Paul French kicks off his 35th year with an ambitious season premiere
By Jim Flint
As Paul French begins his 35th season as music director of Southern Oregon Repertory Singers, he invites the audience to look inward.
The 2024-25 season inaugural concert will be performed at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 2 and at 2 p.m. Nov. 3 at Southern Oregon University’s Music Recital Hall, 450 S. Mountain Ave., Ashland.
“The Heart’s Reflection,” a concert spanning 500 years and seven languages, seems to pose the question: In a world of division, what is it that unites us as human beings?
French believes the music itself answers the question.
“Despite outward differences, at our core we have so much in common,” French said, which, he believes, is reflected in the program selections.
The concert’s title comes from a Daniel Elder piece on the program, an a capella setting of a paraphrase of Proverbs 27:19.
“It begins with the thought, ‘Just as water reflects, so one human heart reflects another,’” French said. “Expanding on this beautiful thought, our concert explores themes which draw human hearts together.”
The concert reflects a variety of styles, musical traditions, and tempos — performed with accompaniment as well as a capella.
Cellist will be guest artist
Cellist Michal Palzewicz will be featured in three pieces.
“Of those, I am especially pleased to present Claudio Monteverdi’s ‘Lamento della Ninfa,’ quintessentially Italian and the epitome of passionate lost love,” French said. The piece is set for men’s choir, solo soprano, and cello.
Another highlight of the program is “Stars” by Eriks Esenvalds.
“Renowned American composer Esenvalds perfectly captures the ethereal mood of Sara Teasdale’s lyrical poem ‘Stars’ with still, mesmerizing harmonies in the choir,” French said. “Accompanied by tuned water glasses, the effect is crystalline beauty.”
The singers will perform what French describes as a “heavenly companion” to that piece, Irish composer Desmond Earley’s “The Body of the Moon.”
“Written to mark the total eclipse of 2017, the piece is set to text from astronomer Galileo Galilei’s letters,” French said, “in which he describes the moment of discovery, exclaiming, ‘Behold the body of the moon!’ The choir captures the moment by repeating an awestruck musical figure while cellist Palzewicz lends lyrical support.”
Ambitious program
Some serious demands and complexities arise when preparing for and performing a concert with such a diverse range of music.
“Mixing musical styles does present vocal challenges for the singers,” French said. “They have to change their ‘sound’ from piece to piece. But I think it creates a more varied, enjoyable program for the listener.”
As an example, he cited the more traditional music of Brahms and Monteverdi contrasting with the passionate, Latin American-inflected style of former composer-in-residence Craig Kingsbury’s “Canciones de la Luna,” the simpler folklife style of James MacMillan’s setting of Robert Burns’ “The Gallant Weaver,” and arranger Stan Kallman’s rousing, improvisatory-styled “Papa Loko,” a boisterous Haitian folk song about vodou worship, set for choir and improvised percussion.
“All these musical styles have their own sound,” he said. “Our musical goal is to capture these musical worlds with our ever-changing choral sound.”
In addition to the aforementioned works, also on the program are Quartets, Op. 92, by Johannes Brahms, a movement from “Astronomy” by Christopher Tin, “Sing to the Moon” by Laura Mvula, and “Home” by Eric Whitacre, the Grammy-winning American composer and conductor known for his ethereal harmonies, lush textures and innovative choral techniques.
“I hope listeners find the concert to be entertaining and inspiring,” French said.
He has high praise for his singers. With more than 70 voices, the choir is something in which French believes the community takes much pride.
Big-city cultural experience
“It is fairly extraordinary that we can have a big-city cultural experience in the midst of the small-town beauty of rural Southern Oregon,” he said.
Now retired from his post at Southern Oregon University, French is excited about the future of Rep Singers.
“I do not take any of this for granted,” he said. “To be able to make beautiful music in this beautiful place continues to be such a blessing. The singers are fantastic, the board has never been stronger, and our audience and donor support is very strong.”
The season will continue with the holiday show, “All the Stars Looked Down,” at 7:30 p.m. Dec. 29 at United Church of Christ in Medford, and at 2 p.m. Dec. 21 and 22 in Ashland; “Charm Me Asleep,” at 7:30 p.m. March 22 and at 2 p.m. March 23 in Ashland; and “Cannons Into Bells,” at 7:30 p.m. May 24 and at 2 p.m. May 25 in Ashland.
For more information and to purchase tickets, go to repsingers.org.
Reach writer Jim Flint at jimflint.ashland@yahoo.com.
