Elegy for Choir and Soloists from Danacord

The advertising blurb explains that the Danish composer and conductor Bo Holten has collected ‘a series of songs and musical pieces depicting the elegiac mood.’  These are presented by the Flemish Radio Choir with input from several soloists.  Again, the advert insists that ‘this is one of the most satisfying choral releases around.’ Possibly a touch of hyperbole, but I take the point. 

The disc opens with the first part of Bo Holten’s Nordisk Suite. The entire work appears to be a setting of four Nordic songs, with the first being a Finnish folk tune.  WorldCat shows that the other three songs are Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish. Strangely, Nordisk Suite, Part 2, which follows a few tracks later does not seem to belong to this set: it is another vocalise for a-cappella choir. Unfortunately, the liner notes tell us nothing about this Suite, so, it is all speculation.

Andre Previn’s Vocalise is new to me. Written for soprano, cello and piano it is a lovely haunting work that deserves to be heard alongside the better-known masterpiece by Sergei Rachmaninov. Talking of Rachmaninov, there are two versions of his moving and simply gorgeous Vocalise, op. 34 no.14. This was written in 1912 and was the last of a series of ‘Fourteen Songs’, or ‘Romances’. It has been arranged for just about every possible combination of voices and/or instruments. This version is adapted for soprano solo and a cappella choir. The ‘vocalisation’ is on the vowel sound ‘Ah’. Later in the programme the version for cello and piano is given a good account.

Gabriel Faure’s Elegie for cello and piano (1878) provides a subdued opening, a varied commentary on this, and is balanced by a tumultuous middle section. The restrained music brings the work to a satisfying conclusion.  It is well played here, establishing it as one of the finest examples of the genre.

I cannot warm to Vic Nees’s ‘Jardin des Olives’ (from Trois Complaintes) (2005). On the one hand there are some glorious moments as the music progresses, but on the other, there seems to be too much stylistic diversity crammed into four minutes of music.

Leoš Janáček’s Elegy on the Death of Daughter Olga for tenor solo, chorus, and piano, is a melancholic and somewhat depressing piece. Written in 1903, Janáček was clearly suffering from sadness and possibly depression. For not only had his daughter died (aged 21), but he had been a difficult marriage for many years with his former piano student, Zdeňka Schultzová. His son Vladmiir, had also died in childhood. The music celebrates the composer and his daughter’s love of Russian culture.

I have always enjoyed Edward Elgar’s ‘Go, Song of Mine’, op.57. This one of the composer’s most satisfying and testing part-songs. It was written in Careggi, Italy and sets a translation of an Italian poem, ‘A Dispute with Death’ made by Dante Gabriel Rossetti. It is beautiful, heartfelt music that does not require to be introduced by a ‘cello interlude.’ It is well sung here, but with a few problems with the high notes at the climax.

Herbert Howells’s ‘Take him, earth, for cherishing’ was written for the American Canadian Memorial Service for President John F Kennedy held in Washington D.C. the following year. It is a perfectly stated setting of a hymn by the Latin author Prudentius. One of Howells’s finest choral works.

Once again, no details are given for Bo Holten’s Romische Elegie, written in 2009. This is a setting of a poem by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. After the dirge like cello interlude and interpolations, this choral piece develops into a perfect evocation of the Eternal City.

The liner notes present the usual details of each composer and their music on this disc. The exception for some reason is Bo Holten. As noted above, there is nothing about his three pieces here. Brief bios of the performers are included. Although the texts for the relevant choral works have been provided, I guess that they have not been proof-read. Some are a wee bit out of order and one, the Janáček, presents the text in Czech, English, and, right at the end, Dutch. Finally, the CD cover lacks imagination and is simply boring: hardly the best ‘sunset’ picture imaginable.

The word ‘Elegy’ means ‘a poem of serious reflection, typically a lament for the dead.’ In classical literature it was simply a poem written in ‘elegiac couplets’ often covering a wide range of topics, including love, death, war and commemorative verses. I found it difficult to divine which definition of the word applied to this CD. I think a combination of both is the answer.  Finally, the inclusion of meaningless interludes for cello solo, here and there, during the programme seems totally pointless and a gimmick. Remove them, and this becomes a varied, imaginative, and interesting programme.

Track Listing:
Bo HOLTEN (b. 1948) Nordisk Suite, Part 1 (1989)
Eva Goudie-Falckenbach (soprano) Flemish Radio Choir/Bo Holten,
André PREVIN (1929-2019) Vocalise for soprano, cello and piano (1995)
Hilde Venken (soprano), Luc Tooten (cello), Stéphane De May (piano)
Sergei RACHMANINOV (1873-1943) Vocalise, op. 34 no.14 (1912)
Sarah Van Mol (soprano), Flemish Radio Choir/Bo Holten
Gabriel FAURÉ (1845-1924) Élégie op. 24 (1878)
Luc Tooten (cello), Stéphane De May (piano)
Bo HOLTEN Nordisk Suite, Part 2 (1989)
Flemish Radio Choir/Bo Holten
Vic NEES (1936-2013) Jardin des Olives (from Trois Complaintes) (2005)
Philippe Souvagie (baritone), Flemish Radio Choir/Bo Holten
Leoš JANÁČEK (1854-1928) Elegie na smrt dcery Olgy (Elegy on the Death of Daughter Olga) (1903)
Ivan Goossens (tenor), Flemish Radio Choir/Bo Holten
Herbert HOWELLS (1892-1983) Take him, earth, for cherishing (1964)
Flemish Radio Choir/Bo Holten, Conductor
Sergei RACHMANINOV Vocalise, op. 34 no. 14 (1912)
Luc Tooten, (cello) Stéphane De May (piano
Edward ELGAR (1857-1934) Go, Song of Mine, op. 57 (1909)
Flemish Radio Choir/Bo Holten, Conductor
Bo HOLTEN Römische Elegie (2011)
Luc Tooten (cello), Flemish Radio Choir/Bo Holten, Conductor
Rec. 20-25 June 2010 Jesuits Church, Heverlee, Belgium
DANACORD DACOCD 731