Elektra’s Program Preview

March 14, 2010

One of the world’s finest women’s choirs will be making a rare performance in Coquitlam in just a few days.  Here is a sneak peek at what will be performed Friday night!  Book your great seats NOW and take advantage of early bird pricing.
It’s a Grand Night for Singing Rodgers and Hammerstein, arr. Stephen Smith
We start our program with this breezy chestnut from the musical “State Fair”, arranged and sung as a special present for Diane Loomer on her retirement from Elektra in May.

Music for a While Henry Purcell, arr. Gunnar Eriksson
One of the most famous and beautiful melodies of the baroque, this song says that the power of music can make us healthy and whole.  Composed in 1692 as incidental music to John Dryden’s Greek mythology-based play “Oedipus”, Music for a While is sung to calm Alecto, one of the Furies, through the sheer power of music.  If the snakes can drop from her head (her mind be cleared), and the whip from her hand (her rage subsided), Alecto has the power to solve the mystery surrounding King Laius’ untimely death.

Ave Maria David MacIntyre
Ave Maria is known as one of Elektra’s ‘signature pieces’.  Composer David MacIntyre wrote it when he heard about young girls in Bosnia/Herzegovina running to the hills to see visions of the Virgin Mary.  Since its premiere by Elektra in 1995 as part of the Canadian Music Centre’s 35th Anniversary celebrations, this stunning, energetic, and joyous piece has been sung by countless women’s choirs throughout the world.  An exhilarating memory of this piece with Elektra?  Performing it on the Sydney Opera House stage in 1996.

Da Pacem / Dona Nobis Pacem Jeffrey Enns / Ko Matsushita
Elektra sings a plea for peace in these two diverse works written by Canadian Jeffrey Enns and Japanese composer Ko Matsushita.  Both sung in Latin, the first says “Give peace in our time, O Lord”, and the latter uses the traditional “Dona Nobis Pacem” (give us peace) in a robust and joyous setting for three choirs.  Matsushita’s piece was performed by the massed treble choirs of the 2009 Coastal Sound International Choral Festival.

Scarborough Fair traditional English, arr. Stephen Smith
One of England’s most famous folk songs, this lovely arrangement by our accompanist, Stephen Smith, is the opening track on Elektra’s latest CD and is receiving lots of airplay on CBC Radio and Seattle’s King FM.

what i want poem by Pat Lowther, music by Stephen Smith
Pat Lowther was one of Canada’s most celebrated poets in the 60s and 70s and taught creative writing at UBC.  Her personal life, however, was weighed down by poverty, unhappiness, and a destructive marriage.  In 1975, at the age of 40, Lowther was murdered by her husband.  “what i want” was one of the poems she was working on at the time of her death – a simple plea for light, space, love, and blessing.  This beautiful, original setting of Pat Lowther’s poem by Stephen Smith has been sung by many women’s choirs, including at events speaking out against violence against women.

Early Spring trad. Newfoundland folk song, arr. Kathleen Allan
With its shifting perspectives of time, this beautiful a cappella arrangement by Newfoundland composer Kathleen Allan evokes first the happiness of a young bride and then her confusion and despair when her husband is lost at sea.

Trinque l’amourette traditional Quebecois, arr. Guy Isabelle
The choir takes a trip to Quebec with this lively song made famous by the Quebec folk group, La Bottine Souriante. The story goes that our narrator was going down the road to the baker’s shop when he met three beautiful women. Friendly banter ensued, laden with innuendo.

Blue Sea, Blue Moon, Blue Skies Irving Berlin, Rogers and Hart, Koehler and Arlen, arr. Stephen Smith
Three captivating and familiar songs on themes of blue close the Elektra Women’s Choir performance this evening.  Once again, Stephen Smith’s gift for choral writing shines brightly.  We hope you will leave the concert with a smile on your face and a song in your heart.