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MBL Falmouth Forum Series 2011-2012
New York Polyphony is one of the preeminent male vocal quartets in the fields of early and new music. Its members (Geoffrey Williams, countertenor; Geoffrey Silver, tenor; Christopher Dylan Herbert, baritone; and Craig Phillips, bass) deliver dynamic performances in a wide range of styles. Their current CD, Tudor City, hit the top 10 of Billboard’s classical chart, the top 5 on iTunes classical, and no. 1 on Amazon’s MP3 albums list.
November 18, 2011 - 7:30 PM, Lillie Auditorium
"Missa Charles Darwin"
New York Polyphony -- male classical vocal quartet
This fall the MBL will premiere a major musical work: the Missa Charles Darwin.
Project Origins:
In the summer of 2010, the Woods Hole community was bowled over by the acclaimed male classical vocal quartet New York Polyphony in a performance at a private residence. The group then revealed its plan to embark on a groundbreaking creative enterprise with up-and-coming American composer Gregory Brown: setting the words of Charles Darwin to music. The framework for the composition elevated their proposed collaboration to something truly daring: employing the 5-movement structure of the Catholic Mass as a vehicle for excerpts from Darwin's seminal On The Origin Of Species, creating a modern secular Mass setting based on Darwin's words. Thus was born the Missa Charles Darwin. The decision to support the work on behalf of the MBL and to hold the premiere on the MBL campus was quickly made, with the enthusiastic support of the MBL Director, Dr. Gary Borisy.
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Composer Gregory W. Brown will speak about the development of Missa Charles Darwin, illustrated by musical examples performed live by New York Polyphony, followed by the premier performance of the complete piece. Photo credit: Acis Productions.
Gregory W. Brown composes acoustic and electro-acoustic music for a variety of media. His studies were taken with 2000 Pulitzer Prize winner Lewis Spratlan, among others. His music has been performed throughout the US and Europe and has appeared on Performance Today, Danish National Radio, and elsewhere. In addition to his activities as composer, scholar, and conductor, Brown acts as founding artistic director for the Smith College Festival of Sound and Space.
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A preview of the work will be presented at TEDxWoodsHole, Saturday, October 15, 2011. The full premiere is slated for November 18, 2011 as part of the MBL series Falmouth Forum.
The Missa Charles Darwin is a multi-movement composition scored for unaccompanied male vocal quartet. Based on the standard five-movement structure of the Mass, the Missa Charles Darwin honors the compositional and harmonic conventions of its musical antecedents. Unlike traditional Mass settings, however, the sacred texts have been replaced with excerpts from On The Origin Of Species, The Descent of Man, and Darwin’s extant correspondence.
The tradition of setting to music the sacred texts of the Mass—the principal celebration of the Roman Catholic Church—was established in the late Middle Ages. Over the centuries, literally thousands of Mass settings have been composed, many by the greatest composers of their generations,with exemplars ranging from Mozart to Stravinsky.
It has been said that no book since the Bible has been more influential than On The Origin Of Species. Published in 1859, it introduced the concept of evolutionary biology to mainstream audiences. Because its thesis openly challenged the notion that man is the unique creation of God by asserting that humankind emerged not by design, but by natural process, Darwin’s book was highly controversial. It is still considered by many in the religious establishment to be an affront to Judeo-Christian traditions. Regardless, in the 150 years since its publication, On The Origin Of Species has (to borrow words from the website of London’s Natural History Museum) “revolutionized our understanding of nature and our place within it.”
The Missa Charles Darwin is a musical composition, not a political statement. It does not seek to reconcile or aggravate the differences between evolutionists and creationists, neither is it intended to defile traditions considered sacred by practicing Christians. Rather, its purpose is to venerate a celebrated work of human ingenuity through the application of an accepted musical form that is uniquely suited to enhance the expressive potential of language. Through music, we seek to celebrate not only Darwin’s genius, but his inestimable contribution to the human spirit.
For more information on Missa Charles Darwin go to: http://www.indiegogo.com/Missa-Charles-Darwin-evolution-in-music?c=comments
Admission to this MBL Falmouth Forum presentation is free and open to the public. On November 18 and December 2, an optional buffet dinner will precede the lecture at 6:00 pm in the Swope Dining Room. Dinner tickets are $30 and must be purchased in advance at the MBL Communications Office in Woods Hole, or at Eight Cousins Children's Books, Main Street, Falmouth. Dinner tickets are available until they sell out or until 5 PM on the Tuesday prior to the event. For more information, contact the MBL Communications Office at: (508) 289-7423 or comm@mbl.edu
. Please note that other dates will not have a dinner.
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