Trio Mediæval checked off Rhode Island as the 33rd state in which has performed, capping off Newport Classical’s Chamber Music Series in its last concert of the season Friday night in the completely renovated Recital Hall of Emmanuel Church. The Swedish trio has had a busy week, appearing earlier at the Boston Early Music Festival with Catalina Vicens playing the organetto. This did not prevent them from spending a day with 30 children and adult singers as part of Newport Classical’s outreach to Newport’s public schools.
The trio focused its Newport program on ballads, folk songs, and hymns from Norway and Sweden, and made note of the fact that many of the Swedish communities transmitted their songs to Swedish communities in other lands. Thus, many of Friday night’s offerings reflected a Swedish Estonian heritage. Lacking the organetto, more appropriate for the Mass and other liturgies, the group offered instead the accompaniment of the hardanger fiddle, which has extra sympathetic strings which enhance the sound. A staple of Norwegian folk music, the fiddle’s deep sounding drones, as played by group member Anna Maria Friman, were the perfect accompaniment to the lilting rhythms and triadic melodies that helped transport the listener to ancient times and places.
The group spaced themselves out in a semi-circle, utilizing the whole of the stage. This gave the sound a sense of spaciousness, and in one number they moved out into the audience from three separate locations, in a piece that reflected herders calling to their cattle in melodies that resembled a yodeling, echoed one upon another, skillfully ornamented and often meeting in luscious suspensions and unresolved dissonances, evoking crystalline landscapes, fjords, and valleys.
While a couple of the offerings were wordless, a waltz or other dance, many of the remainder were lullabies, some were chants, prayers and religious poems, and others told stories, medieval ballads of heroes and trolls, deep woods and dark streams, sunbeams and long journeys through life. The blend of voices was striking and serenely beautiful. The mediaeval sound was resplendent with 2nds and 7ths, dissonances in modern times considered harsh, but here most eloquent, expressively poignant, offering when coupled with the more ancient modalities of the time a sense of peace and calm. The group often set several pieces in the same mode, one following the other, moving effortlessly through the different genres, creating drones sometimes from the hardanger fiddle, sometimes from tone chimes, but most often just with their voices. While choreography was minimal, in one lullaby, comforting a little one to not be fearful of the cold, rain, and dark of night, the two outer singers circled the inner one, symbolically creating a protective enfolding of child being rocked to sleep.
The trio included one piece in the program especially composed for them. Sol lucet (2022) was originally for eight voices, but composer Marianne Reidarsdatter Eriksen reset it for three voices when the trio expressed their admiration for the work. Its text reflected a sentiment that perhaps filled the entire night’s concert: “The sun shines for everybody. Is it not the best thing that nature has made common property?”
This magnificent concert marks not only the end of the Newport Classical Chamber Series season, but also the departure of its Executive Director Gillian Fox, who is stepping down to become the President and CEO of the Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts in New York. In a column she wrote for the Providence Journal she noted that Newport had a strong foundation that she was able to build upon and expand, a time that was “marked by growth, innovation, and a profound sense of connection through music.” Director of Artistic Planning Trevor Neal offered the following remarks:
It has been an absolute pleasure to be witness and a partner to Gillian’s bold and fresh vision for what Newport Classical is today. I know she will do amazing things in her new position at Caramoor. As for Newport Classical, we will continue to present adventurous and exceptional artistry and experiences. Scottie Somers of the LTD Foundation said, “Change is the heartbeat of growth,” and I am very excited for all our growth as we move forward into our next chapter. One of the most exciting aspects of my work here is the privilege of guiding our patrons’ musical journey through engaging, thought-provoking, and occasionally genre bending classical music experiences. Our 56th season will be no different – showcasing some of the very best artists performing today from around the world.
Highlights of the upcoming summer festival include Opening Night with Two Pianos featuring Alessio Bax and Lucille Chung; two evenings with Broadway star Jessica Vosk, best known for her role in Wicked; performances by extraordinary pianists Inon Barnatan, Sara Davis Buechner, and Wynona Wang; and the inspiring African Queens project by the amazing voice of soprano Karen Slack, co-commissioned by Newport Classical with a national consortium. We are also proud to present the US premiere of a new work by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer David Lang, co-commissioned with an international consortium. For the fifth year in a row, Newport Classical will premiere a new commissioned work by Cris Derksen, a Juno-nominated Indigenous cellist and composer, who has written a new piece for the Galvin Cello Quartet. The festival culminates with the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra and violin soloist Stefan Jackiw. View the full season HERE.
I have since learned that Ms. Vicens chose not to travel to the United States due to the current political state of affairs. While that has no impact on this review, it needs to be stated, as yet one more casualty of our current policy.
Comment by Stephen Martorella — June 17, 2025 at 1:29 pm