BAR HARBOR — While I may not have been the first person to discover the extraordinary vocal talent of the teenage Josh Miller some 20 or so years ago — his parents and music teachers must have noticed what a powerful instrument the boy possessed— I just may have been the first person to write about it after he performed in several Mount Desert Island High School musicals.
It seems I have been writing about Josh Miller’s singing ever since, as he has performed solos in a variety of local musical events over the past couple of decades, in which I noted how the depth, richness, color and control of his voice has only improved over the years and decades.
So, imagine my delight and the rest of the audience’s when the Mount Desert Summer Chorale’s director David Schildkret not only featured Miller’s vocals at last weekend’s concerts, at St. Saviour’s church, but seems to have constructed the whole program around the young man’s compelling baritone.
In Gabriel Faure’s “Requiem,” there were several solo passages requiring a strong baritone that Miller sang brilliantly. But the second half of the concert consisted of “Five Mystical Songs” by Ralph Vaughn Williams, four of which had Miller center stage with the full 50-member chorus performing essentially as his backup group. Well, it was all wonderful, but let’s backtrack here.
One of the things I enjoy about Schildkret’s summer chorale concerts, aside from his choice of music and singers, is the pre-show talk he gives, usually pointing out interesting musical moments we might notice later during the concert. But this time he spoke about how the composers used the number three in the structure of their pieces, as in the waltz count “one-two-three-and-one-two-three,” and also in the number of verses and lines in the verses and so forth. While some of his explanation was too mathematical for me to completely grasp, it did make me appreciate how both Faure and Vaughn Williams wanted to incorporate a reverence for the Holy Trinity in every aspect of their music, even when most listeners would not notice what they had done. Anyway, it was very interesting, and I especially enjoyed learning about “hemiolas,” in which the composers switch the expected 2/3 meter into 3/2, as in Bernstein’s “I Like to Be in America,” from “West Side Story.” During his talk, I was reminded again what a popular professor Schildkret must be where he teaches at Arizona State University.
Okay, back to the music. Faure’s “Requiem” is a subdued, or perhaps more aptly, a contemplative work — lacking much of the Sturm und Drang of, say, Mozart’s dramatic final work. It is often much more difficult for 50 people to softly sing without wavering from the pitch (especially on a steamy evening), but this chorale proved Schildkret’s comment — “This chorus could perform on any stage in the country” — again and again with the full clear sound they produced. Having attended past summer chorale rehearsals, I am convinced that one reason they interpret the music so well is that, like the best Shakespearean directors, their conductor insists they completely understand what they are singing about. Shoot, as I mentioned earlier, he even schools his audience!
The orchestra of strings, horns and Colin Graebert’s keyboard was also terrific, never overwhelming or being overwhelmed by the chorus. I am especially fond of what we used to call French horns, which because of the circular journey of their notes, I suppose, always sound as if they are being played from far way, their music wafting to us on the wind. Another wonderful moment among many was during the “Sanctus,” in which the harp notes plucked by Phoebe Durand sounded like musical raindrops throughout the piece.
The other featured soloist in the “Requiem” was supposed to have been local favorite Bronwyn Kortge, but she had to bow out when she felt her voice had not recovered completely from a bout of Covid. Stepping in was another Maine-grown talent, Katlyn Parker Bray, whose delicate but mighty soprano was just perfect for Faure’s gentle “Pie Jesu.”
As thrilling as it was to hear Josh Miller’s rendition of various movements, in the “Requiem,” he really got to rock out with the Vaughn William’s songs, singing with passion and commitment about love, loss and truth, of which one, “The Call,” I now know was a hemiola.
And finally, with the fourth song, “Antiphon,” the chorus got to do its own rocking. In fact, the power and joy they all brought to this short piece — even though the words from Christian liturgy — reminded me of the raucous fun of the Rocky Horror Show’s “Time Warp,” or maybe after 90 minutes sitting on a hard pew I was just ready to get up and dance. Instead, when the song ended, the entire audience rose to their feet and awarded this performance with a well-deserved standing ovation.
Nan Lincoln, MDIslander
