Oregon ArtsWatch: Singing peace and lighting the world

Cappella Romana welcomes Benedict Sheehan back to Portland as conductor and composer. His last conducting engagement with CR was on the eve of the pandemic shutdown, when the choir was able to offer one live-feed performance of Tchaikovsky’s Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom. For the upcoming performances Sheehan returns to conduct his own English language Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom. It’s the only piece on this program, and it is unique.

Since Eastern Orthodox and Byzantine choral works do not show up on too many community choir concerts the uniqueness of CR programming–relative to the rest of our local choral scene–is always a great audience draw. Well-known, obscure, or contemporary works of historic significance to the Church are carefully curated by Cappella Romana founder and Artistic Director Dr. Alexander Lingas. The significance, simply stated, of Sheehan’s work is that, while it is musically embedded in tradition, it’s brand spanking new. Firmly rooted in place while moving forward. Here’s a bit of the backstory.

Sheehan is Director of Music at St. Tikhon’s Seminary and Monastery in Pennsylvania; Artistic Director of The Saint Tikhon Choir; and the CEO and founder of the Artefact Institute, a collection of “culture creators.” He lives in Pennsylvania with his wife and creative partner, Talia, and their seven daughters.

Sheehan was commissioned by the PaTRAM (Patriarch Tikhon Russian American Music) Institute to compose music for the Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom. PaTRAM’s mission is to “foster the authentic and original splendor of Russian Orthodox choral music together with its astounding spiritual depth, in both the English and Slavonic languages.” The commission conditions were few: a timeline; the text must be in English; and music in the style of the Russian music tradition. It still had to sound like the Orthodox church. 

New and old. Not or. The Divine Liturgy–the primary worship service of the Eastern Orthodox Church–has ancient roots but is only as old as those who assemble in common prayer. The most widely used Liturgy is that introduced by St. John Chrysostom of Antioch (347-407), prolific Christian author and eloquent orator. Portions of the Divine Liturgy formulated by St. Basil of Caesarea (330-379) are also still employed throughout the church year.

Sheehan was given no mandates of specific compositional techniques, such as melodic material, voicing, or harmonic language. But Sheehan’s scholarship, and his personal and familial immersion in Orthodox practice, led him to fashion his own criteria. “What there are in abundance in Orthodox music are long-established norms” (Sheehan interview with James Altena in Fanfare Magazine, March/April 2021). Link to reprint posted January 27, 2021. 

Sheehan’s previous compositions are evidence that he understood the norms of Russian Orthodox style, but he is not averse to departing from Orthodox traditional sounds in his other sacred pieces. The Crucifixion, sung here by St. Tikhon Choir, is a stunning work marrying text and music, venturing in and out of new and old. Sheehan’s compositional voice is his own.

Read the full article: https://www.orartswatch.org/singing-peace-and-lighting-the-world-bach-cantata-choir-and-cappella-romana-head-into-the-holiday-season/