Da Camera returns with Christmas concert

It has been five years since the Da Camera Singers presented their own Christmas concert. Usually during this spiritual season, they perform with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra (ESO) or Alberta Baroque Ensemble.

But after performing with the ESO and Procol Harum in late fall, the 35-singer choir had a free spot and devised Tidings of Joy, coming this Sunday at First Baptist Church.

Although the concert title is a common slogan for Christmas, conductor John Brough’s treasured selections are anything but conventional.

The two-hour concert’s centrepiece is a rarely performed work — Italian composer Ottorino Respighi’s Lauda per la Nativita del Signore. “Respighi composed opera, but this is not an opera. He sets the nativity story in a conversation between angels, shepherds and Mary,” explains Brough.

The six-piece Da Camera Wind Ensemble accompanies this 30-minute pastoral work. “The way the instruments, the choir and soloists interact to tell the story is beautiful. And it has a Middle Eastern influence that helps to visualize the music,” says St. Albert soprano Wendy Vanderwel. Also singing from St. Albert is tenor Robert King and soprano Rosemarie Barnes.

Standing front and centre are three soloists — soprano Sarah Schuab, tenor Rob Clark and soprano Jolaine Kerley. “She has the voice of an angel. It is so beautiful and supple.”

In addition to Respighi’s showpiece, Brough has also included 10 short works such as Henryk GÄ‚Ĺ‚recki’s contemporary classical work Totus Tuus. This devotion to Mary is quite minimal with a great deal of repetition. “It’s tonal, almost hypnotic,” Brough says.

Also featured is Canadian composer Eleanor Daley’s modern setting of The Angel Gabriel and Stephanie Martin’s Eucharistic prayer Ave Verum Corpus.

Particularly dear to Vanderwel’s heart is Morten Lauridsen’s O Magnum Mysterium, a modern undertaking of an ancient text fashioned into responsorial Gregorian chant. “It’s very evocative. It has a deep spiritual feeling about what Christmas means.”

Another work that has touched Vanderwel deeply is .Jesus Christ, The Apple Tree. “It’s a simple melody, but its simplicity makes it beautiful. It almost has a folksy, Celtic feel and speaks about finding rest in Jesus Christ.”

Adds Brough, “If you’re looking for a concert that is different from mainstream radio, this is for you. It’s not Jingle Bells, but it is very accessible and enjoyable.”