So the church choir is singing the Credo from Schubert’s Mass in G tomorrow as part of the Lenten observance, and of course they’ve all sung it before and I never have. We’ve rehearsed it the requisite three weeks ahead of time, but since everyone seems to know it so well, we’ve done no woodshedding of the kind I need to learn the piece.
I considered skipping tomorrow, but (Westminster Winds conductor) Lee is conducting while Helen is out, and – added bonus – we’re being accompanied by strings. This is always a treat because the players will mostly be church members who play in the Grand Rapids Symphony.
So … how to practice and learn this music? I searched it on YouTube, found a suitable performance and sang along, music in front of me (much to the dismay of my son and husband – oh well.)
Among the many high school perfomances – and a heroic performance from a Latin country with 4 singers and 4 string players – I found this from a CityMusic Cleveland performance that I thought was very good, if about 4 times faster than seems to be the generally accepted interpretation. I like it.
After playing this over and over – and stumbling through some of the Latin, which I know I won’t have to sing as fast as this – I think I’m ready for the morning. Take a listen – it’s really beautiful (and I can’t believe I’ve never been exposed to it before this). I hope one day I get a chance to sing Schubert’s entire mass.
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