In an ambitious performance this weekend, Nova Singers will perform two of the greatest works ever written for a cappella double choir.
Founder and Director Laura Lane has long wanted to do Swiss composer Frank Martin’s powerful “Mass for Double Choir” for a second time.
“There are just very few pieces that I've done before that come back over and over in my mind and say, Laura, you have to do me again. You have to,” Lane said. “And this was one of them I just couldn't stop thinking about it.
Nova Singers is a professional choral ensemble that usually has 20 voices.
For the performance of “A Cappella Masterworks,” the group has expanded to 35 voices. They will perform both the Martin “Mass for Double Choir” and Ralph Vaughan Williams’ “Mass in G Minor.”
“There’s something for me that’s very emotional about doing something like the Martin ‘Mass in Double Choir’ that's so incredibly difficult,” Lane said. “Both of these pieces are rarely performed because they're so hard and so most people don't even know about them. Audience members probably won't have heard them.”
“Mass in G Minor” is full of folk-like melodies and features a solo quartet in addition to the double choir, while “Mass for Double Choir” is packed with gorgeous melodies and harmonies, with delicate expressive spots and moments of tremendous drama.
For Lane, this will be one of Nova Singers’ best concerts in its 39 years of existence. That’s because of the difficult of the music, the number of voices, and the strength of the singers, many of whom are joining the group for the very first time.
“Even without an orchestra, it's like an orchestra of voices. They can play, sing very, very softly. They can sing very loudly. And you're sometimes amazed at, especially in the second half work, the Martin “Mass,” his demands on us to get bigger are so big and so exciting, but he doesn't do it very often,” she said.
Lane said expanding to 35 voices meant finding singers with the stamina to sing the challenging a cappella works.
“It’s quite difficult, but it’s beautiful,” she said.
There will be two performances of “A Cappella Masterworks” this weekend —at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 12 at First Lutheran Church in Galesburg, and 4 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 13 at St. Paul Lutheran Church in Davenport.
Tickets will be available at the door. Admission is $20 for adults and $17 for seniors. Students are admitted free of charge. For information about tickets, recordings, or other Nova Singers’ events visit their website at www.novasingers.com or like their Facebook page.
A Cappella Masterworks is sponsored by Epic Stone. Nova Singers’ 2024-25 season is partially supported by grants from the Illinois Arts Council Agency, the city of Galesburg, and Galesburg Community Foundation.
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