Page 415 - Liverpool Philharmonic 22-23 Season Coverage Book

quality of the music, the resounding ovation at the finale indicated that the

audience were in full-throated agreement.

Thrillingly delivered, the Mass in D major was well-served by an on-stage
unanimity of purpose: the Choral Society’s sense of occasion was

complemented by the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra working in
cohesive conjunction with them.

A hugely complex and demanding work, the Mass is magnificently integrated,

not least in the insinuation of solo voices behind the orchestra. Not gifted the
individuated artistry of arias, the four soloists perform as a unit within the larger

choir, potentially compromising the integrity of voice in the submerging choral

sea. Less capable singers might have struggled to be heard, but the soloists
were clear and distinct, adding to the received effect in building accretions.

Andrew Staples’ piercing tenor cut through the maelstrom of some of the more
vigorous passages like a sharpened knife: during the central sections of

we heard a breathtaking cross-referencing of vocal skills overlapping
the Gloria
Staples’ searching power with the clarity of Sophie Bevan’s soprano. And later, in

the Credo and especially in the mournful Sanctus, the range of Bethany Horak-
Hallett’s mezzo was anchored by the natural gravitas of William Thomas’ bass.

But truthfully, the real power in this theatre of sustained drama was actuated in

the collective will: the choir’s titanic effort to maintain tempo and continuity in

the unremitting exchange of male and female voices was an upscaled, dynamic
version of the individual performances unfolding in near-unison. And it is to

Huddersfield Choral Society’s credit that such continuity was seamlessly effected
in what must be a hugely difficult work to perform. The effect was oceanic in

passages – the velocitous rising and falling of vocal interchanges melding to
create a journey through the Mass that is at once, emotionally-draining, and

near-sublime.

Gregory Batsleer’s supervision of orchestra and choir was understandably
energetic, given the demands of the piece, the abrupt changes in tempo, and

the sudden bursts of electricity that animate the more dramatic movements.