Vox Musica to perform ‘Joy and Justice’

By Alejandra Pulido-Guzman - Lethbridge Herald on November 25, 2022.

Herald photo by Alejandra Pulido-Guzman Vox Musica director Joanne Collier leads a rehearsal for the upcoming Joy and Justice concert at Southminster United Church.

LETHBRIDGE HERALDapulido@lethbridgeherald.com

Vox Musica Choral Society is ready to present their fall concert featuring a 2000 year old message set to two pieces of music composed 300 years apart, during one performance on Saturday at Southminster United Church.

The concert, titled Joy and Justice, will feature two major works: Magnificat in D, BWV 243 by J.S. Bach and Magnificat by contemporary Norwegian composer, Kim André Arnesen, accompanied by a 22 piece orchestra and featuring local soloists.

“Vox traditionally does a big concert in the fall semester and a big concert in the spring semester, so this is our big fall concert,” said Joanne Collier, music director of Vox Musica.

The concert will see 65 singers, a 22 piece orchestra, and five soloists.

“One of them (soloists) sings regularly with Vox, that’s our assistant conductor Karen Hudson, but the others are either forging musical careers for themselves out of Lethbridge or they’re still studying,” said Collier.

She said one of the sopranos, Madison Craig is a graduate of the University of Lethbridge music program as well as tenor Jason Ragan and bass Peter Monaghan.

“Our alto soloist Zoe Pepper, she is in her fourth and final year at the U of L. We have a mix of soloists but they are a very well matched group and I think they are going to sound great together with the orchestra,” said Collier.

She said the concert will be approximately 90 minutes including intermission with the first half focusing on Magnificat in D, BWV 243 by J.S. Bach and the second half showcasing Magnificat by contemporary Norwegian composer, Kim André Arnesen.

“The music is so beautiful for this and they’re so contrasting. The Bach, it’s just joyful, exuberant music and is baroque music so it’s rhythmic and just really easy to listen to, and then in the second-half, it’s music from 300 years later, a current piece that has just been composed relatively recently within the last ten years and the sonic experience is different as it is much more reflective,” said Collier.

She said it is really interesting that both are the same text, but they are set so differently and they bring up different things in the meanings of the words.

“One thing that appeals to me is that it’s a text from the gospel of Luke in the Bible, but no matter what your faith or what you believe, the message in this text is really relevant today,” said Collier.

She said it is because it is about raising up those who are low, recognizing the beauty in everybody.

“And those people who are big and proud, they’re going to be cast down, and it’s just about being good. It’s a piece about being a good human being,” said Collier.

The performance is at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at Southminster United Church.

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