The Tallis Scholars fill St. Paul’s with acapella sound on Tuesday
The exquisite blending of human voices—without instrumental accompaniment—began to fascinate The Tallis Scholars founder Peter Phillips when he was just a teenager. His interest continued during his college years at England’s Winchester College, Royal School of Church Music, and eventually, St. John’s College at Oxford University.
In fact, he founded The Tallis Scholars (named for Renaissance composer Thomas Tallis, 1505-1585) in 1973, before graduating from Oxford. In the beginning, he wasn’t sure there would be an audience for this music. “Choirs did not really exist to sing it in those days,” Phillips said by phone from London. “People couldn’t hear that it was great music.”
But his way of arranging and conducting it—10 singers in a semi-circle onstage, with two voices combining to sing each part—brought the music of the Renaissance back to life, and for the last 40 years, it has continued to delight arts lovers worldwide. The Tallis Scholars come to St. Paul’s Episcopal Church on Tuesday, March 28.
The concept, Phillips explains, is to sing the music in a more “precise and vulnerable way, to get under the surface of the music.” Group members must be able to listen closely and blend their voice both with their partner and with the group as a whole. In the past, he’s compared the idea to a string quartet. Phillips does not audition singers to be members of the Scholars.
“I hear about good people, and sometimes members tell me who they would like to sing with,” he says. Although there are sometimes substitutions for particular programs, singers tend to stay with the group long term. “They have practiced together for a long time; they need to know how each one breathes, how they phrase…it’s a partnership,” he explains.
After more than 40 years, the Scholars have a long list of music with which to create programs. “I choose the best music I can find, and there’s always new music to find,” Phillips says. Sometimes academics will contact him with pieces they’ve discovered, and sometimes a concert promoter will request a themed program, as happened recently at Carnegie Hall, when they were asked to present specifically Venetian music of the period.
And Phillips enjoys adding and performing music from living composers as well. In 1977, he began collaborating with composer John Taverner, and has continued to work with modern composers Eric Whitacre, Gabriel Jackson, Nico Muhly, Ivan Moody, John Woolrich, Matthew Martin, Christopher Willcock and Michael Nyman. “These composers create music that can fit with the period,” he says. “It’s lovely music.”
For the concert at St. Paul’s, the Scholars will perform a program called “Metamorphosis,” based on the texts of the Magnificat, the Lord’s Prayer, and Ave Maria, as interpreted in widely different traditions, including Latin, English and Russian/Slavic. For example, Sheppard’s “Our Father” will be followed by John Taverner’s 1999 “Our Father,” which is followed by Stravinsky’s “Otche Nash.”
Asked whether churches and cathedrals remain his favorite venues to perform in, Phillips chuckcles. “Some medieval churches in England are really uncomfortable,” he reveals. “What matters to me is what the sound is like and that the audience is comfortable and enjoying the music.”
To enjoy a truly extraordinary vocal music performance, make sure to save the date at St. Paul’s.
The Tallis Scholars
Tuesday, 7:30 p.m.
$50; $25 for students
St. Paul’s Episcopal Church
305 W. 7th St.
(423) 266-8185
stpaulschatt.org/concert-series