The William Ferris Chorale, a longtime champion of contemporary choral music, recently released a CD comprised of 9 première recordings of sacred music by American composers of the 20th century.  The Chicago-based ensemble, formed in 1971, has performed works by many prominent contemporary American composers, including Vincent Persichetti, Ned Rorem, and John Corigliano..

American Chorale Premières continues this tradition, presenting the first-ever recordings of works by Hovhaness, Rochberg, and the Chorale’s founder William Ferris (all recently deceased), as well as living composers Kreutz, Blackwood, Cohen, and White (2 of Blackwood’s students), Nicholson (the ensemble’s accompanist) and French (its current music director).  From this diverse but virtually all-in-the-family roster of composers from different eras, aesthetics, and developmental stages, the Chorale assembles a well-balanced menu of choral flavors, all unified by their sacred idiom.

The Chorale, comprised of 24 mixed voices (if the publicity photo on its website is up to date – no roster is given in the CD booklet), produces a massive, well-rounded sound with a balanced core and excellent clarity of lines.  The listener sometimes wishes for a little help on the high end during large climaxes, but is grateful for the ‘bottom-up’ approach often overlooked in similarly sized choruses.  The balance, only once or twice distracting, seemed to be more a product of the mixing rather than the ensemble’s natural balance, which, given its size and professional level, is most likely excellent.

An entire recording of premières is always something to celebrate, even more so when the choice of repertoire displays not only a support for the music (and music-makers) of the future, but a desire to bring to light unknown works of the past.  The four Hovhaness motets and Rochberg’s Behold, My Servant were both composed in 1973, Ferris’ Lyrica Sacra in 1962.  Although performed, they had remained unrecorded (or unreleased) for decades, and the present document is thus valuable indeed.  Behold, My Servant, a combination of psalmodic, prophetic, and poetic texts (from Psalms, Isaiah, and Blake) is a vision of a Neo-Romantic Rochberg, not the avant-garde Webern disciple of the 1950’s.  Likewise, Hovhaness’ four anthems on texts from Psalms and Jeremiah are eminently performable for choirs of medium to professional ability, and it is interesting how, while they likely have been in the repertoires of numerous choirs for ages, it is only now we can hear them professionally recorded.  All texts and translations of those in Latin are provided in the accompanying booklet.

The works by living composers, including Cohen and White (still in their twenties), gives the CD a forward-looking quality, which saves it from adopting an air of the archival.  The younger composers show much promise, and the middle ground of the recording is supported well by established writers.

A variety of styles colors the hour-long CD with ever-changing hues which hold the listener's attention.  Texts are set in florid lines, canonic textures, and declamatory statements, often within the same piece.   Those searching for the avant-garde or the cutting edge, of electronically-distorted vocal effects or acrobatic fireworks would do best to look elsewhere – but the consistent traditional language heard throughout nearly the entire recording serves its purpose of bringing to a greater audience music that deserves to be performed, and performed well.

The William Ferris Chorale should be proud of its accomplishment, their members Nicholson and French of their compositional talents, and all involved in the project for bringing us this music and reminding us just how much of this kind of music is still out there, waiting to be discovered.  Or rediscovered.

© 2009 Patrick Valentino