Seraphim Chorus to mark 10th year with Mendelssohn’s famous ‘Elijah’

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By SEAN BARRON

news@vindy.com

Get ready to hear the trials, tribulations and triumphs of the Hebrew prophet Elijah told through a variety of voices.

The vocalists, soloists and musicians who will perform what is perhaps Felix Mendelssohn’s most- famous work belong to the Seraphim Community Chorus, which will present “Elijah, Opus 70” on Sunday at St. Michael Catholic Church in Canfield. The show is part of a celebration of the group’s 10th anniversary this fall.

“We’re very diverse in the kind of music we do,” said Kris Harper, director. “This performance was a huge undertaking.”

It’s probably safe to say that with this gathering, diversity will do more than merely describe the type of music heard in this famous 19th-century work. Harper recently gave a sneak preview of the show’s two parts and how the scenes tie together the biblical account of Elijah’s prediction of drought and famine, his inner turmoil and, ultimately, his ascension to heaven.

Elijah lived several centuries before Christ, and his main mission was to destroy the pagan cults of Baal introduced to Israel by Queen Jezebel, wife of the Israelite King Ahab.

An early overture in fugal style captures the Jews wandering through the desert during the famine, as well as years of upheaval, Harper said in outlining the opening portion.

The first few choruses depict the Israelites’ persecution and their voicing despair about the draught, he continued.

Soon, however, a tenor aria by William Ambert, “If With All Your Hearts Ye Truly Seek Me,” offers hope of divine comfort to those in Israel who have suffered misfortune.

Scene II opens with Elijah at the brook of Cherith, where a host of angels guards him. A sense of adventure runs through the scene, with Elijah’s being commanded to go to Zerepath to meet a widow, whose son is near death. Elijah prays over the boy three times, and the youngster revives, Harper explained.

The final scene of Part I sees the end of the three-year drought and Elijah’s trying to get the Jews to relinquish the pagan cult and follow God’s ways, the director said.

Complementing the scene will be the soprano voice of 10-year-old Jonathan Scurich, who plays the part of someone Elijah repeatedly sends to the mountain to look for rain clouds.

Dramatic elements will continue but in a looser fashion through Part II, Harper said, explaining that the audience will be introduced to Queen Jezebel, who tried to rouse the people against Elijah by encouraging them to continue worshipping the cults.

After being banished to the desert, Elijah is approached by an angel, who tells him to get back with the Jewish people. The prophet does get the strength to return, and soon God appears to him before Elijah is taken to heaven in a chariot, Harper continued.

“Eventually, Elijah convinces the people that God is who they need to listen to,” he added.

The four main soloists are Thomas Scurich, baritone, an early-music specialist with the Canfield Local School District, and father of Jonathan; Anne Hagan-Bentz, soprano and associate professor of vocal studies at Westminster College in New Wilmington, Pa.; Ambert, tenor, adjunct vocal music faculty member at Westminster and music director at Boardman United Methodist Church; and Susan Toth Shafer, contralto, who’s performed with opera companies and symphony orchestras in the U.S., Europe and Russia.

Also providing accompaniment will be Kathryn D. Miller, organ, and a 15-piece chamber orchestra.

Harper, who’s been director about five years, said the Seraphim Chorus each year puts on a Christmas show, an early spring performance consisting of sacred music and a program in May. The group also does fund-raisers for various civic organizations when asked, he noted.

Harper had nothing but praise for the chorus, which he called “a labor of love.” “This is a wonderful group of people completely dedicated to what they do,” he added.