Monmouth Civic Chorus. Ryan James Brandau, conductor. November 11, 2018.

Triumphant Life Church, Oceanport, NJ.  Patron Seating.

Program.  Dona Nobis Pacem: A Salute to Veterans

The Star-Spangled Banner by Smith, arr. Brandau

Adagio for Strings by Barber.

Songs of Love and War (1997) by Moravec (b. 1957).

[Dona Nobis Pacem by Williams.]

We had complimentary tickets to this concert as we are subscribes for the upcoming MCC season.  In commemoration of Veteran’s Day, this concert was dedicated to those who fought in the wars.  Veterans and families were invited to stand as the audience applauded them for the sacrifices they made.  And the concert started with a spirited rendition of the Star-Spangled Banner.

We had to leave after the intermission as we had a wedding reception to go to, so we missed the piece by Ralph Vaugh Williams, who served as a medic in WWI, so the composition was informed by his own war experience.

I recently heard Samuel Barber’s Adagio for String as background music in a Japanese version of Macbeth, and together with Faure’s Requiem, it sounded very powerful.    The piece was voted at some point “the saddest music ever written,” I doubt very much this afternoon’s performance would qualify.

Paul Moravec was born in 1957.  This work saw its New Jersey premiere (by MCC) in 2002.  The lyrics are actual letters written to and from American troops during different wars:

Don’t Ask (Vietnam War, PFC George Jay Robinson, 1966).  Read by Jacqueline Schreiber; sung by James J. Green, baritone.

Dearest Rowland (WWII, Majorie, March 7, 1944).  Read by Jenni Bluementhal.

Here Hard by the Lonely Grave (WWI, Sol Segal, at the front, June 26, 1918).  Read by Marshall Gorman.

Always, Always (Civil War, Camp Clark, Washington, July 14, 1861).  Read by Daniel Ford; sung by Kenneth Wasser, baritone.

The soloists – all members of MCC – and the chorus did  a credible job.

Brandau acknowleging the artists at the conclusion of the first half of the program.

We would have stayed if the program had been performed without intermission.  The dinner reception started a bit late, so we could have stayed.  Can’t win them all …

The venue used to be the Army Chapel located in Fort Monmouth.  They closed the base down a few years ago.  While this chapel seems to have been repurposed, most of the buildings on the sizeable campus are still vacant.  I wonder if it was economics or politics that led to the relocation of the facility to Maryland.