers keep
the music moving, whilst remaining attentive to the significance of the
merest details," wrote Fabrice Fitch in London-based magazine
Gramophone.
Before taking on the music, Jackson realized it was
important to understand the psychology behind the 20 poems by Tansillo,
a 16th-century poet, for whom the music was composed.
In his
verses, Tansillo describes the different states of Peter's mind after he
denies Christ. "He compares them to the betrayal of a lover," Jackson
says. "Then he describes [...] how Christ looks at Peter, and how that
look could be compared to a look of betrayed love."
As Jackson
explains, the music is surprisingly restrained, considering the dramatic
possibilities of the story. "Very subtle things occur which are not
evident when you first look at it," Jackson says. It takes a lot of
digging to see what he's doing under the surface."
Jackson says
he was surprised to receive the Opus Prize for the recording,
considering the SMAM group was up against some pretty stiff competition.
"This time, we were up against the Montreal Symphony and I never
thought we'd win," he says.
Since releasing the album, Jackson
and his group have performed further works by Lasso; laying the
groundwork for another recording.
Gary Schwartz
American jazz composer and multi-instrumentalist Ornette Coleman was one
of the major driving forces behind the free jazz movement of the 1950s
and 1960s. Coleman won the coveted Miles Davis Award at the Montreal
International Jazz Festival in 2009.
Shortly afterward, local
musician Gary Schwartz, a part-time music instructor at Concordia, put
together an 11-member group to perform a tribute performance of
Coleman's original songs, and music inspired by him. The performance,
entitled LETTINGO: The Music and Influence of Ornette Coleman, played two sold-out nights at Théâtre la Chapelle in January 2010.
A year later, Schwartz brought LETTINGO
to Sala Rossa, and the reviews of the performance were resoundingly
positive. "It was a dedicated performance by dedicated players who
invited us into a gallery of intricate, moving musical artworks," wrote
Ananda X. Suddath on local jazz site pork pie jazz.
At this
year's Prix Opus gala, the performance earned the top prize in the
Concert of the Year - Jazz, World Music category. It was also nominated
in the overall Concert of the Year category.
Attending the
high-profile awards ceremony was a unique experience for the unassuming
music instructor. "It was kind of like watching the Oscars or the Emmys
except I'm in the audience," he says. "They mentioned who was in the
category, and then when they handed over the envelope my heart started
to beat kind of fast. And then they called my name! It was really
something."
Schwartz also said he was very surprised to be
nominated in the Concert of the Year category. "I felt like the bad boy
on the block," he says. "It was four classical concerts and the jazz
guy."
A longtime fan of Coleman, Schwartz says the American jazz
master's music represents the freedom to express one's individuality as a
musician, while at the same time working together in symbiosis with a
group of musicians.
"If letting go is not what Ornette does, then
I don't know what it is that he does," he says, referring to the name
he selected for his group. "I think [Ornette's approach] has a lot more
to do with respect and democracy than anything else [...] As soon as you
start to play with other people, there's no way that you're really
going to control it."
Schwartz says he feels lucky to have
corralled the group of musicians for the LETTINGO project, which
includes two of his former students at Concordia, drummer Claude
Lavergne and violin player Josh Zubot. "To tell you the truth, I'm
pretty impressed with myself, that I've got these guys," he says. "These
are top-rated players. They could play anywhere in the world."
Montreal
jazz fans will have a chance to take in a performance of LETTINGO on
March 25, 2012, at the Segal Centre for Performing Arts.
What: LETTINGO: The music and influence of Ornette Coleman
When: Sunday, March 25, 2012, at 8 p.m.
Where: The Segal Centre for Performing Arts (5170 Côte-Sainte-Catherine Rd.)
Related links:
Page Title: Music faculty earn province's top prize - Concordia University - Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Page URL:http://music.concordia.ca/news-and-events/news/music-faculty-earn-provinces...prize.php
Date Printed: Sat May 25, 2013
