Chichester Psalms

Masterworks × Contemporary Highlights

Celebrating 25 years, the Taipei Chamber Singers launches a brand-new series, “Madame Rouge’s Fantasy World.”

The first half features selected a cappella works from today’s choral world, drawn from the music of Latvian composer Ēriks Ešenvalds and Australian composer Paul Stanhope. Ešenvalds has become a great favorite with audiences in recent years, and his works have been performed by many choirs abroad. His music has an enchanting, otherworldly quality, with spiritual and captivating melodies that draw listeners in. The concert opens with his well-loved pieces “Stars,” “Only in Sleep,” and “Tāls Ceļš,” setting a mysterious, dreamlike atmosphere. By contrast, Stanhope’s style is eclectic: solemn and sacred in character, yet at times lively and changeable, nimble and expansive, and richly rewarding. His “Agnus Dei” and “Three Geography Songs” lead the audience into a different musical world, vast and close to nature.

The second half presents the evening’s weightiest works. From the a cappella and percussion of “The Making of the Drum” to “Chichester Psalms,” whose orchestral score has been adapted for piano four hands, harp, and percussion, both works are presented in specially arranged instrumentations that open up new possibilities for choral art. Both composers came to composition from other areas of performance — singer Bob Chilcott and conductor Leonard Bernstein — and their works cross disciplines and challenge the boundaries of traditional music. This reflects the production’s vision of a fantasy world of music and the Taipei Chamber Singers’ aspiration to break new ground, while also paying tribute to Bernstein in his centenary year.

“Madame Rouge’s Fantasy World: Chichester Psalms” takes on a distinctive style through a new concert format, bringing together “Highlights from Today’s Choral World” and “Masterworks.” The program reflects Yun-Hung Chen’s forward-looking and imaginative musical taste, inviting listeners to set their spirits free and enter the fantasy world of the Taipei Chamber Singers’ refined vocal artistry.