Thomas Wikman Reviews
Baroque Offers An Evening Of Mighty Music (cont)
Chicago Tribune Sunday, November 8, 1998
by Dan Tucker, Special to the Tribune
In the duet section of the
"Kyrie," where Bach's music
changes pace and texture with
almost every sentence, soprano
Tamara Matthews, mezzo Emily
Lodine and the violins displayed
a familiar Bach miracle: the way
three separate melodies go exactly
the way each wants to go, yet they
all somehow interweave into a
seamless texture.
The core of this work, as it is in
the mass itself, is the "Et incarnatus
est." It is not often performed
with the quiet, grave intensity one
heard from these musicians.
The solo performances, both
vocal and instrumental, were
fluent, polished and expressive. Even
in this excellent company, there
were standouts: tenor William
Watson, doing double duty for the
indisposed Kurt Hansen; baritone
Douglas Anderson, whose solid
top-to-bottom voice had a warm
ring; mezzo Karen Brunssen
whose voice resembled a slow
stream of honey.
The orchestra's starring role
went to violinist Elliot Golub,
flutist Lyon Leifer, Robert Morgan on
oboe d'amore and horn player
Jonathan Boen. Their flowing
unforced obbligatos matched the
voices they accompanied.
Music of the Baroque will
present the B Minor Mass at 3 p.m.
Sunday at the United Church of
Hyde Park, 8 p.m. Wednesday at
St. Paul's Church in Chicago, and
8 p.m. Friday at Grace Lutheran
Church, River Forest.
