Orange County Choral Society Stars & Stripes Forever

REVIEW:  Stars & Stripes Forever, July 2013

The Orange County Choral Society under the artistic direction of Christopher Gravis delivered a fitting tribute to our Nation this past July 3. The fine ensemble maintained their blended, uniform sound throughout a program that included everything from traditional folk tunes and patriotic songs to a lovely Aaron Copland selection excerpted from Copland’s opera The Tender Land.

The program of Americana featuring 35 of the approximately 65 voices that comprise the main ensemble and a band of 15 exceptional instrumentalists opened with “The National Anthem,” followed by the John Philip Sousa march, “The Washington Post,” to which audience members waved American flags that had been provided by greeters. The Choral Society then sang a spirited rendering of “Hark, I Hear the Harps Eternal” with a well-handled polyphony and an intelligibility that is often lacking in performances of this work by other groups. The excellent soloists complementing the work were Andrea Zomorodian and Scott Ziemann.

I couldn’t help but thoroughly enjoy “How Can I Keep From Singing?” This was an absolutely luscious presentation of the Robert Lowry composition. The song was clearly and deftly sung from the heart.

I had been looking forward to the work from The Tender Land titled “The Promise of Living.” For my taste the instrumentalists overbalanced the voices, though both ensembles put out a surprising amount of sound and the overall effect was quite pleasing.

Next we heard a warm, nuanced rendering of “Shenandoah” and a multi-genre arrangement of “When the Saints Go Marching In.” A showy opening for the latter selection transitioned to Dixieland, to the blues and to a stately “rise of the moon,” culminating in a rousing finish and audience participation.

Intonation and rhythmic accuracy are two strengths of this solid ensemble, as is their well-tempered vowel uniformity. Dotted rhythms in both “The National Anthem” and “The Battle Hymn of the Republic” were precisely executed.

After intermission, “The Liberty Bell” by Sousa brought everyone back to their seats for more flag waving. Proud veterans stood as the ensemble sang military anthems during “The Armed Forces Salute.” The concert was rounded off with Irving Berlin’s “Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor,” featuring the words of the Emma Lazarus sonnet also placed at the Statue of Liberty, and “God Bless America” with a sweetly sung introduction by Soprano Soloist, Hannah Arevalo.

Flags at the ready, the audience waved out the celebration in grand old style as the instrumentalists performed “The Stars and Stripes Forever.” An encore of “America the Beautiful” followed.

The bright and open St. Wilfrid of York Episcopal Church in Huntington Beach hosted the event which was also underwritten by The St. Wilfrid of York Music Guild.

For information about Orange County Choral Society and upcoming concerts, visit www.occhoralsociety.org

Artistic Director Christopher Gravis with Orange Coast Choral Society members