Submitted by Elizabeth Cunningham
Pure Alchemy — That’s the only way to describe the musical performance by Marcus Goddard, Candy Siu and Noemi Kiss at St. Saviour’s Pro-Cathedral in Nelson on March 10.
Goddard transformed notes from his gleaming brass trumpet into sounds of pure gold, warm enough to melt the last of the snow in the streets of Nelson, while the fluid fingers of Siu on the organ and piano, created a waterfall of rich harmony on which the radiance of his trumpet sounds sparkled and flared.
Kiss, one of the jewels of the musical community of Nelson, with seemingly effortless grace, wove her silky vocal threads in and around the tapestry of sound that the keyboards and trumpet were wrapping subtly but insistently around the spellbound audience.
From their shimmering bag of tricks, these three magicians brought forth a soulful medieval chant written a millennium ago by the prolific mystic poet and composer, Hildegard Von Bingen.
And when Goddard and Siu played “The Swan” by Camille Saint Saens, the audience could almost see a white trumpeter gracefully floating over a cool current of continuo, delicately suggesting the fresh spring runoff from an icy glacier.
How can a voice blend with such clarity, rise so confidently to meet that trumpet sound, intertwine with it, and even soar above the compelling intensity that only a superb brass instrument can create? Kiss stood, embraced us all in a magical moment of wonder, her breath blending with that alchemy like it was always meant to be there, along with Handel and his “Bright Seraphim.”
Goddard introduced the second part of the programme with an imaginative piece of music he composed, entitled “Ancestral Voice.” Strange, layered sounds of his instrument playing to itself, looped, muttered, pleaded and cried out in ancient words which have been uttered for eons by humanity, against forces that cannot be resisted or understood.
But somehow, the beauty of the music kept on rising again and again, like the phoenix, undeterred and irresistible.
Back to earth and the flowing of water, the trio brought the evening to a soothing, satisfying close, drifting along on a very liquid “Moon River” we could all float away on.
The evening of music and magic filled me with so much energy and delight, I could not stay inside, and I wandered up the hill to Mountain Station where the sky was dark and clear, and I could see clouds white as day drifting past the moon, and stars bright enough to resonate with the sounds of the trumpet, welcoming me once again to the beautiful old church with the praises of Charpentier’s glorious “Te Deum.”
Selkirk Pro Musica has brought a great gift to the community of Nelson. Monday night’s concert was just one of many of this musical organization’s gems.