Convent of the Sacred Heart freshman Brooke Remsen performed the New York premiere of Oceana at Carnegie Hall with the Manhattan Girls’ Chorus February 27 (http://schoolpress.cshgreenwich.org/kingstreetchronicle/2013/02/25/brooke-remsen-profile/ ). According to the New York Times and several other online reviews, the performance of Osvaldo Golijov’s Oceana was a success.
The night began with Philip Glass’s Symphony No. 7 “Toltec,” performed by conductor James Bagwell, the American Symphony Orchestra and the Collegiate Chorale. After a pause, the Manhattan Girls’ Chorus and solo vocalist Biella Da Costa entered the stage to perform Oceana.

“The moment before you walk out on stage, you don’t know what’s going to happen and don’t see people on stage— there is an expanse of time where you are unaware of the outcome. Looking back at it, I was thrilled to be on stage again at Carnegie Hall,” Brooke said.
Written in 1996 and revised in 2004, Oceana was inspired by poetry from Pablo Neruda’s Cantos Ceremonial.  According to Superconductor blog by Paul J. Pelkonen, the work contained nautical imagery, represented through all string instruments and singing.
In the first movement, or wave, the chorus entered and proclaimed the title “Oc-e-ah-na” in four chords that resembled the crushing weight of water. After two more waves, the fourth section was wordless. This big number, featured flutes, rain sticks and chants from the Manhattan Girls’ Chorus.
“The background was Oceana. We were the main story tellers in what was going on in the piece— we were speaking in Spanish about us being pillars of stone that embrace the water but stand against it,” Brooke said.
The final section, entitled “Coral di Arrecife,” (“Chorale of the Reef”) ended with the slow fade of the chorus to silence, a depiction of the tide rolling out. Oceana alternated harmonic choral passages with jazz vocalist sections, accompanied by Latin American popular musical rhythms.
“[The piece] was meant to be almost angelic in manner and voice but strong because the words that we were singing were figures of determination—that really came out in our voices,” Brooke said.
A New York Times review (http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/02/arts/music/collegiate-chorale-with-american-symphony-at-carnegie-hall.html?_r=4&adxnnl=1&adxnnlx=1363108947-DCNnvAnVN0iJwjt7P7N0GQ& ), entitled “Two Composers’ Jaunts to Latin America” compared Symphony No. 7 “Toltec” and Oceana.

The review stated, “Mr. Bagwell and his players did well by the piece, with stylish contributions from the solo vocalist, Biella Da Costa, and fine work by the Manhattan Girls Chorus.”
“We all did really well. We were really well-versed in the music,” Brooke said.
Brooke was seated at the edge of a group from the Manhattan Girls’ Chorus. She said that according to MGC’s Artistic Director Michelle Austin, the lighter color of her voice on the outskirts of the group put the piece together.
“Lighter tones versus darker tones are considered colors. Different colors when they blend form one voice. I helped to contribute to that voice—I caused it to be more angelic,” Brooke said.
After she sang twice at Carnegie Hall and contributed to the performances, Brooke described her experience.
“You see huge expanse of people and understand that you’re really giving a gift to them. You hope that you will contribute to their life in some way. We obtain so many different memories; that [performance] will become a special memory to the viewer,” Brooke said. “You hope that it’s not a revolting memory but one they will enjoy.”
Click here for a preview of the performance: http://vimeo.com/59680885
 
– Alison Brett, Photography Editor