Reviews
Peter Verschoor of Salt Lake City
Submitted by admin on December 19, 2011 - 4:06pmDear Artistic Staff and Choir,
The beauty of your performance of "Messiah" was unsurpassed by any renditon I've ever heard.
The lively tempo and gorgeous balance in the orchestra and choir were superior.
The choruses were sung with such clarity and polish that tears fell down my cheeks during the "Hallelujah Chorus".
Libby Gardner Hall did justice to you--or was it the other way around?
A+ hands down.
Peter Verschoor
Salt Lake City, UT
Utah Voices sings ‘Messiah’ with spirit conviction
Submitted by admin on December 19, 2011 - 4:04pmBY CATHERINE REESE NEWTON
The Salt Lake Tribune
December always brings a full slate of “Messiahs” to the Wasatch Front, and Utah Voices — a relative newcomer to the state’s choral scene — made a noteworthy contribution to the ranks this year.
The 166-voice volunteer choir was founded in summer 2009; over this past Thanksgiving weekend, about half its members participated in a large-forces performance of the Handel oratorio in New York’s Carnegie Hall. This head start resulted in generally well-polished performances of the oratorio’s soaring choruses on Monday; the singers of Utah Voices followed conductor Michael Huff attentively, with only one miscue to speak of. All through the evening, from a buoyant reading of “And the Glory of the Lord” until the final “Amen,” they sang with spirit and conviction.
Monday’s performance in Libby Gardner Concert Hall was an interesting mix of old and new performance practices. A chamber-size pickup orchestra accompanied the large-ish chorus; Huff did an expert job keeping the forces balanced.
Many of the rhythms were smoothed out, recalling “Messiahs” of years past — and the continuo part was played on a synthesizer. The Handel score was trimmed in the interest of time, but only a couple of the transitions — such as the one between the baritone aria “Why do the nations so furiously rage together” and the tenor recitative “He that dwelleth in heaven” — were particularly jarring.
Of the soloists, tenor Robert Breault gave the most polished performance; his laser-focused pianissimos were most impressive, and his use of ornamentation was always tasteful.
But it was mezzo-soprano Mary Ann Dresher who seemed to make the most genuine emotional connection to the music and text, whether in her exuberantly ornamented aria “O thou that tellest good tidings to Zion” or her deeply moving “He was despised.”
Soprano Cindy Dewey brought dramatic flair to the musical telling of the Nativity story and the ever-popular “I know that my Redeemer liveth,” and Shane Warby used his light, agile baritone to especially fine effect on the simmering “Why do the nations rage.”
Utah Voices sing out heartily in 'Carmina'
Submitted by admin on April 2, 2010 - 5:00pmBreault's 'roasting swan' is highlight of cantata — Catherine Reese Newton of the Salt Lake Tribune reports, Utah Voices, the new chorus on the block, seems determined to make a big splash. After introducing itself in December with Handel's "Messiah," the 170-voice ensemble followed up on Friday with another choral blockbuster, Carl Orff's celebrated secular cantata "Carmina Burana."
The chorus gave an enthusiastic and generally well-polished performance under the tag-team batons of artistic director Michael Huff and associate conductor Kelly DeHaan. Each conductor took his turn at the keyboard, joining assistant accompanist Natalie Campbell in the two-piano reduction of the score, when not on the podium; an impressive array of percussionists joined in at key moments.
Soprano Jennifer Larson and baritone Christopher Clayton were appealing as the young lovers in the cantata's third section, "The Court of Love." Clayton also had an amusing turn as the Abbot of Cockaigne in the tavern scene. But it was tenor Robert Breault who stole the show with his portrayal of the roasting swan. His disheveled appearance and hammy antics delighted the full-capacity Libby Gardner Concert Hall crowd -- but, most important, his singing was impeccable...
