Baroque Tenebrae Vespers: Couperin's 'Leçons de Ténèbres'
Free
- Janet Sora Chung, organ
- Linda Tsatsanis, soprano
- Adam Young, viola da gamba
- Audrey Fernandez Fraser, soprano
Holy Wednesday, or "Spy Wednesday," marks the day when Judas Iscariot decided to betray Jesus. Its evening ushers in the three days of Tenebrae, meaning "darkness". For centuries the church celebrated Tenebrae liturgies for Thursday, Friday, and Saturday mornings of Holy Week, focused on the betrayal, crucifixion, and death of Christ. These were often celebrated the night before, starting on Wednesday evening.
Our Baroque Tenebrae Vespers carried on this ancient tradition, featuring 15 readings from the Book of Lamentations, each followed by a sung version of the reading, in Latin, composed by François Couperin. His Leçons de ténèbres pour le mercredi saint were composed for Holy Wednesday, 1714, to be performed at the Abbaye Royale de Longchamp, by two sopranos, organ, and viola da gamba.
In this beautiful liturgy of lament, candles were gradually extinguished as the church recalled its ancient descent into darkness. This opportunity was all the more rare for Couperin's exquisite French Baroque expression of Jeremiah's ancient Lamentations.
About The Christopher Street Collegium
Based at St. John's Lutheran Church, on 81 Christopher Street in Manhattan, the Collegium gathers diverse combinations of New York's finest classical musicians to create artistically fresh and profound opportunities for listeners to feed their souls with the sacred word clothed in celestial melodies.
https://www.christopherstreetcollegium.nyc/About Janet Sora Chung, organ
About Linda Tsatsanis, soprano
About Adam Young, viola da gamba
Adam Young received his Master's degree in viola da gamba from The Juilliard School where he studied with Sarah Cunningham. A finalist in the 2018 Bach/Abel Wettbewerb in Köthen, Young has performed with many NYC-based early music ensembles as well as concerts in Canada, England, France, Germany, Hungary, Kosovo and Russia.
https://www.groupmuse.com/musicians/7133-adam-young