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Don’t let the black dresses and tailored suits fool you; the Vassar College Choir isn’t for the faint of heart. All that diaphragm and vocal work would surely make most people need to take a breather. This school year’s spring concert will feature George Frideric Handel’s “Israel in Egypt.”
As Choir tenor Alex McCoy ’11 put it, “It’s really impressive. Maybe because it’s so different from repertoire we’ve done in the past.”
“Handel took as his story the central story of the Jewish people, the events leading up to the Passover, the words quoted directly from the Book of Exodus,” wrote Lecturer in Music Drew Minter in an e-mailed statement. Minter, a voice instructor and Opera Workshop director, normally conducts the Madrigal Singers. For this semester, Minter is conducting “Israel in Egypt” due to his extensive knowledge and experience with Handel. “I have loved this piece for many years. I sang often as a soloist in it in the ’80s and ’90s. I’m known in the music biz for my association with the works of Handel,” wrote Minter. “I’ve recorded more than a dozen of his works (as a singer), and have performed nearly half of the operas and oratorios of Handel that exist.”
The piece is unique in its use of standard instruments to invent audible imagery. “More vivid material than the series of plagues and the parting of the Red Sea could hardly be found,” wrote Minter. “Handel employs endless pictorial devices: hopping string figures for the frogs, skittering figures for flies, an accumulation of notes that results in a deluge of falling figures for the hailstorm, and endless other inventions.”
Preparing for the concert can seem daunting, especially considering the work’s complexity. “‘Israel in Egypt’ has many choruses and seems kind of overwhelming, and it took us a long time to learn the words and notes. After that, we were really able to get into the phrases and meaning,” said McCoy. Instead of performing a recognizable piece, the Choir tackled the obscure under the careful guidance of Minter. “It’s a LOT of singing for the Choir. So in terms of stamina it’s a challenge,” wrote Minter.
“Minter has a lot of experience in Baroque music, particularly in Handel oratorios. He can be hard in rehearsals, especially about diction, but it’s all been helpful. Minter has been a good leader through whole process,” said McCoy.
Although the pressure is on to put on a concert worthy of the epic exodus of 60,000 Israelites and iconic stories such as the parting of the Red Sea, Minter and McCoy are more excited than anything. “It’s not stressful. As with any Handel project, I learn so much when I take a piece up again. And the research is also fun,” wrote Minter. “There are always new things to learn about Handel’s composition process.”
“We have four-and-a-half hours a week of practice, all semester long. It can be a lot of rehearsal with all my other work. The experience has definitely been worth it,” expressed McCoy. “I understand what it was more like to be a singer in Handel’s time. A lot of music composed at that to time is usually never done today.” The Choir has only been practicing with the piano accompaniment, but soon the Vassar College Orchestra will begin performing with them in the days leading up to the performance. McCoy is thankful to have such a unique musical experience under his belt. “The experience to sing in such a big event is hard to come by or pass up,” explained McCoy.
For those seniors who are preparing to sing one last time, the experience can seem bittersweet and they are happy to be performing such an impressive piece. “What a privilege it has been to know them and to witness their growth, and to participate in my small way in that,” wrote Minter. “We couldn’t do it without them, that’s for sure. They add so much with all their experience.”
“Israel in Egypt” is a positive musical and spiritual experience. “The music is very vivid and stirring,” wrote Minter. The beauty of such a concert is that it gives us an insight to an ancient world long-ago, but never forgotten. “There’s so much music out there that this is my first time doing anything like this. It allows you to understand what it was all like in Baroque period, at least musically,” expressed McCoy.
“Israel in Egypt” by the Vassar College Choir will be performed on April 25 at 3 p.m. in the Mary Anna Fox Martel Recital Hall in Skinner Hall.
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