Rhapsody: A Tradition Prevails
Photo From the Centenary Zenfolio
On November 2 and 3 the Centenary College Choir performed their 76th annual Rhapsody in View concert. This concert, started by A.C. “Cheesy” Voran in 1950, allows the choir to showcase their repertoire that spans “from Bach to Broadway.” This year, the elements of the program were loosely centered around “The Elements of Creation,” and featured songs from several genres and composers, which included student written pieces.
To highlight the “Broadway” portion of the program, Senior Music Composition major Angelo Nucal composed a piece dictating the mythical struggle between pirates and sirens. This piece was heavily influenced by Spanish composition techniques like the Flamenco and Solea. Nucal’s piece also allowed the various sections of the choir to showcase their talent in a soloistic manner as it was separated into a Sea Shanty heartily sung by the “pirates,” an entrancing lullaby poured forth from “sirens,” and a final movement that overlays both parts before ending with a victorious bunch of sirens celebrating the successful capture of another “battered crew.” The text for this piece was written by Kaleb Atkinson, a Junior majoring in Biology and English.
Also featured in the program was Dominick Benedetto, a Senior majoring in Music Composition. Benedetto claims that he has always struggled with finding lyrics for his composition, so he decided to do away with them. His piece “Scat Chorale” is unique because it combines Jazz, a more improvisational style, with a Classical Rondo, a repetitive form. This innovative piece was an interesting addition to the concert, and added a new style to the repertoire of the Choir.
The final student conductor piece, written by Junior Music Composition major Chris Masterson, brings us back to the theme of the concert. In the chaos of the universe, the most important aspect of creation is order. Masterson’s arrangement of “Order My Steps” was the perfect reminder of this ever crucial aspect. The arrangement of this piece combined traditional Gospel techniques with a Jazzy style that made it enjoyable for both the audience and the choir. Masterson’s piece was the perfect complement to the rest of the program, reminding the audience of the ever prevalent importance of order and finding guidance in tumultuous times.
Outside of the pieces written by student composers, the program also featured two pieces composed by Dr. James Eakin III, a faculty member for the Hurley School of Music. The first of these is “We Are the Stars,” an energetic, almost dance-like piece that personifies the stars. The text of this is an Algonquin Native-American poem that comments on their place in the world. This piece, with its alternating ⅜ and 2/4 meter, was a challenge for the choir, but nevertheless a beautiful addition to the “Elements of Creation” that the program continually builds on. Another “element” that Dr. Eakin provided for this program was “Beauty in the Flood,” a piece written in honor of Centenary College of Louisiana’s 100th anniversary. This composition was added to the repertoire for a variety of reasons, which include the upcoming Bicentennial of the college. It also served to remind the audience of another crucial “Element of Creation:” perseverance. This piece comments on the perseverance of Centenary throughout its history with text that combines Centenary’s alma mater and the beautiful imagery of a bayou during a thunderstorm. Just as the pines persevere through a thunderstorm, so must we through the hard times that life throws at us. The meaning behind this composition was revealed at Sunday's concert when the choir’s performance of the piece was dedicated to the recently passed Neil Johnson, husband to Choir Alumna Cindy Johnson. The Johnsons were close friends of the choir and, as such, had been hosting an alumni gathering for the choir for the last several years. With the passing of Mr. Johnson the choir lost a dear friend, and wanted to honor him, as well as offer encouragement to Mrs. Johnson with their performance of the piece.
At the end of the concert, tears welled in the eyes of choir members as they filed out to offer a final song to their audience. As is tradition, the choir closed their performance with “The Lord Bless You and Keep You,” something that began in 1979 when the choir traveled to Russia and Poland. The choir had performed it as a “traditional goodbye song” in areas where all religious music was banned, offering hope and inspiration to their audience. This song, never appearing in programs, has since been immortalized in the choir’s repertoire, always at the end. For the seniors, it marked the end of their final Rhapsody in View concert with the choir, the freshman their first. As we sang, we placed our souls in our breath, poured forth our voices, and lifted up our audience with a final, hopeful benediction.
