WNMD 2025 · CONCERT 25
Dawns and Downs / Auroras e precipícios
06-06-2025 · 21h30
Culturgest, Grande Auditório
Lisbon
Bilheteira · Box Office (Culturgest)
João Barros
NOVA ERA VOCAL ENSEMBLE
João Barros · conductor
OLIVIER MESSIAEN (France, 1908-1992)
Sacrum Convivium (1937), 4’30’’
TÕNU KÕRVITS (Estonia, 1969)
Canticle of the sun (2014)
IV. Brother Wind and Air
VI. Sister Water
KERENSA BRIGGS (UK, 1991) YCA
Media Vita (2015) 3’10’’
ALFREDO SANTA ANA (Canada, 1980)
The River of Hellos and Goodbyes (2024), 5'
ISCM Music on Main submission
Erica Mandillo
CORO JUVENIL DA UNIVERSIDADE DE LISBOA
Erica Mandillo · conductor
João Lucena e Vale · piano
MIRELA IVIČEVIĆ (Croatia, 1980)
Innate Heaven (Music for Religious Institutions, Chapter I) (2023)
ISCM Croatian section submission
EVA AGUILAR (Portugal, 2002) YCA
Alumia (2022)
DAN WALKER (Australia, 1978)
Listen. Are you breathing just a little and calling it a life? (2022)
ISCM Australian Section submission
ANDRÉ RUIZ (Portugal, 1971)
Água Viva (2023) WP
CHRIS SIVAK (Canada, 1982)
Alouette Meets Her Maker (2018))
ISCM Canadian Section submission
— intermission —
BENJAMIN BRITTEN (UK, 1913–1976)
The Ballad of Little Musgrave (1943)
FERNANDO LOPES-GRAÇA (Portugal, 1906–1994)
3 Esconjuros (1956)
JUKKA LINKOLA (Finland, 1955)
Primitive Music: (1998),'
1. The Sunrise,
2. The Work Song,
3. The Candle Song,
4. The Ritual Dance,
5. The Joiku
SOLIA SARIOLA (Finland, 1977)
Pakkanem
GABRIEL FAURÉ (France, 1845–1924)
Cantique de Jean Racine (1865)
YCA · ISCM Young Composers Award candidate
WP · world premiere
with the support of
[ENG]
The Youth Choir of the University of Lisbon and the Nova Era Vocal Ensemble come together in this unique concert to bring us voices of the world without borders.
This concert brings together a rich and varied selection of choral works from around the world, reflecting diverse aesthetic visions, poetic traditions, and social resonances — from the sacred and contemplative to the boldly political and deeply personal.
Opening with Messiaen’s luminous motet O sacrum convivium, we are invited into a space of spiritual stillness, followed by Tõnu Kõrvits’s meditative evocation of nature in two movements from Canticle of the Sun. The programme then turns to the haunting Media Vita by UK composer Kerensa Briggs, a modern reflection on mortality inspired by early Renaissance polyphony.
From Canada, Alfredo Santa Ana’s The River of Hellos and Goodbyes explores an innovative poetic-musical dialogue, while Mirela Ivičević’s provocative Innate Heaven confronts bodily politics and reclaiming sensuality through sonic layering and irony. Young Portuguese composer Eva Aguilar brings a poetic inner glow with Alumia, while André Ruiz’s Água Viva charts the life-giving journey of water in a world premiered work.
In Dan Walker’s Listen, breath itself becomes music in a multilingual exploration of mindfulness and meaning. Meanwhile, Chris Sivak’s Alouette Meets Her Maker imaginatively reanimates a defunct satellite in a sci-fi parable of technology and mortality.
The concert continues with two historical touchpoints: Benjamin Britten’s dramatic retelling of Little Musgrave, composed in a POW camp during WWII, and Fernando Lopes-Graça’s Três Esconjuros, which weaves folk incantations into modernist choral textures with fiery character and wit.
Finally, Finnish composers Jukka Linkola and Solia Sariola take us close to the programme end with vibrant vocal landscapes: Primitive Music offers a dynamic suite of human expression through vocal improvisation and jazz rhythms, while Pakkanen captures the austere beauty of the Nordic winter.
To close the concert, the Youth Choir of the University of Lisbon and the Nova Era Vocal Ensemble join their voices to present Cantique de Jean Racine by Gabriel Fauré, with its serene beauty and harmonic richness, qualities that would become hallmarks of his mature style.
Bringing together works from Europe, North America, and Australia, this concert is both a celebration of vocal expression and a testament to the global voices shaping today’s choral music.
[PT]
O Coro Juvenil da Universidade de Lisboa & o Nova Era Vocal Ensemble juntam-se neste concerto único para nos trazer as vozes do mundo sem fronteiras.
Este concerto reúne uma seleção rica e variada de obras corais de diferentes partes do mundo, refletindo visões estéticas diversas, tradições poéticas e ressonâncias sociais — entre o sagrado e o contemplativo, o político e o profundamente íntimo.
O programa abre com o moteto luminoso de Olivier Messiaen, O sacrum convivium, que nos convida a um espaço de quietude espiritual, seguido por duas meditações sonoras de Tõnu Kõrvits sobre a natureza, extraídas de Canticle of the Sun. De seguida, escutamos Media Vita, da compositora britânica Kerensa Briggs, uma reflexão contemporânea sobre a mortalidade inspirada no espírito da polifonia renascentista.
Do Canadá, The River of Hellos and Goodbyes de Alfredo Santa Ana propõe um diálogo inovador entre música e poesia, enquanto Innate Heaven, de Mirela Ivičević, confronta questões políticas e sociais ligadas ao corpo e à sexualidade através de sobreposições sonoras e ironia. A jovem compositora portuguesa Eva Aguilar oferece uma centelha poética e interior com Alumia, ao passo que Água Viva, de André Ruiz, traça em estreia absoluta a viagem simbólica da água — da nuvem ao oceano.
Em Listen, de Dan Walker, a respiração transforma-se em música, numa exploração multilingue da atenção plena e da procura de sentido. Por sua vez, Chris Sivak oferece uma parábola sci-fi sobre tecnologia e mortalidade com Alouette Meets Her Maker, onde um satélite é reanimado numa viagem sonora alucinante.
O concerto continua com dois marcos históricos: a narrativa trágica de Britten em Little Musgrave, composta num campo de prisioneiros durante a Segunda Guerra Mundial, e os Três Esconjuros de Fernando Lopes-Graça, onde rezas populares são reinventadas em texturas corais modernas cheias de carácter e ironia.
O programa aproxima-se do final com duas paisagens vocais vindas da Finlândia: Primitive Music, de Jukka Linkola, uma vibrante suite coral que funde elementos jazzísticos e improvisação vocal, e Pakkanen, de Solia Sariola, que evoca com grande frescura a dureza e beleza serena do inverno nórdico.
Para encerrar o concerto, o Coro Juvenil da Universidade de Lisboa e o Nova Era Vocal Ensemble unem as suas vozes para interpretar o Cantique de Jean Racine, de Gabriel Fauré, obra marcada por uma beleza serena e uma riqueza harmónica que viriam a tornar-se traços distintivos do estilo maduro do compositor.
Reunindo obras da Europa, América do Norte e Austrália, este concerto é tanto uma celebração da expressão vocal como um testemunho das vozes globais que moldam a música coral dos nossos dias.
NOVA ERA VOCAL ENSEMBLE
Beatriz Abreu, Mafalda Carvalho, Maria Inês Canavilhas, Vera Livério, Marija Voitenkova, Markéta Chumová, Inês Chora, Sarah Keane, Bianca Varela, Joana Silva, Tiago Caldas, Tiago Guedes, Pedro Pinto, Filipe Teixeira, João Ávila, Martim Líbano Monteiro, João Chaves, Lucas Robert, Alexandre Coelho, Manuel Fontão
YOUTH CHOIR OF THE LISBON UNIVERSITY:
Alice Luís, Alice Marques, Beatriz Alves, Camila Costa, Carolina Guimarães, Catarina Pinto, Clara Bacharel, Daniel Melenas, David Alves, Eva Aguilar, Félix Nunes Robb, Francisca Soares, Gustavo Luz, Joana Cabral, Joana Madeira Cameirão, Joana Serra, Joana Ribeiro, João Hörnig, João Bacharel, Johanna Ahamad, José Louro, Júlia Núncio, Laura Paiva, Leonor Tomé, Lucas Robert, Madalena Cardeira, Madalena Santos, Mafalda Simões Correia, Manuel Mota, Maria Beatriz Gonçalves, Inês Lourenço, Leonor Lourenço, Maria Grilo, Maria Carita, Maria Santos, Mariana Amaro, Mariana Eiró, Mariana Pereira, Matias Rodrigues, Matilde Valadas, Matilde Luís, Matilde Rosa, Sara Robert, Simão Guerreiro, Sofia Vale, Sofia Santos, Tiago Saad, Tiago Varela da Silva, Tomás Silva, Tomás Costa, Tomé Beles, Vasco Pinto Gonçalves, Vasco Varela da Silva
PROGRAMME NOTES
OLIVIER MESSIAEN (France, 1908-1992)
Sacrum Convivium (1937), 4’30’’
O sacrum convivium! is a luminous motet composed in 1937 by French composer Olivier Messiaen (1908–1992). Setting a Latin text attributed to St. Thomas Aquinas, this brief yet profound work celebrates the mystery of the Eucharist.
Scored for four-part mixed choir, with optional organ accompaniment, the piece is marked Lent et expressif (Slow and expressive). It unfolds in a serene F-sharp major tonality, a key Messiaen often associated with mystical love. The motet's harmonic language, while rooted in traditional tonality, hints at Messiaen's later explorations of modes of limited transposition, offering a glimpse into his evolving musical voice.
TÕNU KÕRVITS (Estonia, 1969)
Canticle of the sun (2014)
IV. Brother Wind and Air
VI. Sister Water
Estonian composer Tõnu Kõrvits's Canticle of the Sun is a 12-movement choral work for mixed choir, setting the revered text by Saint Francis of Assisi. Composed in 2014, the piece reflects Kõrvits's signature style—melding lyrical melodies with rich harmonic textures to create a meditative and evocative soundscape.
The composition follows the structure of Saint Francis's original poem, with movements
Each movement pays homage to elements of nature and existence, embodying Saint Francis's vision of unity with the natural world. Kõrvits's composition captures this essence through serene melodies and contemplative harmonies, inviting listeners into a space of reflection and reverence.
KERENSA BRIGGS (UK, 1991) YCA
Media Vita (2015) 3’10’’
The text, Media vita in morte sumus ("In the midst of life we are in death"), is attributed to Notker Balbulus, a 9th-century Benedictine monk from the Abbey of Saint Gall in Switzerland. Legend suggests he penned these words while observing laborers constructing a bridge under perilous conditions.
Briggs’s setting for unaccompanied double choir draws inspiration from Sheppard's original motet, embracing its intensity and fluidity. She employs Renaissance techniques such as false relations and imitative writing, interwoven with contemporary harmonic language and reflective sonorities. This fusion evokes a profound awareness of mortality alongside a hope for redemption.
ALFREDO SANTA ANA (Canada, 1980)
The River of Hellos and Goodbyes (2024), 5'
ISCM Music on Main submission
— Commissioned by Vancouver's musica intima, the music for this work was written before poet Colin Browne wrote any of the words. After completing a word-less score, Colin and I listened to the ensemble do a read through of the work, and only after he began conceptualizing the text. Once the text was finished, I began a process of setting the words onto the score, altering rhythms where necessary, but retaining all of the features of the music before any of the text was conceived. The result is a piece of music that I would never had been able to write if I saw these words first. The process of setting the words to the very music that inspired them was a true discovery, a new form of creative collaboration for composer and poet.
MIRELA IVIČEVIĆ (Croatia, 1980)
Innate Heaven (Music for Religious Institutions, Chapter I) (2023), 5'
ISCM Croatian section submission
— The piece was inspired with the current notorious habit of croatian religious extremists to occupy public, secular spaces all over croatian cities to pray for chastity of women, as well as with testimony of Croatian Member of Parliament Ivana Ninčević Lesandrić to the House and Minister of Health, on October 11th, 2018 after she had to endure a curettage - medical procedure of scraping uterus, in croatian public hospitals done predominantly with tied hands and feet and without anaesthesia. Sexual moaning in music hasn’t been new, at least since Je t'aime... moi non plus. Here though, soft moans of female voices create a pleasure-seeking unity with the klapa-like singing of the male choir, a music form that has its origin in liturgical singing, in an attempt to re-claim the body as a source of pleasure, and infuse a trace of pleasure into the pain-celebrating reality.
EVA AGUILAR (Portugal, 2002) YCA
Alumia (2022)
Porque a pobreza é uma grande luz que vem de dentro.
(For poverty is luminous from within)
– Rilke
ANDRÉ RUIZ (Portugal, 1971)
Água Viva (2023), 4’ WP
Água Viva is based on the journey of this precious element, from its descent from the clouds, its path across the earth, and its flowing into the ocean, also touching on the life created within it.
DAN WALKER (Australia, 1978)
Listen. Are you breathing just a little and calling it a life? (2022), 5'
ISCM Australian Section submission
— This work explores the idea of self-awakening and the search to find meaning in the everyday. The title is taken from a Mary Oliver poem, and has been split up and translated into three languages: Nepali, Mandarin and Arabic. One have used the sounds inherent in these words to mimic breath, something that singers in particular are very conscious of. The work opens with a short series of chromatic phrases, as the singers 'breathe in' and 'breathe out', seemingly with difficulty. These phrases layer and twist around each other and build in intensity until a moment of contemplation takes place. The singers ask the audience to 'listen', then pose the question 'Is this life?'. In rhythmic unison, the voices join together in the repeating question, gaining strength and confidence each time. We are left with the choir asking us again to 'listen': to our surroundings, to our loved ones, and to our hearts.
CHRIS SIVAK (Canada, 1982)
Alouette Meets Her Maker (2018), 5'
ISCM Canadian Section submission
— The Alouette I was the first Canadian satellite and was launched on September 26th, 1962. The launch made Canada the third nation, after the USSR and the United States, to design and construct its own satellite and cemented Canada’s reputation as a space-faring nation. Alouette’s mission lasted for 10 years before she was deliberately switched off on September 30th, 1972. She remains in orbit – as a derelict – to this day. In this piece, Alouette`s circuits inexplicably come alive after remaining dormant for over 30 years. As she becomes aware once again of her orbit and proximity to earth she hears a mysterious voice from deep space. The voice calls to her soothingly until its intentions are revealed to be malicious once it threatens to literally pluck her from the sky (ie. “Je te plumerai”). Alouette panics and sends out desperate pleas for help but she can`t fight the forces pulling her to her doom. She careens to the ground below, exploding in a fiery heap. The piece closes with the last gasp of life from her circuits before they are silenced forever.
BENJAMIN BRITTEN (UK, 1913–1976)
The Ballad of Little Musgrave (1943), 5'
The narrative tells the tale of Lady Barnard and her lover, Little Musgrave, whose affair is discovered by her husband, Lord Barnard, leading to a tragic confrontation. Britten's music vividly depicts the unfolding drama, beginning with a plodding piano introduction that sets the scene. As the story progresses, the vocal lines intensify, reflecting the growing tension and eventual tragedy.
Notably, Britten composed this work for Richard Wood and the musicians of Oflag VIIb, a German prisoner-of-war camp, where it was performed during a music festival organized by the prisoners.
FERNANDO LOPES-GRAÇA (Portugal, 1906–1994)
3 Esconjuros (1956), 5'
Três Esconjuros is a choral work by Portuguese composer Fernando Lopes-Graça, set for a cappella choir. The piece comprises three movements, each drawing upon traditional Portuguese texts associated with protective incantations or "esconjuros":
Contra os maus encontros (Against Evil Encounters)
Contra os maridos transviados (Against Wayward Husbands)
Contra as trovoadas (Against Thunderstorms)
Lopes-Graça was renowned for his dedication to Portuguese folk traditions and his ability to integrate them into classical music frameworks. In Três Esconjuros, he employs modal harmonies and rhythmic patterns reminiscent of folk music, creating a tapestry that is both authentic and artistically sophisticated. The work reflects his commitment to preserving cultural heritage while innovatively adapting it for contemporary concert settings.
JUKKA LINKOLA (Finland, 1955)
Primitive Music: (1998), 8'
1. The Sunrise,
2. The Work Song,
3. The Candle Song,
4. The Ritual Dance,
5. The Joiku
Commissioned by the renowned Tapiola Choir, the work explores elemental human expressions through a fusion of jazz-inspired rhythms and evocative vocal textures. Notably, the piece employs a "nonsense" language, allowing the focus to rest entirely on the musical and emotional content.
Each movement delves into a distinct facet of human experience, from the awe of dawn to the communal rhythms of labor, the tenderness of lullabies, the fervor of ritualistic dances, and culminating in The Joiku, a homage to the traditional Sámi vocal art form.
Primitive Music stands as a testament to Linkola's versatility, seamlessly blending classical choral traditions with jazz elements and world music influences. The composition has been performed by various ensembles, including the Taipei Chamber Singers, showcasing its universal appeal and adaptability.
SOLIA SARIOLA (Finland, 1977)
Pakkanem
The composition is characterized by its evocative harmonies and rhythmic vitality, reflecting the biting cold and serene landscapes of Finland's winter season. Sariola employs innovative vocal techniques and textures to bring the traditional melody to life, creating an immersive auditory experience that resonates with both performers and audiences.
GABRIEL FAURÉ (France, 1845–1924)
Cantique de Jean Racine (1865)
Composed in 1865 when Fauré was just 19 years old, Cantique de Jean Racine is one of his earliest significant works.Written as a graduation piece for the École Niedermeyer de Paris, it earned him first prize in a school competition. The piece is dedicated to César Franck, underlining the young composer's admiration for his elder contemporary.
The text is a French paraphrase by 17th-century dramatist Jean Racine of the Latin hymn Consors paterni luminis, traditionally sung at matins. Fauré's setting for mixed choir and organ (or piano) is marked by its serene beauty and harmonic richness, qualities that would become hallmarks of his mature style