BY PAT FARNELLI
Times-Shamrock Correspondent
Dr. Joy Hirokawa was the guest conductor for the PMEA District 9 Chorus at Tunkhannock Area HS. PHOTO BY PAT FARNELLI
About 160 high school singers arrived at Tunkhannock Area High School Wednesday, prepared to spend the next few days rehearsing a challenging repertoire of music for the PMEA District 9 Chorus Festival which culminated in a concert Friday night.
Dr. Joy Hirokawa, assistant professsor of music education at Moravian College, was the guest conductor. Andrea Berntsen was the concert accompanist.
The varied program was a challenge for the students. The first piece, a traditional sacred choir anthem by Heinrich Schultz, drew its text from Psalm 98: “Sing to the Lord a New Song,” and was arranged for a double choir.
“Wie Liblich sind deine Wohnungen,” from “Ein Deutsches Requiem” by Johannes Brahms, was referred to by students and choral directors as “The German.” This requiem takes its lyrics from the German Luther Bible, a departure from traditional Catholic requiems, or songs mourning a loved one’s death.
Hirakawa said that she chose the passage, in spite of its difficulty, for the beauty of the words in German, and for that reason this was the selection requiring the most preparation for the festival.
This movement, which comes after the initial grieving and comforting passages of a requiem, has the lyrics “How lovely is they dwelling place, O Lord of Hosts! O blest are they that dwell within Thy house; they praise Thy name evermore!”
Brahms’s mother had recently died when he composed the requiem in 1865, a loss that caused him much grief. Brahms’s sadness over composer Robert Schumann’s death in 1856 may also have been an inspiration.
“Wedding Cantata” by Daniel Pinkham employs lyrics about springtime and lovers from the Song of Solomon.
The men of the chorus sang the tender, tentative ballad, “And So it Goes,” by Billy Joel. This a cappella arrangement by Kirby Shaw effectively used harmony to enhance the sad chords and soulful words of Joel’s song, seeking a new love with a pained heart.
Choral ladies then responded with “I Will be Earth”, by Gwyneth Walker.
A sweet, ethereal “Seal Lullaby” by Eric Whitacre lulled baby seals to sleep on the waves with words of safety and protection.
Rollicking “Cindy” by Mark Wilberg combined eight-part harmonies, hand clapping, foot stomping, bass, and xylophone, for an energetic hoedown effect.
The festival show stopper, “Worthy to be Praised,” rocked the auditorium with a mass choir style anthem featuring two splendid Susquehanna County soloists, Hayley Maloney of Mountain View and Faith Galu-Edgar of Blue Ridge.
The chorus members shouted props to each other and the audience members all over the house jumped to their feet, raising hands in praise, clapping to the syncopated beat and whooping their appreciation with two standing ovations. In lieu of an encore, this gospel number was reprised to even more enthusiasm.
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