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Program notes - "Tenebrae: From Darkness to Light" |
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A Note from the Artistic Director The most dramatic moments of the Christian liturgy are certainly those that occur in Holy Week. In tracing the events that dominated that fateful week, the church has created liturgies that capture the anguish, pain, and disappointment experienced by those who were with Jesus; the anger and hatred of his foes; and the joy and exultation of his final triumph. Regardless of one’s belief in whether the events are factual or religiously significant, the metaphorical elements of the story have a strong dramatic quality to them, and the music that has been created to accompany them is likewise some of the most poignant and compelling in all of sacred musical literature. The principal liturgies (services) of Holy Week are Palm Sunday (sometimes called the “Sunday of the Passion,”) Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter Day. Often added to this is one called Tenebrae (meaning “darkness” or “shadows”), which is a modern conflation of the evening monastic offices celebrated on Weds., Thurs., and Fri. evenings of Holy Week. Modern liturgical practice places this service exclusively on Wednesday evening of Holy Week, such that the proper liturgies of Thursday and Friday (named above) may remain the main focus of those days. The first part of this concert traces this journey through Holy Week, from the premature (one might almost say false) joy of Palm Sunday, with Jesus entering Jerusalem and being proclaimed a king by many of the city’s inhabitants, through the dark hopelessness of Tenebrae, Jesus’ last meal with his disciples on Maundy Thursday, the anger and tragedy of the betrayal, trial, and crucifixion on Good Friday, to the triumph of the resurrection on Easter Day. I have represented each of the five main Holy Week liturgies with two works, one from the Renaissance and one from a later period. Included at the end is the world premiere of the work written for us by Craig Carnahan last year, Regina Coeli Lætare, a companion-piece to the lovely Thou shalt know him which we premiered to much comment in December at our Christmas concerts. The second half of the concert consists of a single work in eight movements, and is a journey from darkness to light of a different sort. John White’s The Canonical Hours traces the cycle of monastic offices through a single day, from darkness to light, and back to darkness again. Composed in 2004 with St. Martin’s in mind, we are pleased to present the world premiere of this exciting work tonight, and accept the dedication of the work.
About the "Canonical Hours" of the day: The daily round of monastic services (sometimes called “The Canonical Hours,” or “The Divine Offices”) begins shortly after midnight with Matins. The monks interrupt their sleep to arise and pray, greeting the arrival of a new day (a calendar day, as it is still dark outside), before returning to bed. At 3:00 a.m., they arise again for Lauds, during which the first light of day is often seen, at least in summer. Hence the reference to a rooster in the prayer below for Lauds, and the exhortation to be awake and alert. The names of the following four hours, Prime, Terce, Sext, and None, refer literally to the time at which they take place, if one thinks of 6:00 a.m. as the “first” hour of the day (hence, Prime), 9:00 a.m. as the “third” hour (Terce), noon as the “sixth” hour (Sext), and 3:00 p.m. as the “ninth” hour (None). The references in the poems below to the rising sun at Prime, the growing strength of light at Terce, the wilting heat of noon at Sext, and the coming of twilight in None are clear references to this time-related aspect of these four offices. They are also sometimes called “the little hours,” as they are briefer than the others. Vespers is sung at the hour of sunset, hence its exact time changes with the seasons of the year; but its reference to the dying light and pleas for mercy are metaphorically associated with the end of life, and the poem chosen below for Vespers is thus the most oriented to the afterlife. The final office of the day is Compline, often associated with sleep and rest, and it usually precedes the monks’ going to bed.
Timothy J. Krueger © 2005 Timothy J. Krueger |