Alfred Schnittke’s four-movement Choir Concerto (1984/85) mixes familiar Russian liturgical style–dense-textured, heavy on the bass end but not afraid to occasionally launch the sopranos into the stratosphere; organ-like chordal progression and rich harmonies (think Rachmaninov Vespers); repetitive, chant-style melodies–with more grating dissonances, sudden dynamic outbursts, and a few cadences surprising for their simple traditionalism. The 16-plus-minute first movement will challenge the stamina of any choir, with lots of full-bore volume and long, repetitious figures, leading up to a tremendous, glass-shattering final chord. Stephen Layton’s Holst Singers really show their mettle–as they do throughout this program, which will tax most listeners as much as it did the choir!
The earlier (1972) Voices of Nature, for 10 female voices and vibraphone, sounds as if it may be a lost score for the film 2001: A Space Odyssey–that is, it owes much to the defining tone-cluster style we inevitably associate with Ligeti. But Schnittke’s concept works well, combining the women’s sound with a humming, shimmering vibraphone. It’s spooky–and it only lasts for five minutes, which gives us just enough time to enjoy it before it begins to get old. Minnesang (1980/81) is for 52 mixed voices, and it gives the impression of a “montage” with different melodies sung at once and at varying speeds. Before long, a single melody asserts itself, comes to the fore, then recedes before another appears. In the background the other voices continue with their sonic tapestry. The often incoherent structure and indecipherable texts (“middle High-German, incomprehensible now even for Germans”) are confusing rather than engaging. Again, the singers and conductor have to be commended for perseverance and for maintaining a near-inhuman level of intensity for much of this work’s 18-and-a-half minutes (especially the chilling stretch beginning around the 10-minute mark). Unfortunately, the sound is unusually harsh and the collective voices have a saturated quality that only adds to the already problematic threat of ear-fatigue. Schnittke fans will want to hear this; and anyone else who’s curious about what one of the 20th-century’s more intriguing and inventive composers was up to during the 1980s also should check it out. But, although it probably makes sense to have all of these pieces together on one disc, I don’t recommend listening to the whole program in one sitting.
