Al Combate (CD review)

Rediscovered Galant Music from Eighteenth-Century Mexico. Javier Jose Mendoza, Chicago Arts Orchestra. Navona Records NV5902.

No, I didn’t know what “Al Combate” meant, either. Literally, it translates as “to combat.” It’s the title of the central piece of music on the disc, a work for orchestra, soloists, and chorus in eleven movements by the eighteenth-century violinist and composer Ignacio Jerusalem, born in Italy, moving to Spain and subsequently to Mexico, becoming a leading exponent in the New World for the Baroque and Galant music popular in Southern Europe at the time.

According to the disc’s accompanying notes, the mission of the Chicago Arts Orchestra, who perform Jerusalem’s music on the disc, along with that of Santiago Billoni, is “to breathe new life into forgotten works from colonial Latin America.” It seems the Church in America as well as its ruling class favored the Galant style (stressing a renewal of classical restraint after the elaborations of the latter Baroque era) and promoted its influence in Mexico. They persuaded Jerusalem and Billoni to leave the Old World for the New and practice their talents in the colonial arena. The current album with Maestro Javier Jose Mendoza and the Chicago Arts Orchestra offers selections from both composers to illustrate the point.

First, let’s examine the music of Ignacio Jerusalem (1707-1769). The album provides four of his works, including the aforementioned Al Combate, the longest piece. The first, though, is the Symphony in G Major, a piece in three movements: Allegro, Andante, and Allegro. It possesses a graceful allure, elegant and refined, particularly as performed by Maestro Mendoza and his players. The opening movement has a light, lilting charm; the Andante floats gently along; and the finale exudes a lively spirit, the orchestra sounding both precise and enthusiastic.

Next from Jerusalem, we hear a couple of songs with orchestral accompaniment: “Gorjeo Trinando” with mezzo-soprano Elda Peralto and “Cristol Bello” with soprano Eleanor Ranney-Mendoza. The singing is artfully executed and the orchestral support flawless.

Before getting to the program’s centerpiece, we get two songs with orchestral accompaniment from Italian violinist and composer Santiago Billoni (c. 1700-1763): “Mariposa Inadvertida” with Ms. Peralto and “Celeste Aurora Hermosa” with Ms. Ranney-Mendoza. They are captivating in their simplicity, the singers and orchestra in happy accord.

The program concludes with the title work, Jerusalem’s Al Combate. The first three movements comprise the overture, fast-slow-fast. The entire piece sounds mostly European in design and execution, including hints of Italian, Spanish, and even French influences. In the ensuing movements we hear numbers from bass Vince Wallace and countertenor Alexander Edgemon, supported by the orchestra and the Chicago Arts Chorale. There’s a little here from everyone, for everyone. Any fan of Baroque music would be sure to enjoy so distinguished a production as this.

However, something Navona Records is doing that I don’t especially care for is their decision not to include a printed booklet with the disc, choosing instead to put almost all their information on the CD itself. So you have to place the disc in your computer to access text notes on the works, study scores of the music, even wallpaper and ring tones. While I can understand their decision to save some money on printing costs, I’d rather have had the text notes in my hand to read and enjoy without having to go to the computer screen to find it. What’s more, I couldn’t figure out a simple way to print anything out without using more ink than it was worth (the page backgrounds are in black).

The Navona audio engineers used Nichols Concert Hall at the Music Institute of Chicago to record the music in 2012. Depth sounds a mite limited, but otherwise the sonics are exemplary. We get a good separation of instruments, fine midrange clarity, reasonably strong dynamics, and a well-balanced frequency response. What’s more, voices appear well integrated within the orchestral context. And best of all, we hear a pleasant ambient bloom from the hall, making the whole affair as realistic as it is entertaining.

To hear a brief excerpt from this album, click here:


JJP