Choral Fest Opens With Handel And Offers Contemporary Works,Too

The Berkshire Choral Festival is primarily a place for singers to meet and work together each summer at its home on the Berkshire School campus in Sheffield, MA. But the side benefit to the neighborhood is a series of magnificent concerts. I was away last summer for Bach’s “St. Matthew Passion,†but everyone I spoke to said it was stunning. So I am prepared to be stunned myself this summer, and I can think of few contemporary pieces to do the job better than Morten Lauridsen’s “Lux Aeterna.â€

   Born in 1943, Lauridsen has become a favorite of choral groups and their audiences in recent years, for his sensuous harmonies and long chant-like melodies that convey the essence of the spiritual texts he favors, along with poems by Rilke and Neruda. A longtime professor at USC, he has inspired younger composers to work in a similar style, but his own sensibilities soar above those of his imitators.

   “Lux Aeterna,†dating from 1997, consists of five movements based on Latin texts. The orchestral opening sets the mood for a serene exploration of a repeating motif that weaves among the multi-voiced choir and returns often during the 26-minute work. LA-based conductor Grant Gershon will lead the chorus and the Springfield Symphony Orchestra in a program that includes Haydn’s “Paukenmesse†(Mass in time of War). The concert takes place July 24 at 8 p.m.

   Handel’s great oratorio, “Judas Maccabaeus,†opens the Sheffield season on July 19. Other composers on the season’s roster include Brahms, Rutter, Poulenc and Vaughan Williams. Open rehearsals take place Saturday mornings. Tickets and information: www.choralfest.org. or call 413-229-1999.

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