But then, US composer Samuel Barber's 30-minute cantata The Lovers subject matter won't be for the faint-hearted listener either.
The main draw to this recording of Barber's choral music should be the fine singing from the US-based vocal ensemble Conspirare. Give a listen to A Stopwatch and an Ordnance Map, where the men's voices are crystal cut, and tell me you can't be persuaded.
Most will come to this recording, however, for a rare performance of The Lovers. Some will poo-pooh the fact this is a chamber recreation of Barber's full orchestra version, the latter still found in good form with Andrew Schenck with the CSO. But, in general, I am drawn to the singing here, as any choral album should do.
A review from 2021
American composer Samuel Barber’s choral music is a lost diadem among recordings. Barber’s writing for choir is melancholy, and often powerful, and yet there is never a feeling of sameness despite his emotional dourness. This recording from Conspirare under the direction of Craig Hella Johnson provides 80-minutes of Barber’s choral music, and while it would have been nice to have a complete collection of his shorter partsongs (Heaven-Haven and God’s Grandeur come to mind), this is a nice, varied program.
The big news here is the inclusion of Barber’s rare cantata The Lovers. As far as I can tell, there have only been two other wide releases of this work: Andrew Schenck with the Chicago SO on Koch and another on Rondeau . This recording under review gives us a new chamber orchestra version, so if you want to hear it as Barber intended, go for the CSO on Koch.
Otherwise, the chamber rendition is surprisingly intimate, yet dramatically immediate, both boons for what is an extremely sensual text setting. Suffice to say when the chorus bellows ‘strip off your clothes’ in the 4th movement, among other sexually-tinged poetry throughout, we are getting a very personalized message from Barber. This music is tougher than the individual choral works, and I will need to spend more time with this music, but it is very heart-on-sleeve for the subject matter.
Additionally, the 11 individual partsongs are all excellent a cappella miniatures. If you haven’t heard his trilogy Reincarnations, it is a minor masterpiece, particularly the gently rocking The Coolin. Twelfth Night is filled with torque and tension opposite the gently lapping To Be Sung on Water, and A Stopwatch and an Ordnance Map for men and timpani is an affectingly tragic wartime piece. Barber arranged Agnus Dei and Sure On This Shining Night from previous music, and they work less well as choral pieces compared to their original forms, but they are still rather beautiful here.
Conspirare, a professional Texas-based choir of 36 singers is quite outstanding. They are not vibratoless, but nor are they intrusive, applying vibrato, or a lack thereof, as they see fit. Conspirare show a symphonic quality in The Lovers, but they are flexible enough to give that work an intimacy and gentleness when the mood calls for it. They give enough character to each of the single partsongs, with Stopwatch, Twelfth Night, and To Be Sung on Water as standouts. They may even give Agnus Dei one of its finer performances, even if the work itself pales against its string-based original.
Craig Hella Johnson leads with authority. If I had my nitpicks, he is a bit too slow in Reincarnations, which is unfortunate, but even if The Coolin needs more rocking, and Mary Hynes some momentum, Anthony O’Daly is full of inner tension, one of the aspects I like about this group and its leader. This isn’t just endlessly floaty, slow choral music; Johnson treats this as real music with depth, musicality, and range. The choral sound on Harmonia Mundi is ideal and the instrumentals are immediate and up close.
Really an excellent survey of Barber’s choral music all around. This collection easily stands above that on ASV , on Naxos , on Terpsichore , although Paul Spicer on Somm offers some different music to enjoy, and is a nice companion to this recording. The Lovers is well done, but the original full orchestral version is not performed here, if that matter to you. Otherwise song texts are provided and the physical media is good quality.
Listen on YouTube
Soloists
Faith DeBouw, piano
Matt Tresler, tenor
David Farwig, baritone
Thomas Burwitt, timpani
Performers
Conspirare, A Company of Singers
Conspirare Orchestra
Craig Hella Johnson, conductor
Label: Harmonia Mundi
Year: 12012
Total Timing: 79.44
A terrific recording of Barber's choral music, with the added incentive of his cantata The Lovers.
It is his smaller choral pieces which interest me more though, and that is where Conspirare and Craig Hella Johnson shine.
Find more Barber recordings HERE!
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