St. Martin's Chamber Choir

Program notes - "February 1809"

A Note from the Artistic Director

It would be false to say that, without Lincoln , the slaves would never have been freed.  Likewise that without Darwin , the theory of Evolution, or Natural Selection, would have gone undiscovered.  Abolition and the march of scientific discovery were things that would inexorably have taken their historical course with or without these two men.  Yet I do not believe that this in any way minimizes their accomplishments nor diminishes them as persons.  For inasmuch as these things would have come about eventually, these two men were instrumental in the early success of their causes being as widely accepted as they were, and they forever stamped their unique character on these issues and those that grew out of them (civil rights, in the case of Lincoln, and science vs. religion in the other).

The cause of civil rights in America has subsequently vindicated Lincoln (despite his early personal qualms about the issue of abolitionism) by their universal acceptance as a necessary force for good in our, or any, society.  And while there still exists opposition to the theory of Evolution in some quarters, Darwin 's place in the scientific pantheon is without question.  Indeed, being a man of deep personal piety (he even studied for the Anglican priesthood early in life), he would certainly be grieved to find that a swath of Christianity finds his view of our origins to be at odds with religious precepts, for he detected no such incompatibility.

So it is right to honor these two giants of history, born within hours of each other on February 12, 1809.

Yet while many publications and media programs have focused on this interesting coincidence, I am the only one (to my knowledge) to include a third person in these anniversary honors -- Felix Mendelssohn, born nine days before them on February 3, 1809.  Mendelssohn's legacy is two-fold:  First and foremost is his musical output, a monumental body of work, the exquisite craftsmanship of which is second only to Bach's, and the inspirational genius of which is second only to Mozart's, in my opinion.  But secondly, his resurrection of the music and reputation of J. S. Bach in the 1830's must surely rank as one of the great perceptive events of musical history.  At the time of Mendelssohn's maturity, his own reputation was second to none among living composers.  Yet a mere decade after his untimely death at the age of 38, his reputation was already being undermined by a German people who were to grow increasingly anti-Semitic over the next century, despite Mendelssohn's own conversion to Christianity.

So, is this an odd topic for a choral concert?  I'll leave that for you to judge.  But I'm reminded of my idea four years ago to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Trafalgar -- a concert I was convinced would satisfy my own proclivities, but would go down to economic failure.  Hoping that this concert may have the same unexpected commercial success, I thank you for coming and wish you great enjoyment of the evening.

Timothy J. Krueger
February 2009

© 2009 Timothy J. Krueger