Reflections on our December 2024 Concerts

By ​Christina Sunstone, Alto, Magnolia Chorale

The second weekend of December was a big one for Magnolia Chorale: after weeks of studying the music, learning the texts (none of them in English), and practicing together every Sunday, it was time to don our all-black ensembles and stand before an audience, hoping to do honor to the beautiful music of Gabriel Fauré.

Preparing for this concert brought certain challenges, and language was one of the most daunting.  Few of us in the choir speak French or Latin, and none of us wanted to jar our audiences by mangling the languages as we sang. We penciled phonetic approximations of puzzling words into our scores. (How would YOU pronounce ouir?) We spoke up when we did know how to say something and heard others mispronouncing it. But by far the most helpful tools were the language workshops arranged by our director Joseph To, who brought in Nicolas Renaud, the music director for La Chorale Francophone, to walk us through the texts, clapping out rhythms and reminding us constantly to narrow our u’s and open our o’s.

A special treat of this performance was that, thanks to generous contributions from guest artist sponsors Bay Café, Metro Dog, and Magnolia Physical Therapy, and support from other funding sources, we were able to perform with a full orchestra, including harp and organ. This added a dimension that, along with the wonderful acoustics offered by the Magnolia Lutheran Church sanctuary, gave a depth, richness, and beauty to the music that I hadn’t even guessed at during our rehearsals in the comfortable, but acoustically subdued, fellowship hall where we normally rehearse.
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It’s fun to sing under Joseph’s direction.  You can feel that he has a vision, and that he believes in the choir. He knows it can rise to that vision. It feels like he enjoys leading the choir as much as we enjoy singing in it. So I’m looking forward to our program next term, titled “Harmonies of Hope: A Path to Peace” which we’ll perform on Saturday May 3 and Sunday May 4, 2025. This program offers themes of hope, unity, and world peace. After our December concert just concluded, I’d say we’re on the right path.
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If you’d like to sing with us, rehearsals start Sunday January 26. Check out the details here.

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