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(Blog post by Chris Maskell)

While ensembles at Schulich frequently put on class concerts throughout the school year, it’s much less common for them to collaborate with another of the school’s groups – let alone two. On Thursday, April 6, the McGill Baroque Orchestra, Cappella Antica and the Schulich Singers will come together to perform Handel’s legendary oratorio Israel in Egypt under the joint leadership of directors Valerie Kinslow, Jean-Sébastien Vallée and Hank Knox.

To find out more about the upcoming concert’s conception, challenges and more, we spoke to Vallée (who serves as Director of Choral Studies at Schulich) recently.

Is this the first time these three ensembles (McGill Baroque Orchestra, Cappella Antica and Schulich Singers) have collaborated on a project?

It’s certainly the first time in recent years and it’s really exciting. It’s very easy to stay in our silos without having a chance to collaborate with other of McGill’s musicians. This exciting project brings together the early music ensembles with the Schulich Singers, which is an ensemble that performs a vast range of repertoire. Putting those resources together brings Handel’s score to life in the most exciting and vivid way!

What unique challenges and opportunities does a joint project like this offer?

The most obvious challenge is scheduling! Bringing together many ensembles that have their own rehearsal schedules and habits creates a logistical challenge. However, everyone is willing to be flexible and give a bit more time, so the project is coming together nicely. The beauty of this collaboration is that it gives the students an opportunity to perform with other musicians and ensembles that have a different approach to music making than their own, so this is a unique learning experience for all.

On what levels do you, Hank Knox and Valerie Kinslow each contribute to the project?

Although I’ll be conducting the concert, Hank and Valerie have been very involved in preparing both the Baroque Orchestra and Cappella Antica. They were also both involved in selecting and preparing the soloists. It’s a real collaboration in the sense that it goes further than simply bringing the ensembles together onstage, as it allowed us to share ideas, to discuss the production and to work across departments in McGill in a very stimulating manner.

How was Handel’s Israel in Egypt chosen for the program? Can you talk a bit about the work itself?

Valerie proposed the idea for the concert in my first year teaching at McGill. It got me very excited, and we were sure to make it happen! Israel in Egypt vividly tells the story of the Exodus and the ten Plagues of Egypt (the flies, the frogs, the water turned into blood, etc.) and fully uses the double choir and full orchestra to do so. Contrary to many of Handel’s other oratorios, this work contains mainly choruses and therefore, the storytelling is up to the ensemble members, which makes the preparation and performance of this work very exciting. Moreover, the general themes of the oratorio still speak to us today, as it’s easy to connect with concepts such as the fight for liberty and equality, the doubts and consequences that such a fight may imply and the courage/ determination needed to make a difference.

I hear you’re also involved in another Schulich production of Handel’s works next year – could you elaborate on that?

Next year we will not be doing Handel, but rather another oratorio by a composer who found influence in his music – Felix Mendelssohn. Next spring, the McGill Symphony Orchestra, the McGill Concert Choir, the Schulich Singers, and the University Chorus will join forces to perform Mendelssohn’s dramatic oratorio Elijah. I’m really exciting to conduct this masterwork, as it’s without a doubt one of my favourite oratorios of all time!

The McGill Baroque Orchestra, Cappella Antica and the Schulich Singers will perform Handel’s Israel in Egypt on Thursday, April 6 at 7:30 p.m. in Pollack Hall.