Harvard-Radcliffe Orchestra

There are many "unknown" works in musical literature whose neglect is unfortunate, but nevertheless understandable. Cherubini's second Requiem Mass, which the Harvard-Radcliffe Orchestra performed last night with the Williams Glee Club, is one of these.

Cherubini was an important figure in musical history, due mainly to his work in the early romantic opera and the fact that he was an influential composer in the early 19th Century. Today, his works, with few exceptions, are praised but unperformed, the D minor Requiem being a case in point. It contains moments of great beauty, and dramatic power; but these are moments only, and the total impression of the work is that of formless wandering, held together by the text rather than any musical coherence.

Last night's performance, which was led by the Glee Club's conductor, Victor Yellin, was generally uneven, though it too, like the Requiem, had some high points, notably the stunning Gregorian chant tenor solo, sung by Donald Brown. The Williams Glee Club sang with perfect intonation and balance, but these could not make up for its unpolished and open tone. An uneasy, strained quality dominated the performance, relieved only occasionally by sections of tonal warmth.

Despite the defects of the composition and the performance, there was more than enough of interest in the work to warrant its performance, and the closing section, as well as other excerpts, was unexpectedly moving. If the work is not a masterpiece, it is never boring, and it was performed with care and effort.

By contrast, the first half of the program, conducted by Attilio Poto, consisted of two works whose place in the standard repertoire is secure, but which were treated in a manner reminiscent of the Orchestra's conspicuously poor performances of two years ago. Haydn's last symphony, No. 104, in D Major had at least the benefit of a spirited, well-played finale. But the rest of it, and Corelli's "Christmas" Concerto, which opened the concert sounded as if the orchestra were merely going through the motions. The intonation was unaccountably bad, the playing colorless, and the ensemble work in the winds unusually slipshod. The most noticeable defect was the strings' inability to play piano with any tone at all but a rather lifeless one, lacking intensity and variety.

Otherwise, the orchestra might do well in turning its attention from the finer points of phrasing the larger problems of musicianship.