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Murmers in the Cathedral New York
Crypt, St. John the Divine Cathedral
10/12/2024 -
Antonín Dvorák: String Quartet No. 12 “American”, Opus 96, B. 179
Michi Wiancko: Lullaby for the Transient
Carlos Simon: An Elegy: A Cry From The Grave
Jessie Montgomery: Source Code
NOVUS: Benjamin Fingland (Clarinet), Katie Hyun, Alex Fortes (Violins), Mario Gotoh (Viola), Ari Evan (Cello)
K. Hyun, A. Fortes, B. Fingland, M. Gotoh, A. Evan (© Samuel A. Dog)
“I am now satisfied that the future music in this country must be founded upon what are called negro melodies. This must be the real foundation of any serious and original school of composition to be developed in the United States.”
Antonín Dvorák
That the crypt of a New York cathedral should house such memorable, incisive and ideological music could be considered a singular occurrence. But “Death of Classical”, a purveyor of serious concerts, has become internationally illustrious, simply by taking superb artists and placing them in venues off–and frequently beneath–the beaten classical path.
Finding a Cathedral crypt was a coup, and their premiere performance, two nights ago was apparently quite a success. My visit last night, a splendid string quartet, and clarinet did the honors. And honors they were.
If architecture if frozen music (thank you Mr. Goethe) , St. John the Divine Cathedral is a massive ice sculpture. The chancel and nave are mainly used for annual orchestral concerts. But the crypt of the 124‑year‑old building was actually used for the first service as the upper church was being constructed.
And yes, while the main sections of the Episcopal Cathedral are impressive enough, my first visit to the downstairs Crypt itself were more personal, more intimate. Last night the 50‑odd candles by the stage, the timbered ceiling and–almost hidden–Byzantine arches were, if not mysterious, then sanctified for the believer. And a vision of pluralistic ancient architectural eras for the secular.
But this is a music review. And unlike some of the questionable “Death of Classical” venues, the Crypt of St. John the Divine Cathedral has the warmest, clearest and most opaque sounds in New York itself. (This from a seat in the front: I can’t speak for those in the back.) In fact, not only the ravishing sounds of First Violin Katie Hyun but the hard‑rubbing anarchic fiddling by Second Violin Alex Fortes in the second work miraculously turned the blur into a rapid‑fire of individual notes
So we come to the program itself. It might seem unorthodox to separate each of the four movements of Dvorák’s “American” quartet around three other works. These from a trio of American composers. Yet Dvorák can stand the division.
I was about to say the Dvorák movements would be “separate but equal.” That, though, would be cruel image, since the theme of the concert dealt with the injustices of the American racial hierarchy itself.
Dvorák, in his travels to the Midwest, knew this instinctively. Yet the “American” Quartet was not angry. Dvorák was unquestionably the most humane 19th Century performer. And these four players took the most joyous route in performing each movement, from the opening murmurs to graceful end.
Were these marvelous themes American style? Or original Dvorák? My guess is that Dvorák never ignored his small‑town Czech roots even here. And that the dark candle‑lit venue quickly became radiant with their exuberant playing.
The other three works, each by African-American composers, were new to me. And the historical “ideas” behind each was garnered only after the concert.
The first, Michi Wiancko’s Lullaby for the Transient was hardly a lullaby. starting with a high‑pitched screech by clarinet-player Benjamin Fingland, a screech which continued almost through the whole piece. Except for that aforementioned anarchic scurrying by Mr. Forte.
Obviously the title was ironic. More obviously, Mr. Fingland was fabulous. I wish there had been more of him, but the second work was for the quartet itself, Carlos Simon’s near‑Romantic elegy. Again, we had a story of torment with a succession of tremolos, and some fine solos.
J. Montgomery (© Todd Rosenberg Photography)
The penultimate work was by the well-known violinist composer Jessie Montgomery. Source Code was as puzzling as the title. This was not a mélange, not an aggregation, but a barely disguised series of music derived from jazz., from Ella, from spirituals.
But–like the melodies from Dvorák’s “American” Quartet whose finale finished this hour‑long concert, the melodies were disguised, altered and–in a word borrowed from the Cathedral Eucharist–transubstantiated to a different and fascinating entity entirely.
CODA: “Death of Classical” has further Crypt Music next weekend. Googling the group gives exact information.
Harry Rolnick
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