As the sounds of hymns and choral music rang out through the Alfred Newman Recital Hall, people sat on the edge of their seats engaged. The Apollo Men’s Chorus and Oriana Women’s Choir created beautiful music Friday, October 30th at The University of Southern California. From the excitement of There’s Nothin’ Like a Dame, to the emotionally moving, “Tell My Father” from the Civil War: An American Musical, these two choirs had everyone captivated by their singing and acting.
The Oriana Women’s Choir had very beautiful sacred and folk music. The Parting Glass, arranged by The Wailin’ Jennys, is a folk song from Ireland that reflects on one’s life without regrets. The way in which they sing it creates anticipation with deliberate rest and pauses. …show more content…
This song, while it never mentions the name a Jesus or God, it does mention the fact that the singer is on his knees hoping and searching for something beautiful. He is asking to be consumed like a fire, which is a metaphor not used in many secular songs. However in Christian songs this is usually asked by the singer so that the Holy Spirit of God will overtake their lives, that they would be consumed with the things of God. The Apollo’s did this song a cappella which made it even more interesting. Your could clearly hear the difference in all the parts they we “playing.” The different instruments and sound they were portraying really made the song come to life along with the live percussion they had. The soloist was a student a UC Berkley, who came to perform this song with them. He performed the song with power and grace, making the audience feel what he was saying to them, what he was praying. The chorus handled the syncopated rhythms so well they made it sound and appear easy. The time signature went back and forth between a 3/4 and a 4/4 was handled and done flawlessly, to the untrained ear it would almost sound as though nothing had happened but there was something different about this section of the song. I have heard this song plenty of times and by many different people, and after hearing it this way, I found a new appreciation for