University Chorale blends folk, modern songs in Arts Fest performance

By Robert Rossi, Assoc. Culture Editor – (Photography: Eliza Duggan)

The University Chorale gave the first performance on the main stage of Arts Fest on Saturday. The concert choir blended pieces from the Classical Era, traditional American folk songs, and modern tunes from Hollywood films. Chorale Director John Finney led the group, which consisted of both current Boston College students and alumni, through seven pieces.  Six of the seven pieces had been performed at previous Chorale concerts, while the seventh piece received its Chorale debut at Arts Fest.

The first piece, “Tollite Hostias,”  written by French composer Camille Saint-Saens, was an a capella piece performed in Latin.  The piece was originally published in 1858. The group then moved forward into the 20th Century with John Williams’ “Exsultate Justi.” Some audience members may have recognized the piece from Steven Spielberg’s 1987 film Empire of the Sun.

The next three pieces were standards in American folk music.  They were “Zion’s Walls,” “Simple Gifts,” and “Every Time I Feel the Spirit,” and were the first songs that the Chorale performed in English. “Zion’s Walls” and “Simple Gifts” were performed in arrangements by American classical legend Aaron Copland. The chorus was joined by piano for all three songs.

The sixth piece the Chorale performed were selections from Mozart’s “Vespers,” performed in its entirety last weekend at Trinity Chapel. The four movements the group sang on O’Neill Plaza were “Dixit Dominus,” “Beatus Vir,” “Laudate Pueri,” and “Laudate Dominum.” Abigail Shaughnessy, CSON ’10, performed spectacularly as a soloist throughout the final movement.

The last song was the only one the Chorale had not performed in one of its concerts previously during the academic year.  It was also the most crowd-pleasing. The song was “Circle of Life” from Disney’s The Lion King, written by Tim Rice and Elton John.  The chorale broke into two distinct choruses for the song, one performing the Swahili chant “Nants ingonyama bagithi baba” and the other singing the English lyrics. Notable piano work also accompanied the song.

The concert wrapped up a rigorous year for the University Chorale.  The academic year saw the group perform in Conte Forum with the Boston Pops and Bernadette Peters in September, sing to sold out crowds in both St. Ignatius Church and Trinity Chapel, and fly to Germany to perform over spring break in Berlin and Munich.