CD Review by Santoshan aka Stephen Wollaston
Available for streaming, as an MP3 download, and CD, Snider’s Mass for the Endangered is described in the sleave notes as “a hymn for the voiceless, a requiem for the not-yet-gone.” It was first performed in 2018 at St Paul’s Chapel in New York.
Using text written by the American poet Nathaniel Bellows and traditional Latin, Mass for the Endangered is a hauntingly reflective and beautiful piece. It was originally commissioned by Trinity Church Wall Street. The recording that is available is conducted by British born baritone, choral conductor and record producer Gabriel Crouch, sung by the English vocal ensemble Gallicantus, who Gramophone Magazine described as “one of Europe’s foremost early music ensembles”, and played by twelve wonderfully talented instrumentalists consisting of flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, percussion, harp, piano, two violins, viola, violoncello and contrabass.
Snider’s Mass is both a celebration of and an elegy for the natural world – for the animals, plants and insects and the Earth herself. It is also a call for greater awareness of environmental harm done by us humans and a plea for immediate action to preserve biodiversity and protect numerous endangered species. The Mass consists of six movements that incorporates traditional elements of the Catholic/Latin Mass: Gloria, Sanctus/Benedictus, and parts of the Kyrie, Credo, and Agnus Dei. It begins gently with piano, chorus, subtle percussive sounds and various strings, including the harp, and gradually builds and then twists and turns sublimely with powerful moments of musical tension as well as softer sections that, as a whole, conjure up feelings and contemplative thoughts of despair, hope and healing. I found the whole piece deeply touching, meditative and mystical. The complete text for the Mass is included with the CD (I assume it’s also included as a pdf with the MP3 download version). The lines below are a short extract:
We believe in all who are voiceless,
We believe in all who are helpless,
We believe in all who are at risk.
Lay down the spear, lay down the hook,
lay down the gun, the knife, the net.
No mastery in poison. No virtue in
the snare. No Salvation in a strangled spirit.
For more information, visit Sarah Kirkland Snider’s website page about the Mass: https://www.sarahkirklandsnider.com/works/mass-for-the-endangered
You can also listen to the complete Mass on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-KSl9NdvU5w&list=OLAK5uy_kFUni1rmFdIxWECtCsunnSruwl6eFF-wo&index=2