Program Notes for "Music to Lighten the Darkness"

by, Holly Druckman

As I sit down to write program notes for this concert, I find that I don’t really know what to say. This is a dark time for all of us, in a multitude of ways. It feels insincere to offer the usual hopeful platitudes right now, at a time when so many of us are grieving.

This program of darkness and light is about more than just the turning of the seasons (though that is certainly a large part of it). These darkest days of the year bring with them an emotional darkness that so many of us feel deeply, and is often exacerbated by a holiday season that expects happiness of us when we may feel stressed instead. Combined with that, we find ourselves living through a dark time in history. Cappella Clausura’s mission, for over twenty years, has been rooted in the knowledge that women’s creative voices are every bit as unique, compelling and deserving as men’s voices, and that we have been unfairly silenced for much of history. And yet, we still live in an era where our autonomy over our own bodies is challenged, where we must police our behavior into perfection in a way that isn’t demanded of men, and where we are expected to act submissively in nearly every situation - and are chastised when we don’t. Even after hundreds of years of fighting: society tells us that we are “less-than”, to this day. And this injustice is even worse for our queer sisters, our sisters of color, and our trans siblings of every gender.

Maybe this is a gloomy take - I’ve been known to program pretty heavy concerts, even though I try not to do it too often - but I think it’s important to put a name to the pain we may be feeling. If this message resonates with even only one person, it will have been worth it.

We are privileged to present music by some stellar women composers in the hopes that it will reach you emotionally in this challenging time. Jessica French’s Awake O Sun is a rousing hymn of praise to the light, while Ashi Day’s The Evening Darkens Over is a cathartic expression of loneliness. Natalie Draper’s Three Lenten Motets deal with themes of hope in the midst of despair and catastrophe, while Dorothy Hindman’s You Shall Not Go Down presents a comforting lullaby with words of fiercely protective love. Music by Hildegard celebrates light and how it imbues ordinary things and people with the sacred. Pieces by Alma Mahler and Francis Poulenc portray nighttime in a variety of ways, from a vision of the loving cover of darkness, to a stark forest landscape where frozen tree branches form an otherworldly cathedral. And Anna Clyne’s The Heart of Night captures the lonely experience of gazing at a night full of stars, experiencing the vastness of the universe but also the joy of being alive to witness it.

I continue to hope that things will improve in our world. I continue to believe in my power of making a difference in my community through art, advocacy, and communal music- making. I take this responsibility seriously and literally: I believe that this program can bring you hope, can bring our musicians hope. We are performing this program for you so that you can take that hope home, and use it to lighten the darkness around you.

Perhaps it’s naïve of me to believe this. But for me, belief has never been a choice. And I believe that this darkness, however total it seems now, will pass; and that, for now, we can find some comfort in knowing that we can get through this darkest time of the year together.

We respectfully ask that you hold your applause until the end of the performance. Thank you for being here, with us, tonight.