Glorious Glorias at Holy Trinity Cathedral

By WILLIAM DART

How the heart sinks whenever one enters the Holy Trinity Cathedral for a musical event. This must be the city's most unattractive concert venue on so many counts, from interval libations and parking through to its lamentable shortcomings in the matter of acoustics.

Auckland Choral's presentation of three Gloria settings was a clever concept, ranging from your standard Vivaldi and the occasionally cheeky Poulenc version to that of John Rutter, a composer dear to the hearts of choral enthusiasts but, alas, tedium incarnate to those who don't count themselves among that clan.

Guest conductor Janet Lince set a brisk pace for the Vivaldi, testing the resources of the St Matthews Chamber Orchestra, although it was the choir which provided the main cause for nervousness, sounding so subdued that they might have been singing from another room.

Deborah Wai Kapohe and Sarah McOnie were attractive and energetic soloists. They worked together sympathetically in their Laudamus Te duet, but Wai Kapohe's solos were too vibrato-laden, particularly in her Domine Deus, singing alongside Alison Dunlop's affecting oboe obbligato. McOnie's solo, Domine Deus, Agnus Dei offered rich tone and a real sense of gravity, with stunning breath control.

Poulenc's Gloria again suffered from the venue's acoustics, although Wai Kapohe's lush vocals were more appropriate here.

Lince opted for a crisp and clean approach rather than the flamboyance the work often demands - after all, had not a programme note alerted us to the fact that it was inspired by tongue-poking angels and football-playing monks?

There was much to admire in the harmonious ensemble of the women, and some elegant woodwind playing behind Wai Kapohe. The final Amens, with the soloist afloat on wafting voices, attained something of the rapture Poulenc was doubtlessly aiming to achieve.

There's a disturbing degree of calculation to John Rutter's Gloria, launching itself in the mode of a Liza Minnelli showstopper and winding up with all the faded splendour of an MGM epic.

Musically, this was the least satisfactory offering of the evening. Untidy phrasing, some sad, lifeless singing from the men in their Domine Deux, rex coelestis and flaccid rhythms all took their inevitable toll.