A Musical Journey to Far-Away Places

It was an evening when I was exceedingly proud of Jen, my wife (I’m always proud of her many accomplishments, but this night was right up there with some of the best memories - shsh, she doesn't know I'm writing this...).

Saturday, May 18, at Torrevieja’s Palacio de la Musica, the choir Cantabile – 21 ladies – sang their hearts out concerning a ‘Musical journey to far-flung places’, accompanied by Ukranian pianist Nataliya Khomyak and conducted by Jen, their MD.

 

The Narrators were Kay Reeves in English and Jen Morton in Spanish.

The first half began in: the Americas:

1492 – Vangelis/ words & arr. J. Morton
Land of the Silver Birch – trad. Canadian
Battle Hymn of the Republic – Julia Ward Howe/arr. J. Morton
Solo: Pat Yardley: Georgia on My Mind – Hoagy Carmichael
Flor Habanera – words & music: Jennifer Morton

Then on to the Far East:

Faraway Places – Joan Whitney & Alex Kramer
Solo: Phyl Webb: On the Road to Mandalay – Oley Speaks
Love is a Many-Splendoured Thing – Webster/Fain

Followed by the Pacific, New Zealand and Africa

Hine e Hine – New Zealand folk/ arr. J. Morton
Some Enchanted Evening – from ‘South Pacific’ – Rodgers & Hammerstein
Dry Your Tears, Africa – theme from film ‘Amistad’ – John Williams

The second half began with by river and by sea:

The Sea (La Mer) – Charles Trenet/ arr. J. Morton
Solo: Alicia Muddle: Ships of Arcady – Michael Head
River of Dreams – Vivaldi/ arr. J. Morton
Let the River Run – theme from film ‘Working Girl’ – Carly Simon

 
And yet further onwards, to the moon and beyond into outer space:
Solo: Jen Morton: Rusalka’s Song to the Moon – Dvorak
Nataliya Khomyak: Moonlight Sonata: 1^st movement – Beethoven
Star Trek: First Contact theme – Jerry Goldsmith/words & arr. J. Morton
 
Then, finally, coming home safely at last to great rejoicing:
Pilgrims’ Chorus – from ‘Tannhauser’ – Wagner
Hava Nagila  trad. Hassidic; arr. Robert Schultz/arr. J. Morton
Going Home – Dvorak
 
The concert was very well attended and the choir received a great deal of deserving and appreciative applause and even a few bravos! The considerable collection at the end, over 200 euros, was donated to ‘Age Concern’.

I was proud to hear again Jen’s haunting solo, but also to listen to her many arrangements and specifically her own composition, Flor Habanera and the lyrics she wrote for the First Contact theme.

www.cantabilesingers.es