Classical Concert Reviews Cinci

@uc_ccm’s Chamber Choir opened its slate of musical offerings for the winter/spring of 2026 with an absolutely SPECTACULAR performance of one of James MacMillan’s most popular and most frequently performed choral works, Seven Last Words from the Cross coupled with Samuel Barber’s Adagio for Strings, under the direction of CCM’s director of Choral Studies, Joe Miller in the gorgeously refined acoustic of St. Xavier Church in the heart of downtown Cincinnati.
The opening movement, Father, Forgive Them, offered a sensuous and luscious mantra-like quality throughout, with more angular and jarring moments for string orchestra and lower voices. The chorus maintained a strong, heartrending sound in the second and third movements, against a slow crescendo of sound from the strings in the former and a extended duets performed as solos across all eight voice parts in the latter. Some were sung by undergraduates, no less, including powerfully ringing highlights from sopranos Sofiya Chvojka and Savannah Weldon. Movements four through seven were perhaps some of the most inspiring performances ever given, as their harmonic language, including influences from Scottish folk melodies which color much of James MacMillan’s oeuvre, allowed the inner meaning of the story of Christ’s crucifixion on the cross to be brought out in such a way that most other modern works likely wouldn’t otherwise do. This was most evident in the fifth and sixth movements, through the use of stage whispers in the choral parts and slow crescendos to triple or even quadruple forte in the strings. The latter movement being primarily a cappella with cutting interjections from the orchestra representing the hammering of the nails into the cross shows both unrestrained beauty and sheer horror. The final movement was spine-tingling and hypnotic in its power and desolation.
Rarely do I attend performances where the musicianship and compelling artistry from everyone involved leaves me emotional afterward. But, having waited almost a decade to hear this MacMillan masterpiece live, I can definitely say it was worth the wait. Bravi tutti!