The vocal ensemble musica intima based in Vancouver has been performing their brand of intimate, unconducted vocal performances for more than 20 years.
The 12-piece choir will be joining the Okanagan Symphony Orchestra (OSO) for their performance of GLORIA at the Cleland Theatre on Nov. 14.
Musica intima will be playing many of their signature pieces, drawing from a long history, including Exaudi written by composer Jocelyn Morlock and commissioned by musica intima. The choir will be joined on Exaudi by OSO principle cellist Audrey King.
Rosemary Thompson, music director for the OSO, has worked with the choir in the past and has based much of the upcoming performance on the lengthy catalogue of commissioned pieces available.
“It’s great for us as a guest artist for her to look at our career and pick some repertoire based on that,” Dundas said.
After the night is through, audience members will be treated to a multitude of different sounds.
“You will get a variety of different textures,” Dundas said. She said the different pieces range from sombre to contemporary and upbeat.
With a unique take on traditional choir placement, musica intima will be shifting members to spots around the stage and incorporating more movement than usually associated with choir performances.
“It wont just be a choir in the back on the choir stalls, it’ll be a variety of different places,” Dundas said. “So it will be a variety in texture and also a variety in terms of what you see on stage.”
Audience members can expect an intimate performance with more eye-contact with concert goers than usual at an orchestral performace. Thompson will be conducting the OSO as the two groups collaborate, but intima’s solo sets will take on a non-traditional composition.
“We don’t have a conductor so when you come to an intima show, it’s a direct connection between the audience and singers,” Dundas said.
The choir is self-directed and works with a collaborative leadership model, as opposed to traditional choirs who work with a director. This opens up an on-stage connection between members who take cues from each other during performances.
“We make all the decisions together as to how it (the performance) is going to be shaped. So, during a performance you’ll see we have to look around to each other and show each other what we’re doing so we can move through the music,” Dundas said. “We kind of consider our audience the 13th member. We look around to each other, but we look to the audience and consider the audience a part of that as well.”
Tickets are available at the Penticton and Wine Country Visitor Centre or by phone at 250-276-2170.
For more information on the OSO visit www.okanagansymphony.com and to find out more about musica intima visit www.musicaintima.org