By Eileen Wingard
ALISO VIEJO, California — The manuscript of Journey to Freedom languished for decades at the bottom of a pile of Dr. Bernard “Barney” Gilmore’s scores. It was not until after UC Irvine Music Faculty Professor Gilmore’s death, that his wife, while organizing his music for the archives at the UC Irvine Library, discovered it. She realized, “This was Barney’s masterpiece, and it has never been performed!”
From that moment on, Phyllis Markin Gilmore, widow of Dr. Gilmore, pursued the mission of bringing this magnificent work to life. The realization of that dream took place Sunday afternoon, June 7, in the excellent acoustics of the Soka University Performing Arts Center in Aliso Viejo, California.
Phyllis recruited Barney’s colleague and friend, UCI’s orchestra conductor, Dr. Stephen Tucker, to conduct the work. He, in turn, asked his twin brother, The University of Kansas Symphonic Chorus conductor, Dr. Paul Tucker, to help spearhead the project. With the orchestra and choir in place, they invited three remarkable vocalists to be the soloists: Soprano Amet Amdemicael from Yale University, Tenor Genaro Mendez from the University of Kansas, and Baritone Jose Rubio, worldwide opera performer.
All joined forces to present an impressive performance of Dr. Bernard Gilmore’s masterpiece, Journey to Freedom.
This oratorio, in two parts, is a powerful contemporary setting of the Exodus story, with text from the Book of Exodus, Psalms and Gilmore’s original words, seamlessly connecting to the biblical narrative.
The composer utilizes a wide palette of orchestral colors and contemporary harmonies to enhance the words. Gilmore’s compositional techniques are eclectic. Some of his choral sections reflect the contrapuntal textures of former eras, while the orchestrations, during passages such as those depicting the plagues, utilize a battery of percussion effects in contemporary-sounding complex rhythms.
Solo string parts exhibited Gilmore’s lyrical writing and he had sections that were aleatoric, where the musicians were tasked with creating their own sounds within certain boundaries. Most of all, his music heightened the drama of the text.
The first part deals with Moses’ initial encounters with God, who wants him to lead the people of Israel out of Egypt. Moses, sung by baritone Jose Rubio, pleads with God not to require this responsibility of him.
Moses is portrayed as a man of great humility, feeling himself unworthy and incapable of the task God has set before him.
When, in the first half, the chorus sings God’s command, “I will send you unto Pharoah and you shall bring forth my people,” the orchestral sound grows to a momentous climax. Rubio, as Moses, then begins his plea with, “Lord, you have led me to a rock, which is too high for me.” Rubio sang with heartfelt passion and beautiful resonance.
The chorus served both as narrator and as the voice of God.
A soprano solo, sung by Awet Amdemicael, is inserted, prior to the choral conclusion of the first half.
The soprano solo has a wide range of dissonant leaps, which Amdemicael navigated with perfect pitch and persuasive beauty, as she furthered the narrative, “From heaven did the Lord behold the earth to hear the groaning of the prisoner to loose those that are appointed to death, that men may tell of the name of the Lord.”
In the second half, when Genero Mendez entered as Pharoah, he projected his solos with menacing fervor and dramatic impact.
After the plagues, the chorus intones a lament, using only the word, “Ah,” to reflect the sadness that Pharoah’s obstinance brings forth. The chorus was well-trained and sang with good ensemble and clear diction.
Pharoah finally realizes, “The gods of Egypt are as dust before him. I have defied Him and He has defeated me. Rise up Israel, get you forth from among my people. Go, serve your God and be gone.”
As at the end of the first part, a choral Alleluia (Praise Unto God) brings this stirring oratorio to a close. But not before Moses prophesies: “You will wander the deserts of the world for a hundred generations, crying again and again for release from a thousand unimagined Pharaohs. But the Lord God will remember you.”
Hopefully, this worthy composition will be published and performed in other venues.
The program opened with the Mirror Cantata by composer Forrest Pierce, faculty member at the University of Kansas. This work was reflective of the composer’s interest in the mysticism of sound. It hearkened back to the modes of the Renaissance, and had a stunningly focused soprano voice, that of Sarah Tannehill Anderson, to sing the solo. The Chorus sang with fine ensemble, accompanied by a reduced orchestra. The Cantata was conducted by Dr. Paul Tucker. The text was based on 13th century Christian poetry.
The Cantata provided a wonderful introductory contrast to the more modern idiom of Dr. Bernard Gilmore’s work. Soka University’s Performing Arts Center proved to be an ideal venue for this outstanding Concert.