Over 300 gather for the concert composed by Ed Willmington
::
05/18/10
Those who missed the premiere performance of Jubilate!
An Ancient-Future Concert Mass last November finally had the opportunity to
enjoy the concert on Friday, May 14, in Pasadena. Composed by Edwin M.
Willmington, director of the Fred Bock Institute of Music at Fuller, Jubilate!
is an original work that intriguingly combines elements old and new. The
performance, accompanied by compelling new
choreography by Fuller student Grete Gryzwana, was enthusiastically received by
over 300 concertgoers at the Lake Avenue Chapel. Also in attendance were
special guests William K. and Delores S. Brehm, founding sponsors of the Brehm
Center for Worship, Theology, and the Arts.
Willmington
describes Jubilate! as “a musical convergence of texts
taken from the origins of the Christian church and timbres familiar in the 21st
century.” Originally commissioned by Fuller’s Brehm Center in response to
an invitation to participate in Pasadena’s 2009 Arts and Ideas Festival,
“Origins,” Jubilate! features the
Fuller Vocal Ensemble, soloists Karen Johnson and Fred Davison, pianist Esther
Kim, a string quartet, oboe, and dancers.
Many of
the common texts of the ancient mass are interpreted with sounds that are both
traditional and modern. Set to music for church and concert purposes, it
includes styles converging east to west, past to present, and choral to rock.
In addition to the live music and visual elements, Jubilate! is undergirded by a prerecorded electronic musical track
that gives it the rich quality of an epic film score.
“It is a
moving experience,” remarked Fred Davison, executive director for the Brehm
Center. After the May 14 performance, he said, “One woman commented that it was
the first time in years that she had truly worshiped.”
To read an interview with Jubilate! composer Ed Willmington or to watch
excerpts of the performance, click here.