A sustained — and deserved — applause rang through the
Fountain Court of the Memorial Art Gallery following Thursday night’s concert,
“Echoes of the Middle Ages,” presented by the Schola Cantorum of Christ Church
and organist Naomi Gregory.

The program, centered on the music and art of the 14th
through the 16th centuries, was beautifully conceived and executed. The
audience program listed the 11 musical selections with lyrics in their original
languages and with English translation, along with a corresponding piece of fine
art on display at the museum. After the performance in the Fountain Court, the
audience wandered through adjoining galleries, locating the paired works of
art. The one-hour concert extended into another hour enjoying the museum before
it closed.

The musical selections were diverse and yet flowed
naturally. Schola Cantorum began with three male voices in a “Kyrie” from “Mass
of Tournai” (1349), performed a cappella. Every tone
was pure and clear. The acoustics of the gallery provided a monastery-like
effect.

From songs of the liturgy to songs to honor saints in the
second section of the program, Schola Cantorum (singers included Michael Anderson, Adelaide Boedecker, David Chin, Mark Helms, Aaron James, Lydia Kirkpatrick, Thatcher Lyman, Reagan McNamee-King, Sarah McConnell,
Prince Nyatanga, Derek Remeลก, and Michael E. Ruhling) sang a lovely motet for St.
Sebastian, “O beateSebastiane”
(by Gaspar van Weerbeke, c.1445-c.1516). That opened into a free-flowing
counterpoint. The third section, works for private devotion, included an intoned
gospel reading of John 1:1-14 (the creation). Thatcher Lyman, the organ soloist in the Fountain
Court, delivered a moving and well-articulated performance, and the responsive
singers (who were unseen and in adjoining galleries) achieved the desired
effect.

Another element of the concert was an organ piece for the
Court of Philip the Bold (also known as Philip II, Duke of Burgundy), written
in the modern day, but inspired by three motets of his day (1342-1404). Eastman
DMA organ student Naomi Gregory spoke of her composition and of the tuning
adjustments made to the Baroque organ to more closely mimic the sound of the
late 14th century. Gregory’s composition was at once witty and authentic.

Michael Alan Anderson, assistant professor of musicology at
ESM, also spoke before each piece. Typically, I cringe at spoken interruptions
during musical performances – my preference is to allow the music to speak for
itself. But, for this program and in this setting, the remarks were
historically and musically interesting, and also well delivered. The audience
left with much to think about, considering that the evening started with
remarks from Nancy Norwood, curator of European art at the MAG, and continued
with Anderson’s research, and included Gregory’s composer’s insights.

This was a truly inspired concert program in a perfect
setting. I look forward to announcements of future collaborative concerts
between ESM and the MAG. I will only give you the advance warning that already
last night there wasn’t a seat left in the house. Whatever program is next, get
there early and plan to stay late. In the meantime, if you haven’t already been
to the Sunday afternoon Italian Baroque organ recitals, the 25-minute
performances are at 1 and 3 p.m., and are included in MAG admission.

This article appears in Feb 12-18, 2014.