MUSIC REVIEW : Master Chorale Delivers Brahms and Schumann

Whether it is the warm, buttery tone elicited by a Robert Shaw, the bland porridge blend preferred by the late Fred Waring or the unruly yelping of a volunteer church choir, there are as many different choral sounds as there are choruses and chorus directors.

The existence of a distinctive William Hall sound was demonstrated once again Saturday at Chapman College, as Hall led the Master Chorale of Orange County in an elegant program of music by Brahms and Schumann for mixed voices.

Hall, less and less an unsung musical hero in the Southland, proved his mettle on this occasion. At only his second concert as permanent director of the chorale, the ensemble responded with a clear understanding of his objectives. In other words, the blueprint of that characteristic Hall sound--cushioned, mellow, always contained but never muffled--is audibly in place.

The music--all difficult, imbued with the nuance and subtlety of each composer’s greatest art songs--held pitfalls galore.

This was less choral music than lieder to be sung by a crowd. Unanimity of emotional projection would have been virtually impossible to attain over so long a program, but there were happy successes.

The women bettered the men at conveying the softer, lighter feelings. They even swayed and bobbed at appropriate moments in Brahms’ “Liebeslieder Waltzes,” while the men, whom they surrounded, stood businesslike and immobile.

On the other hand, in a despairing song such as Schumann’s “Dunkler Lichtglanz,” the women’s tone and expressions were as sunny as for the brighter selections, leaving the men to communicate the darker emotions.

The evening’s highlights? Brahms’ “Die Boten der Liebe,” with a beautiful pianissimo section (men only), “Die Meere” and “Der Gang zum Liebchen.” Gorgeous music, glowingly performed.

Sandy McCune was the efficient, hard-working pianist, not always able to produce the required sonority in more extroverted moments. When joined by Grant Gershon for the four-hand “Liebeslieder,” she played with panache and obvious enjoyment. The audience left humming.