Woking Choral Society review – Rossini's Petite Messe Solennelle

Woking Choral Society – Rossini's Petite Messe Solennelle

On Saturday 2 April, Woking Choral Society performed one of Rossini’s two late, pseudo-religious works, his Petite Messe Solennelle, described by one authority as neither petite nor solennelle! Generally the work is performed with an orchestral accompaniment arranged by the composer but never performed in public until after his death. On this occasion Woking Choral gave it in its original 1863 version intended for performance in a private residence with limited forces using only piano and harmonium backing. While no doubt appropriate for a small auditorium such as a Parisian salon, this arrangement seemed somewhat inadequate for accompanying a full sized choir in the large space of the H G Wells hall.
That the choir is in very good form was demonstrated right from the beginning where their impressive, controlled dynamic range was notable. This was emphasised in the following Gloria where the full force of the choir was unleashed by the conductor to produce a thrilling, operatic scale chorus entirely appropriate for this music, very different from the more sanctimonious Teutonic style but no less sincere. The choir were again in vigorous voice for the Credo and in the Et resurrexit with all four voices clearly distinguishable.
The bass soloist gave a good rendering of his solo Quoniam and the mezzo-soprano also performed in an appropriately forthright manner throughout, especially effective in the Agnus Dei finale. There are two important soprano solos, the Crucifixus and the Salutaris, in which Rossini’s score suggests a full throated operatic style delivery: in this performance the soprano seemed to have decided on a very restrained, quiet approach which, in this reviewer’s opinion, was inappropriate and indeed would probably have been inaudible in the orchestral version.
However, the main star of this performance was the choir which sang with enthusiasm, clarity and evident enjoyment under the clear, firm direction of their conductor Ben Palmer. Gioacchino would have been pleased!

--- Lewis Orchard