Review: ‘The Te Deum is a showpiece’
Professor reviews Camellia’s Church Windows, Te Deum
Professor Neil Schore, the Bruckner Society of America
SACRAMENTO, CA CATHEDRAL OF THE BLESSED SACRAMENT 26 APR 2025
Respighi – Church Windows
Bruckner – Te Deum
Rena Harms, sop; Hilary Hecht, mezzo; Aaron Gallington, tenor; Daniel Yoder, bass; Rex Rallanka, organ; Davis Chorale; Sacramento City College Choir; Fremont Presbyterian Church Choir; Camellia Symphony Orchestra / Christian Baldini
Hearing the Bruckner Te Deum live is always an experience to savor. But hearing it in a space that is almost tailor-made for it is something else entirely.
Such was the case when Christian Baldini, the enterprising conductor of Sacramento’s Camellia Symphony Orchestra, programmed this work in Sacramento’s Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament. That structure, built in 1889, is very well-suited to the piece.
It is not especially spacious inside, so the inevitable reverberation isn’t as much of a distraction as it would be in a larger cathedral. Moreover, the structure has the advantage of an imposing pipe organ built into the wall directly to the right of the stage.
In recent years Baldini has led his orchestra in two Bruckner symphonies—the 5th and the 7th—so he and they are comfortable with the idiom and display a real flair for the dramatic possibilities that these works present.
The concert on Saturday evening April 26, entitled “A Hymn of Praise,” opened with Ottorino Respighi’s imposing orchestral suite “Church Windows.” This work, a kaleidoscope of sound, was given a highly satisfying performance that was received enthusiastically by the audience in the nearly full cathedral. Notably, the entrance of the organ in the latter part of the suite gave notice that this instrument was going to provide a thunderous underpinning for the Bruckner to come.
The Te Deum is a showpiece.
Yes, it is a religious piece of music, based upon a hymn that dates back at least 15 centuries, but the drama and power that Bruckner infused in his setting cannot be denied. I’ve heard it played too fast, an approach that threatens to rob it of the impact that Bruckner clearly intended.
The opening tempo marking is allegro moderato, and that is how Baldini began the work. When the chorus, soloists, and trumpets entered in measure 3, one could see members of the audience literally pinned back in their seats.
Yet one must recognize that these fortissimo sections must be partially held in check; no other major work by the composer has a greater proportion of measures labeled fff, and the distinction between ff and fff must be evident. Maestro Baldini and his forces handled these dynamic contrasts superbly. Bruckner clearly marked the dynamics he wanted.
After the loud opening, the diminuendo to piano in measure 14—soft but not too soft—allowed first the soprano soloist and then the tenor to emerge magically. The gradual crescendos following were just right, and the sudden hush for the pianissimo section beginning at measure 45 followed by piano at 49 (chorus: “Sanctus…sanctus…”) was again managed superbly.
With the ff section at 53 (“Sanctus Dominus Deus…”) one again had the impression that nothing could be bigger, but one would have been wrong. When the orchestra, chorus, soloists, and organ burst forth in fff at measure 59 (“Pleni sunt caeli terra…”—“The Heavens and Earth abound in your majestic glory”), there must be no doubt of the composer’s intent, and there was none at all here. When a performance misses out on these distinctions, failing to provide a palpable punch at these transitions, it loses so much. For example, if the central section (“Aeterna fac…”) opens too loudly, then the change to fff at measure 223 has no effect. Baldini and his forces never missed these moments, showing an attention to dynamic detail that was exhilarating.
The technical quality of the performance was remarkable. A year ago this orchestra did a wonderful job on the Bruckner 5th, but on this evening they really took it up a couple of notches, and we heard some of the best execution ever from the Camellia.
Kudos must go especially to the concertmaster, Amy Lindsey, whose solo passages were securely and entrancingly performed. The vocal parts in this work are very demanding and were handled superbly. The choruses were marvelous in both their intonation and their power. Their sopranos belted out their brilliant fff high C prior to the final cadence right on pitch—thrilling! All four vocal soloists were superb; soprano Rena Harms and tenor Aaron Gallington both handled their extensive solo parts wonderfully, the latter nailing his two high B-flats seemingly effortlessly. Finally, organist Rex Rallanka contributed an underpinning to the performance that simply gave one chills.
Conductor Baldini does not rely on excessive tempo manipulation to make his points. Instead, he has a nuanced approach to tempo modification, adopting an energetic but flexible pace that for the most part still allows everything that is going on to be heard clearly, at least from my seat about one-third of the way back. Perhaps his entrance to the last section was a little fast for the acoustical environment, but it certainly injected a further degree of excitement into the proceedings and also allowed him to take a beautifully-judged rallentando in the penultimate bars, leading to a crushingly abrupt final chord, exactly what Bruckner asked for.
The audience was on its feet almost immediately, celebrating what was one of the most extraordinary performances I’ve ever heard from this organization. Bravo!