With the new year, NB is all rested and ready to focus on BCE’s next venture: TENEBRÆ. To introduce the program, NB spoke with BCE’s music director, Miguel Felipe, to share his plans for the program.
Nota Bene: Miguel, would you please orient us to exactly what TENEBRÆ is?
Miguel Felipe: Of course. TENEBRÆ is a concert like others in BCE history: Magnificat or A Peaceable Kingdom come to mind. It’s what I like to call a curated musical experience. In this case, the context into which I’ve built the program is that of the Catholic office known as Tenebræ. Within this format, I’ve lifted music from several eras to create a universal sort of Tenebræ experience for our audiences.
NB: What exactly is Tenebræ?
MF: Good question, and one I had to research myself! See, in the typical Catholic day (as observed by monks, say) there is a small worship every three hours. These are called the offices. During Holy Week, right before Easter, the offices of Matins and Lauds (the late evening offices) were combined to create a special service on Thursday–Saturday evenings. This was called Tenebræ. In the service, the structure would be the same each day: an alternation of 15 readings and responses ending in a set of five additional readings. It’s a very complex structure that includes a specific role for the candles and a simulated earthquake!
NB: How does this all connect in BCE’s TENEBRÆ?
MF: This was certainly the challenge: how can we adopt such a complex ceremony laden with centuries of practice and import, and create a musical experience for everyone? The solution was to mimic the general structure, program repertoire that would be used in an actual Tenebræ service, and then find ways to universalize the experience.
NB: And so what have you come up with?
MF: The Ensemble’s TENEBRÆ will be 15 responsories—each treating one of the many set texts from the set of 27 fixed texts—and a closing Benedictus and Miserere. We’ve chosen to omit some of the other elements like the Christus factus est, Pater noster, and closing collect for the day. And, in place of the 15 readings of Psalms and versicles, we’re selecting a smaller set of readings and poems that will place this Christian tradition into a universal setting.
NB: This sounds complex!
MF: It is, but the listener doesn’t need to know any of this to enjoy the music. Ideally, the structure will be in the background and the music will simply float within the program. Audience members can sit back and enjoy as the music comes to them… and they can follow NB through the winter to learn more about what’s coming!
NB: We’ll have to chat again soon since there’s a lot going on here. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
Clearly there’s a lot more for NB to unearth in this program. Stay tuned as we explore the repertoire.
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