Peter-Anthony Togni: Lamentatio Jeremiae Prophetae

Jeff Reilly, Elmer Iseler Singers, Lydia Adams

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Peter-Anthony Togni: Lamentatio Jeremiae Prophetae
Release date: 16.11.2009 ECM 2129
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Contemporary music that bridges sacred vocal composition and expressive improvisational gestures: “Lamentatio Jeremiae Prophetae” by Canadian composer Peter-Anthony Togni (born 1959) is a 55-minute setting of The Old Testament prophet’s lamentations for solo bass clarinet, mixed choir a cappella and solo soprano. The piece was commissioned from the Canada Council for the Arts as part of its 50th anniversary celebrations and was given its premiere by the performers heard on this CD in 2007. Togni’s idea originated in a request from bass clarinet player Jeff Reilly for a concerto in which dramatic narrative events would be enacted through the soloist’s improvisations. In fact, the piece which, according to the composer, “is a direct expression of my Roman Catholic faith” conveys the story of Jeremiah’s prophesies of the impending destruction of Jerusalem from the hands of the Babylonians with the choir providing the crowd scenes and the bass clarinet as the voice of Jeremiah.

Peter-Anthony Togni studied organ and composition in his native Canada and at the Schola Catorum in Paris. He is a co-founder of the group ‘Sanctuary’, an improvisation-based trio of bass clarinet, organ and cello and has received numerous commissions in various genres. Bass clarinet virtuoso Jeff Reilly has considerably expanded the technical range of his instrument; he has played, among others, with musicians such as Jerry Granelli and the duo of bassist Barry Guy and violinist Maya Homburger.

Featured Artists
  • Jeff ReillyBass Clarinet
  • Rebecca WhelanSoprano
  • Elmer Iseler Singers
  • Lydia AdamsChoir Conductor
Recorded

October 2008, Cathedral Church of All Saints, Halifax

Original Release Date

16.11.2009

This setting from Jeremiah’s Book of Lamentations is an unusual concept. Canadian composer Peter-Anthony Togni has written a five-movement concerto fro bass clarinettist Jeff Reilly in which the clarinet is surrounded by atmospheric choral sounds. The clarinet becomes the voice of Jeremiah while the choir provides the crowd scenes. … The improvisatory, virtuosic performance of Jett Reilly is outstanding – he makes the instrument speak – which in no way diminishes the vital contribution of this fine group of singers and soloist.
Shirley Ratcliffe, Choir & Organ
 
Under Jeff Reilly’s virtuosic control, the bass clarinet possesses an aloof, almost mystical timbre … aptly representing the Old Testament prophet Jeremiah’s lamentations in this piece by Peter-Anthony Togni. It blends sacred choral music, classical concerto from and jazz improvisation, with the bass clarinet furnishing the emotional colour for the Elmer Iseler Singers’ measured delivery of the scriptural texts.
Andy Gill, The Independent
 
Of all the recorded offerings for Holy Week, this is by some measure the most original and affecting that has come my way. Beneath a mixed chorus, Togni bravely inscribes a bass clarinet as his only instrumentation. It is a brilliant decision. The lower registers conjure some of the tropes of Arabic music, while the higher wails hint at klezmer playfulness. The virtuoso clarinettist Jeff Reilly extends his cadenzas across the history of sound, from monotony to modernism, in a performance that is dominant and often hypnotic.
Norman Lebrecht
 
 
 
Contemporary music that bridges the worlds of sacred choral works and improvisational gestures and affiliates the classical concerto and jazz sensibilities: "Lamentatio Jeremiae Prophetae" by Canadian composer Peter-Anthony Togni (born 1959) is a 55-minute setting of The Old Testament prophet's lamentations for solo bass clarinet, mixed choir a cappella and solo soprano. The piece was commissioned by the Canada Council for the Arts as part of its 50th anniversary celebrations and was given its premiere by the performers heard on this CD in 2007. Togni's idea originated in a request from bass clarinet player Jeff Reilly for a concerto in which dramatic narrative events would be enacted through the soloist's improvisations.

In his "Note for the Performers" included in the score Togni states: "Lamentatio Jeremiah Prophetae is a mixture of the virtuoso concerto and the concerto in its original significance …In many cases it features the soloist prominently but more importantly returns to the idea of the collective. The most unifying element being the sonic language itself, it relates to the concept of Klang, an idea often used by the Finnish composer Jean Sibelius. This idea focuses on the palpability of the sound-object itself as a primary expressive and structural element."

The work which, according to the composer, "is a direct expression of my Roman Catholic faith" conveys the story of Jeremiah's prophesies of the destruction of Jerusalem at the hands of the Babylonians, with the choir providing the crowd scenes and the bass clarinet as the voice of Jeremiah. As Keith Horner writes in his liner notes, the "prophet's story resonates as a universal tale of the wise man whose ministry and message of iminent disaster goes unheeded". The composer interprets Jeremiah as a prophet of our time: "It's the role of artists to bring issues to the public consciousness and to dramatise the dangers of complacency."

The concerto's five movements mirror the structure of the five poems of the Book of Lamentations. In selecting the text Togni re-visited choral settings he has long admired (from Tallis and Palestrina to Ginastera and Krenek), comparing his working process to editing a script, working in the manner of a movie director, building on the immediacy of the story as told in the Biblical poems.

Peter-Anthony Togni studied organ and composition in his native Canada and at the Schola Catorum in Paris. He is a co-founder of the group 'Sanctuary', an improvisation-based trio of bass clarinet, organ and cello and has received numerous commissions in various genres. Bass clarinet virtuoso Jeff Reilly has considerably expanded the technical range of his instrument; he has played with musicians such as Jerry Granelli and the duo of bassist Barry Guy and violinist Maya Homburger among others. Internet: www.petertogni.com