November 2nd 2018 at the Theatre aan de Parade. opening of the November Music Festival in Den Bosch, The Netherlands. The much expected world premiere of the Jeroen Bosch requiem: Lux Aeterna : Vivid by composer Kate Moore. The 'composer-in-focus' at this years festival. As an introduction to the 2018 Festival and the Bosch requiem the audience was guided to five sacred places in the city, where narrators and musicians commemorated a.o. the Jewish concentration camp victims in front of a plaque, the story of the remarkable city jester Janus Kiep at his former home and in front of the theatre the 481 mysteries performed by Maria to which pages now one was added: Kate Moore bringing eternal light with her composition.
The Requiem Ensemble
But before it was music time there was a rather witty introduction by Eric Alink, under the motto: Believe first, then see.
On to the music. Four ensembles perform the piece: TEMKO, Herz Ensemble and the voices of Cappella Pratensis and Wishful Singing. The special ensemble is conducted by Jane Lang.
The piece starts with a heavenly countertenor solo performed by Kaspar Kröner as introduction. After that the main five parts follow, with parts for the ensemble as a whole and sequences for the five female voices of Wishful Singing and Temko and for cello, violin and piano. And a special instruments is introduced by Kate. From her native Australia she included the didgeridoo. Seven didgeridoos, varying in tonal range. Ably played by Dutchwoman Lies Beijerinck.
The first part 'Lucidity' is dedicated to the 96 beings of the Den Bosch Cathedral, next to the Theatre aan de Parade. Followed by Stabat Mater and Dies Irae. The latter perfomed subtly by the piano trio. In part four 'Providence; Revelation of the Creatures Kate goes to the extreme. And part five, Clarity, leads to a coda that is not a coda in the sense of the word, but a true climax on it's own: Lux Aeterna - the eternal light.
A spontaneous standing ovation for composer and performers. A truly 'grand opening' of the Festival.
Lies Beijerinck - Didgeridoo
After composer and Bang on a Can All-Stars clarinet player Ken Thompson and composer Michael Gordon had congratulated Kate, she told me:"The piece starts with a countertenor solo. I love the sound of countertenors. It's magical." And about writing for the human voice:"I did write earlier for voices. I composed four pieces for voice (including of course the companion piece to this Requiem: Sacred Environment. In 2018 the world premiere of that composition was part of the famous Holland Festival). And I congratulated Kate with this Requiem being surely her Magnum Opus.
Kate Moore (right) and Lidy Blijdorp
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