It’s been awhile since I last wrote a live gig review although it’s also been a while since live gigs were the norm. I think I lost the appetite somewhat during the lockdown years although I had written a review of this year’s Download Festival which I may post later. To be honest I’m yet to see some bands I booked tickets for in 2019! They’re rescheduled for 2023 from 2020. However I’m back again which is similar in a way to Commotio although we did see them in April.
My partner and I were meeting in Oxford as she was out singing with her quartet. I received a call from her as I was on the delayed train, our usual eating place, the Portuguese Chicken emporium was closed until further notice following a technical problem! So we met in a cafe bar which can only be described as bohemian in decoration. After all I’ve never been anywhere that serves its beer from a tab attached to a full size bath with a mannequin sitting in it 🙂
From there it was a short walk, past the closed emporium which had staff in, to St. John the Evangelist Arts where Commotio were performing. This time we got the correct venue. In April we turned up here as it’s normally where they sing only to be seated (no idea how that happened as we didn’t have the correct tickets) and left wondering why there was a grand piano where the choir would normally be! We decided ahead of time if this happened again we’d stay, no disrespect to Commotio but it was a tad chilly out to be dashing half way across Oxford again.
We took our place in the second row, third actually but the front is always out of bounds, and settled in. A lady approached and asked if the seat was free and left her daughter sitting there. We had a brief chat as the girl had a few books with her. Turns out she’d been there all day and had already heard the performance so was going to read, must be a fast reader with 3 books to get through 🙂
The lights dimmed and Commotio walked out, well half did and stood off to the left of us. The rest stood in the choir stalls behind the Rood Screen whilst the soloist took her place in the pulpit. Not the usual arrangement for them and the soloist did look somewhat nervous. As she began those nerves faded as Richard Marlow’s arrangement of Bach’s “Wachet Auf”, “Advent Repository” began. Several bars in and a trio of singers appeared on top of the Rood Screen. That was a surprise as it didn’t look sturdy enough to have a walkway. Unfortunately it also drew my eye to the statue of Jesus which could do with a bit of a clean. By the way Commotio, like Tool, prohibit the taking of photo’s during the concert the one here was taken during the interval.
Such an exquisite piece to begin the evening of Christmas choral music. The choir reconvene in their usual place in front of the Rood screen to recommence the concert.
As the evening progresses you quickly realise, if you’ve never seen or heard Commotio before, that this isn’t going to be a straight forward carol service, far from it in fact. Very few of the pieces are often heard although there is a good sprinkling of more contemporary works and even a new one composed this year. Despite this or perhaps because of it Commotio always, every time, and without fail deliver a master class in the art of choral singing. Not a note out of place their voices entwine, disengage, recombine and soar. I’m used to room filling soundscape concerts at high volume but Commotio, with voice alone, can deliver this too. In particular their climax to a couple of pieces threaten to raise the roof but you can hear and feel those sound waves rising heaven wards and dissipating amongst the vaulted ceiling.
Their third piece is slightly longer than usual comprising of 9 parts and with multiple soloists who transition to the outside of the group to perform. Afterwards Matthew, the conductor and director of Commotio addresses us. He speaks about the past few years and hiatus in musical performance in, what I thought, was a melancholy manner. About the lost time and the inability to sing together in practice let alone in front of an audience. He remarks on the large number of people who have come out to see them and, I believe, takes heart from that. We’re back and they’re back but we’ve come back because of their wondrous sound, arrangement and joy they have and give. Whilst I understand it was a very difficult time for groups such as choirs, no singing in church for congregation either, other music did carry on to some extent. We attended quite a few “Armchair Concerts” by The Blackheart Orchestra and I even attended a live, on-line only, performance by one of my favourite Metal bands, Lacuna Coil, from Italy. However Matthew is right in that nothing beats a live performance and I’m sure nothing beats performing live for a choir such as Commotio.
After another beautiful piece of music it is time to refresh our glasses and sample the home made mince pies. The girl sitting next to me is cajoled into helping with the distribution of the mince pies whilst my partner chatted to the first soloist and was surprised to learn she’d had no formal training at all but simply enjoys singing. I have to say that comes across in spades and echoes many other areas of expertise where if you enjoy doing something it shows in the execution of that pastime.
The second half starts off with a world premier of “In the bleak midwinter” by John Duggan and is definitely not the Christmas Carol you’re thinking of. However the way the music is set and sung by the choir you are transported to that frozen Victorian landscape aided by the slight draft coming from a door being left ajar somewhere. The composer is present to hear it and comes forward to receive the applause.
Commotio follow this with what I can only describe as the eeriest choral piece I’ve ever heard. The sound is discordant yet intense as the various voices weave together only to unravel almost simultaneously. More join overlapping and piercing the air and it sends a bit of a shiver down my spine that’s definitely not from that draft. However the longer it goes on the more harmonious it became and even the girl next to me has looked up from her book. Originally written in 1972 it has recently been revised and the composer was also there to take the applause.
Being a fan of probably the more outlandish genre of music, Heavy Metal, this may appeal to some of my fellow devotees who wouldn’t ordinarily attend a choral concert. That said those same devotees love hearing Jo Quail perform. I also note that normally I’m standing in a group of black clad figures listening to music but here instead I’m listening to a group of black clad singers!
A few shorter works follow but each is delivered exquisitely with a wonderful balance of sound and harmonies that are a joy to hear. It’s also a joy to be there luxuriating in the warm embrace the voices deliver with such expertise, grace and delight. As I said earlier those voices are raised to the rafters, rolling over us and lifting our spirits whilst also warming our hearts.
They end with another magnificent piece and I wonder if perhaps it was selected to be the close because of its rhythmic catchy style. We already know combining voices in certain patterns provides an intricate harmony and here is no exception. Each part combines harmonizing together providing the basis for that hook that gets us involved. Feet are tapping and heads bobbing in time. What a delight to end on but as with all enjoyable times it feels it ends too quickly and as the choir depart the applause is, aptly, rapturous.
After the hiatus Commotio are back and we, the audience, will be back next time too.
My Review Score: 10
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