As part of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Catholic Church‘s 125th anniversary celebration, it will host the Cleveland Consort of Voices for a special concert at 4 p.m., Sept. 24.
The concert will take place at the church located at 418 W. 15th St. in Lorain, and will be led by Steven Plank, Oberlin College professor of musicology.
Parishioner and church historian Philip Bak said that he frequents Oberlin College’s performances, and the opportunity to see Cleveland Consort of Voices in Lorain is a rare treat.
“I’ve been seeing them for years,” Bak said. “(Plank) started this new group called the Cleveland Consort of Voices, and so I went to one of their concerts and it was wonderful.
“I contacted (Plank) and said we have this anniversary coming up.”
The concert will be entirely a cappella, and will focus on mostly religious-themed music, Bak said.
Pieces will range from modern music, all the way back to selections from the 16th century, he said.
“These are highly trained voices singing; there’s no musical instrument backup,” Bak said. “It’s all vocal.
“These are sacred pieces, generally, that they’re performing.”
Most music from the middle ages was written for churches, Bak said.
While secular music did exist, the vast majority of pieces existed as accompaniment for church services.
The opportunity to hear the music in its “natural habitat” is a rare one, Bak said.
Specifically, he mentioned composer William Byrd, who wrote some of the pieces the consort will perform Sept. 24.
Byrd lived during a tumultuous time in medieval England, where the Church of England took over from the Catholic Church.
Bak noted that all of Byrd’s music had to be adapted from Latin to English, to comply with that shift.
“(Byrd) lived during a very interesting time; he was able to bridge that gap carefully,” Bak said. “(He was) performing for all the kings and Queen Elizabeth at that time, and not losing his head.
“He’s a wonderful, wonderful composer who wrote both times of liturgies, both Catholic and the Church of England.”
The octet will be performing a wide array of pieces, Bak said.
“It’s a diverse program; it’s eclectic,” he said. “But, it all draws on the richness of pieces that can be done by small vocal ensembles within this liturgical tradition.”
Bak urged the public to come out for what likely is a rare opportunity for the city of Lorain.
The concert is free, and refreshments and church tours will follow.
“The acoustics in the Nativity (church) are wonderful, so I think it’ll be a great occasion for the populous to hear that,” Bak said. “We don’t get the opportunity to hear that too much in Lorain.
“It’s somewhat unusual. So, we’re delighted that they’re able to come to the Nativity.”
