By Don Heckman
The early music of Eastern Europe, of roughly the 12th through the 16th centuries, has rarely received the attention it deserves. But the thought that its obscurity is justified as the issuance of a culture of invaders on horseback dwelling in wooden Baba Yaga huts — while the West was building magnificent cathedrals and carving timeless marble statuary — is simply off base.
So give credit to the Rose Ensemble from St. Paul, Minnesota for having had the curiosity, the time, and the talent, to explore music from the archives of Moscow, Warsaw, Cracow and other areas east of the Danube. The Ensemble’s “Slavic Wonders” program at The Getty’s Williams Auditorium was as enlightening as it was entertaining, a stunning display of music that can comfortably stand alongside the works of Machaut, Dufay, Gabrieli, etc.
The Rose Ensemble
The six men and six women of the Ensemble performed a cappella for the most part, occasionally with the aid of Ginna Watson playing the
vielle, a Medieval string instrument similar to the violin, and — on several works — with members of the Ensemble playing hand drum and recorder. The program was remarkably far-ranging: a pair of anonymous Czech hymns from the 11th and 12th centuries; the 13th century Polish hymn, battle song and traditional national anthem, “Bogurodzica”; a pair of motets by the 17th century Polish composer Mikolaj Zielenski (who studied with Giovann Gabrieli); and a contemporary “Ave Maria” setting by the Belorussian composer Sergey Khvoshchinskiy.
The performances were mesmerizing, presented in varying combinations — some with the full ensemble, occasionally in antiphonal style, some by men alone or women alone, others by smaller, mixed ensembles. Throughout, one could only marvel at the Ensemble’s extraordinary combination of tonal precision, dynamic variation, the excellence of the individual singers, and their capacity to capture the authentic period styles for each of the works.
The Rose Ensemble has eight CDs available, with programming embracing Hawaiian vocal music, traditional American song, Mediterranean music and Mexican Christmas songs, as well as their fascinating excursions into Gregorian chant, Medieval and Renaissance music.
Photo by Michael Haug
