DUKE ELLINGTON SACRED CONCERT AT KING'S CHAPEL
Crouch End Festival Chorus with Blue Planet Orchestra
The King of Jazz was at King’s College last night. Duke Ellington was surely present in spirit, as his libretto sang the refrain of his Sacred Concert ‘Freedom” shouted at one point, in twelve languages, but also full of irony for this master musician was Black in the heat of the oppressive American 1940s and 50s ‘. In fact this glorious contusion of a collective cry for Freedom is just one element to suffuse the piece with protest.
“They lifted the roof off” was Summer Music Festival Director Ben Johnson’s breathless verdict on the concert. He was right. King’s Chapel hosts some remarkable choirs with impressive orchestras but never like this – jazz inside the hallowed walls of a pious medieval monument.
The band began in classic style with a superb piece by leader Roland Perrin on piano, an intro this composer carefully scraped from old recordings of Ellington’s archive. What followed was a brilliant blend of swing, backed by the massive chorus of acclaimed singers. Trumpeters Ryan Quigley and Magnus Pickering sustained a virtuosic blast of raw thrills, along with the accomplished brass section, where Paul Cavaculti on ecstatic drums and Michael Vurtis Ruiz on bass –held the rhythm steady with Conductor David Temple, ‘ We work together,’ Temple told me. They surely did, without this close collaboration the entire hundred strong piece would fall apart. The celebrated massed choir behind them ( they perform at the Proms this week ) were in perfect sync. Add the incomparable voice of Zoe Brookshaw a soprano with so much controlled technique, she sang over the entire controlled cacophony with angelic power. Her performance simply lifted the whole piece on to another plane .
Seasoned broadcaster Russell Davis was in on the pre-performance talk for some reminisces of the 1967 Cambridge performance in Great St. Mary’s Church with unbelievably , the Duke himself in the lead. For a peppercorn fee the entire American band flew over for the event. Young Russell was a fanatical jazz fan and played the trombone. But he nearly scuppered the star of the band, the famous Johnny Hodges. As the Ellington star made his way to the stage Russell tripped him up with his foot. He went flying but survived. Russell’s enjoyment of the amazing Sacrd Concert was enhanced by a sense of relief. He and Roland, in a the skilful interview by David Temple, recounted how the Duke and his principal ally Billy Strayhorn, composed. They lived on the road to the next gig . In one hotel a journalist found them in full creative mode – Ellington in the bath and Billy in another room with a large glass of whiskey.
lBut last night was an evening of dual delight. The excitement of Sacred Concert was preceded by a heart lifting set by the incongruously named Crouch End Choir. Their dedicated founder and conductor David Temple conducted them in a trio of songs, neatly three in each set. The choir is remarkable, from their perfect German rendition of songs by Fanny Mendelssohn-Hensel to the genius of James McCarthy’s beaultiful a Capella choruses from his work 17 Days in honour of the rescue of the Chiliean miners back in 1980. Philip Glass, still remarkably with us, finishes their set with his lovely Leonard Cohen poem and two lyrical French songs, again perfectly executed ( “We do. Have language coaches “ David told me afterwards.
But coming last , Duke Ellington stole the show
The audience responded to Sacred Concert with a relaxed kind of awe, as this remarkable piece evolved. The applause was huge . Classical music devotees and Ellington aficionados merged in delighted appreciation for a titan of jazz with something special to give
