SIRENS are one of the most beautiful yet treacherous creatures in Greek mythology. Their hauntingly beautiful voices ring out at sea, luring unwitting sailors to rocky coasts and certain death.

But in male chorus Chanticleer’s concert on Wednesday night, titled The Siren’s Call, there was no sign of any rockiness or deceit – only crisp, clear singing in unbelievably versatile voices throughout.

The evening kicked off with some renaissance pieces, the style that Chanticleer was founded on 35 years ago, and it did well to show off the group’s steady grasp of classical techniques. For instance, they displayed astounding skill in blending the intertwining melodies of Gabrieli’s Quand’havra fine amore as well as the rich harmonies of Palestrina’s Ave maris stella.

Also, their take on Gesualdo’s O dolorosa gioia and Gombert’s En douleur et tristesse, showed masterful control over the dissonant harmonies, which filled the Esplanade Concert Hall with an air of melancholy.

Such was Chanticleer’s skill that not only did they perform each piece’s technical complexities with great dexterity, but they also managed to inject emotion into every note such that the songs stay with you even after you’ve left the theatre.

One particularly memorable piece was their heart-tugging rendition of Canticum calamitatis maritimae, a tribute to the 1994 MS Estonia shipwreck, performed just before intermission. The piece starts off with a lone voice singing forlornly, while another member of the chorus recites an actual news broadcast of the shipwreck’s events, which sounds eerily like a whispered prayer. The rest of the chorus then joins in for a build-up to a thunderous climax redolent of a storm at sea, before dying down into the same haunting solo the song began with.

In the second half, the group goes into a much lighter mood, taking on a wider range of songs from the enthralling L’Invitation au Voyage by John Carigliano to the traditional Japanese folksong, Sohran Bushi, arranged by Osamu Shimizu.

Even then, not all of them would appeal to the masses – Chinese-American Chen Yi’s special creation for Chanticleer’s 35th Anniversary, titled I Hear the Siren’s Call, is a bit of an acquired taste with notes that slide up and down very quickly in a rather piercing, Chinese-like tune. But if anything, it certainly speaks of the skill of the chorus, who managed to wrangle their way through those tricky notes without faltering once.

Still, like every other song Chanticleer performed, it was met with thunderous applause, as they weaved in and out of the different styles effortlessly. But the loudest applause was reserved for their final song, a jazzy, sensual arrangement of Tom Waits’ Temptation that took the audience’s breath away.

A tiny gripe is that the group could really afford to loosen up a little during the more contemporary songs – their rigid bodies were a sharp contrast to the upbeat tunes they were singing. But judging from the tireless applause at the end of the show, the audience didn’t seem to mind. By the time of their encore performance – a pitch-perfect Somebody to Love by Queen – was met with rapturous applause, it was clear that the audience wanted even more.

Go with the flow: Chanticleer’s The Siren’s Call was devoid of any mythological deceit – only crisp singing in unbelievably versatile voices.

 

 

Link to review: http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/archive/sunday/lifestyle/entertainmentmusic/heeding-call-all-male-sirens-20130517

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The Esplanade complex of theaters was opened in 2002 and offers over 3000 performing events every year. Their organization and reception is impeccable – and then some. It’s a great hall which immediately reminded us of Verizon Hall in Philadelphia, which we love – turns out the same team designed it. Wonderful audience, wonderful reception. We’re ready to come back anytime. Our free time in Singapore has consisted of a lot of the amazing variety of food on offer here, and several of the garden attractions – the Garden by the Bay and the National Botanical Garden – both of which many of us fell into with delight and relief to have some oxygen to bask in and delicious air to breathe. Anyone who’s been in China lately will understand. The heat is something else, but didn’t really keep us from exploring. Casey’s birthday called for some Singapore Slings at Raffles and so on. Below is the view from our breakfast room. To the left of the Sands Hotel resort ( the three legged building with the boat on top) is the Esplanade which to the locals looks like bug eyes or a durian -the favorite fruit of Singapore.

Tonight we did a choral workshop ( of the sort that we have done in Vienna and Aosta) where several hundred people come to sing with us. Jace flew in to lead it, and it seemed to be a great success. Lots of choral people came and had interesting questions at the end – about how we align vowels, differences between British and American approaches and so on. We did an English madrigal, All Night All Day ( taught by rote, as we learn this repertoire) and the Biebl Ave Maria. This was the first event of its kind that the Esplanade ( our presenter ) had hosted. It sold out. Our concert tomorrow night is not quite sold out yet, but perhaps it will be now…