Concert offers a little something old, new

“Something Old and Something New” is the theme of the Pend Oreille Chorale and Chamber Orchestra Spring Concert, presented free of charge in the First Lutheran Church on Olive Street in Sandpoint. The dates are Friday, June 15, at 7 p.m. and Sunday, June 17, at 3 p.m.

The composers on this concert represent music from the 17th century into the 21st century.

“Not only are we singing and playing compositions across the ages, but for this concert, our Spring performance, music will be a bit on the lighter side,” said director Mark Reiner.

The orchestra will open the program with “Country Gardens,” a well known piece by an American 20th century composer, Percy Grainger. That will be followed with a number for French horn and orchestra written for the orchestra’s French horn soloist, Larry Hanna, by Mark Reiner. Vivaldi, a Baroque composer, will feature two young violinists, Nichol and Max Reed, with his concerto for two violins and orchestra.

The famous, “A Trumpeter’s Lullaby” by American composer Leroy Anderson highlights Aryan Reiner on Trumpet. Two pieces, “Can Can” by Offenbach and “Amtarito Roca” by Texidor will be performed by the orchestra’s brass section, the Selkirk Brass. Members are Aryan Riener, Sandy Wilcox, Larry Hanna, Mark Colburn and Bob Curran. Hungarian composer, Bela Bartok’s “Romanian Folk Dances” brings out many wonderful ethnic rhythms and melodies. The concert’s first half will end with the rich and stately “Triumphal March” by Norwegian composer Edvard Grieg.

The Pend Oreille Piano Trio opens the second half with two movements of Debussy’s “Premier Trio,” composed at age 18. The women’s group of the chorale follow with two pieces, the well known and moving “Irish Blessing,” and then Henry Purcell’s “In These Delightful Groves.” The full chorale begins their section with “Spring Rain” by Mark Reiner, composed in 2018 accompanied by string quintet. “Rejoice,” by 20th century composer Jean Berger follows, and is both fast moving and dissonant. The rhythmic “Geographical Fugue” by Ernst Toch is a spoken piece whose words reflect geographical locations.

“One section begins the fugue, and each part comes in at different times with the same rhythmic words, creating an unusual addition to our concert,” said Reiner.

In direct contrast is the “Song of Simeon” by the romantic Russian composer, Alexander Gretchaninoff, a lush, hymn-like piece in seven parts. Following is a composition by a modern Norwegian composer, Ola Gjeilo, born in 1978, called “Northern Lights” and sung in Latin. Written in 2007, “... this piece and its text is about beauty. About a ‘terrible,’ powerful beauty, although the music, is quite serene on the surface,” states the composer. Closing the concert is the driving, rhythmic “Non Nobis Domine” by the living African-American composer Rosephanye Powell.

The Pend Oreille Chorale and Orchestra, as usual, wish to extend their sincere thank you to the Seventh-day Adventist Church for providing free rehearsal space and to the First Lutheran Church for hosting the performances.