Why Sine Nomine?

Why Sine Nomine?

In January of 2010 I first went to Cuba and was met by a friendly guy in an old ratty car who arranged to introduce me to various choirs and teachers in music schools in Havana. As I entered the tree lined courtyard of a beautiful yellow colonial building, I saw a full dinosaur skeleton. I then heard high pitched “whooo’s” like our Young Men’s Ensemble might do in their warm up. It was Sine Nomine warming up and I realized here was a Cuban Chanticleer. I then attended their rehearsal and listened to them sing - Renaissance music, Danny Boy and Beatles songs. Their intonation and phrasing was perfect, but more impressive and moving was their deep emotional engagement in the music. By the time we left, we were all in tears.

I learned that in Cuba there are many professional choirs (in the USA there is only one).  The Cuban economic system pays professional Cuban choristers the same salary as the hotel porters and the brain surgeons: $20/month. Most like the surgeons (and unlike the porters) they go through rigorous training to achieve their profession. I heard more of these fine professional choirs, but Sine Nomine stole my heart.

Looking at this group of eight young men, you would never believe they sang so beautifully. They represent all the diversity of ethnic groups in Cuba and definitely look like “cool guys.” I realized that we needed to show our community at home that people of all backgrounds can come together in music. Serious classical music does not exist only for a small, elite Western European population. This music belongs to everyone.

That is when I decided I had to find a way to bring Ragazzi to meet them. In June 2011, 68 of us arrived in Havana and our first workshop was with Leonor Suárez Dulzaides, the conductor of this eight-voice gem. We were pretty jet lagged, but we met Sine Nomine in a decommissioned church with sun streaming through the stained glass windows. We received excellent coaching from Leonor, who repeatedly exhorted us to “relate to the text.” At the time we were attempting the furiously difficult “Chanson d’Oiseaux” by Jannequin.

In 2012 I again went to Cuba on an educational tour and Leonor arranged to meet me and invited me to a rehearsal of her guys. They did a special performance for just me and a few friends. Imagine my surprise when at the 2012 American Choral Conductors Conference in Reno, I heard a small voice calling, “Joyce, Joyce!” and I turned and saw Leonor. She had been brought to the USA through the national leadership of ACDA as one of seven fine Cuban conductors. It was my luck that she was invited to the Western Region conference, my home region. We spent a lot of time together, haltingly trying to communicate - she in her limited English and me in my limited Spanish. None of the ACDA organizers realized the extent of the limitations placed on Cuban travelers in the U.S.  She had no money (she’s paid that same $20 per month) and no credit card (no Cuban plastic would have been allowed, anyway) to put down at the hotel. I helped her to get meals and to figure out the conference schedule.

At the conference, I approached the leadership and said, “You have to get Sine Nomine to the 2014 convention.” While they we stunned by the artistry of this group as shown by examples from Sine Nomine ‘s CD, the ACDA leadership was extremely reluctant to agree. They claimed they didn’t have money to cover the expenses, that it was really difficult to get Cuban groups into the USA, etc. etc. I then said, “I will organize this.” In the back of my mind was the desire to get these singers in front of our Redwood City community, including our local immigrant families, many from parts of Mexico and Central and South America, and show them that this music belongs to them too. Maybe, I hoped, we could expand our recruitment of local boys by getting them to connect with these singers who look and speak like them.

Tina Duyk, Ragazzi board member, offered to help me and we began to set up concerts all over California. Each presenting organization agreed to pay a fee and somehow we pieced together support enough for visas, immigration attorney fees and transportation. There were many nail biting moments as various strategies failed, but as of January 24, the last airfare was paid and confirmed.

Tina spearheaded efforts to connect with Redwood City Civic Cultural Commission and the schools. After months of trying to contact the schools directly and failing, Tina was able to go through Music for Minors and the Redwood City Education Foundation to gain performance opportunities for these singers in four Redwood City elementary schools during six morning assemblies.

Ragazzi is also sponsoring a concert at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, February 26 at Carrington Hall on Sequoia High School campus, free to children (thanks to a $1,000 grant from the Redwood City Civic Cultural Commission) and only $5 for adults. It’s the best bargain you’ll get for any live music performance this year – and these are world-class singers.  As someone said, “I paid just $30 to hear Chanticleer!”

This group epitomizes excellence combined with warmth and emotional engagement. Please tell your friends and actively promote this opportunity to share these great musicians and this great music.

Music Theory for fun ! ? !!

I just want to sing. Why should I study music theory? 

When I got my first teaching job, I had to produce a holiday concert with only three months to prepare. I decided to teach a three part carol since my chorus was all girls. Since no one in this chorus knew how to read music, we had to trudge through each part note by note, learning everything by rote. It took us three months to learn one piece. After I survived that first concert, I became determined to teach music theory along with repertoire. All good music programs include theory instruction along with technical skills as well as learning pieces to perform.

Ragazzi has an amazing theory program, thanks to Carol Panofsky. At a recent alumni party, I heard three stories about the benefits our boys have received. One college freshman, a non-music major, reported that in his choir everyone had to take a theory test. He was the only singer who did well. He said everyone else got perhaps three correct answers. In two other cases, Ragazzi college freshmen, declared music majors, tested out of college-level, first year music theory. In our current Ragazzi Concert Group, the boys can sight read three part music, instantly. These are all testaments to the success or our music theory teaching.

Imagine how much more fun it is to learn music when you no longer have to trudge through the notes – keeping in mind that learning music is much, much more than just getting the right notes. Once you are freed from trudging, you can get right into interpretation, nuance and art. In fact some people get together to sight read music for an evening's entertainment. This was common in the Renaissance among well-educated upper class people. [Listen to Brian Eno’s This I Believe essay (http://www.npr.org/player/v2/mediaPlayer.html?action=1&t=1&islist=false&id=97320958&m=97365616) or read it (http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=97320958).]

During this holiday season it was my privilege to hear my friend's brother play through the Bach Goldberg Variations. While all in the audience appreciated the virtuosity of the keyboard playing and the beauty of the music, I was lucky enough to be able to enjoy the brilliance of Bach's genius as I could appreciate the astounding mathematical structure. During the course of the set of variations, Bach manages to produce nine canons (the technical term for a musical “round,” like Row, Row Your Boat) at every interval of the octave scale. The variations also include fugues, a French Overture and glorious toccatas (which display free flowing technical virtuosity).

Music brings so much joy and as your boy learns the formal, technical language of music, his joy is multiplied. His ability to listen is enhanced, he’s able to sing new music easily, getting to the artistic meat of it much sooner, his sense of camaraderie with fellow musicians is strengthened and… it’s just more fun!  So, as he takes the time to learn the details and “solve the problems,” keep in mind the rewards that will soon accrue to him - the educated and trained musician!

  Joyce Keil edited by David Jones

Ragazzi December concerts

Can art change the world? Last weekend I attended the Berkeley Rep Theatre production of Tristan and Yseult, based on the legend of Tristan and Isolde. The Kneehigh company from England excels in singing, dancing, acrobatics and special effects. As the story unfolded, the actors engaged with the audience to the point that we were laughing with them, blowing up balloons and generally participating. The action moved back and forth from ancient legend to present day foolery. When it came time for the inevitable  tragedy, it was underlain with Wagner’s climactic music from the opera, the Liebestod. Maybe because the actors had loosened us up so much with their interactions with us, we were all completely taken away by the catastrophic sadness when it came. I found myself breathless.

At least for a few days, it changed me. I became conscious of the world around me, of my relationships, of the miracle of music and art.

As Ragazzi presents our holiday program, we have mixed in some beauty, some traditions, some cultural explorations and yes, some tomfoolery. It is my wish that you will join us in laughing and celebrating and that at least once during the concert, we take your breath away. I hope that you leave changed for a moment or an hour and that you are filled with an awareness of the incredible power of music.

Here are our program notes.

Gloria is a dynamic and rhythmic piece written by contemporary composer David Giardiniere.  Mr. Giardiniere is a teacher, conductor, soloist, clinician and composer.  His choral groups tour regularly throughout the eastern United States.  Premiere sings Gloria with the traditional Latin text.

Two French Noels is a beautiful pairing of two well-known and very old French Carols: Patapan and Noel Nouvelet.  Patapan, is a song written hundreds of years ago describing how fitting it is that Willie play his drum and Robin play his flute just like the shepherds played when Christ was born.  Listen for the words Pat-a-pat-a-pan which is the sound of the drum and Tu-re-lu-re-lu which is the sound of the flute.  Noel Nouvelet is presented in French and is also hundreds of years old.  “New Christmas, Christmas we sing here.  Devout people, let us shout our thanks to God!”

Program Notes                       Sarah Wannamaker

Awake, Awake to Love and Work combines an old American hymn tune from the Kentucky Harmony hymnal with a poem written by an Army Chaplain, Geoffrey Studdert-Kennedy (1883-1929). Like other poems from his collection, “The Unutterable Beauty”, this text emphasizes the magic of the world as an expression of divinity. Like many folk tunes, this melody is simple with lots of scale-wise passages. The musical interest comes from rhythmic variations and canonic treatment in the different verses.

The Birds, penned by Canadian composer Eleanor Daley, is a setting of an imaginative poem by Hilaire Belloc. This allegorical text portrays the Christ Child as having a profound depth of wisdom and unworldly capacity for miracles, even as a child. Note the musical reinforcement (key change, running bass notes) to convey the birds in flight. The last phrase is a internal prayer for us to view life from a more timeless perspective to gain a wisdom for our own lives.

Laudate Dominum

Mozart's setting of Psalm 116 is a gentle interpretation of the text, "Praise the Lord." The soprano solo is written in long, luxurious lines over a simple guitar-like accompaniment. The obligato instrument echoes the soprano solo. In this arrangement, the elements (obligato, solo, and chorus) are introduced one at a time, and then combined at the end.

Let Voice and Instrument is the fourth movement from Purcell’s ode Arise, My Muse. Completed in 1690, it was the second of six odes that Purcell was commissioned to write for the birthday of Queen Mary; he was titled ‘Composer to the King’ and organist at Westminster Abbey at this time. The two lines are presented individually, and then combined and developed. This piece was originally written for tenor and bass soloists with a four-part choir, and has been arranged for two voices.

Handel was an English composer working in the generation after Purcell. Praise the Lord with Cheerful Voice comes from his oratorio, Esther. An oratorio is an opera without the staging or costumes, but with the plot and drama. The Old Testament story of Queen Esther is about the queen rescuing her people from persecution (which is celebrated as a traditional holiday, Purim). The music reflects the exuberant mood of celebration.  The text appropriately references songs of praise and the heavenly choir.

Bay Area composer, horn-player, and physicist Brian Holmes dedicated the score of The Mummers to Joyce Keil and the Ragazzi Boys Chorus. This playful arrangement gives space for the singers to take on the persona of mummers - Christmas-season entertainers and actors. The mummer tradition is based in 18th and 19th century England, as seen in the references to Saint George. This is a fun variation in the tradition of door-to-door Christmas caroling.

Creator of the Stars of Night is an arrangement of a ninth-century plainsong chant Conditor Alme. Originally in Latin, the formality of the translated text still evokes an archaic time. Each stanza presents a different unfolding of Christ’s story: the tumult of the world before Christ, the humble birth, the revelation of Christ, and Christ as judge. The music for the voices remains identical between the six verses; the interest and momentum is created by the increasingly-present organ accompaniment.

Ludovico Grossi (c. 1560-1627) was born in Viadana, near Parma. His life as a Franciscan monk is reflected by the sacred music he wrote for use in the church liturgy. Exultate justi is based on the first three verses of Psalm 33, and the buoyant music reflects the words of praise, thanks, and singing. The piece is in two parts - a chordal, homophonic introduction followed by an imitative middle section - and the different writing styles reflect the Renaissance and Baroque periods transitioning between the two eras. The piece is for four voices - there is an alto part, two tenor parts, and a bass line. This distribution is stylistically common as the advanced singers in a church group would be men singing in a bass and falsetto range.

Ubi Caritas is about juxtaposition: Latin and African languages, formal and pop singing styles, Western and non-Western cultures, and even different rhythmic ways of subdividing a measure. Paul Halley chose the text “Where there is love, there is God” because it speaks to him personally while also having a universal appeal. He writes: “I tried to bring out the inherent power and optimism of the Gregorian Chant. … Sometimes we need to look at the obvious through other people’s eyes.”  Despite the opposition between the individual elements, the composition works cohesively and emphasizes the fundamental connections of religious sentiment and musical expression. In today’s performance, the blocking of the choir according to part highlights the different melody lines in a spatial way.

All Glory, Laud, and Honor is a single piece taken from the larger work, The Passion According to Saint John. Bach’s mastery of line, ornamentation, independent voices and harmonic flexibility show through even in shorter works such as this. The chorale is stated twice - once as an ornamented solo line with instrumental support, and once as a four-part a capella arrangement. Note the independence of the violin part, which could stand as an instrumental solo. The text, by Paul Gerhardt, is an Advent meditation on the best way to invite God into the singer’s life.

Deck the Hall is a 16th-century Welsh tune celebrating the season - getting ready for festivities and greeting the new year. The ‘fa la la’ refrain is a moment of musical delight; it is about the fun of singing purely for the joy of the art.

Angels We Have Heard on High is a carol of French origin. This hymn is unusual because of the melismatic (many notes per word) setting of the refrain. Hark the Herald is an arrangement of a tune written by Mendelssohn. The final carol is a popular interpretation of O Come, All Ye Faithful by David Willcocks. This arrangement is now part of the core repertoire for the King’s College Festival of Lessons and Carols in Cambridge, featuring both an added descant and a new harmonization. The traditional combined choir, descant and organ accompaniment culminate to remind us how music can transcend the boundaries of time and difference, giving us the tools to find newness, potential, and light in our world.