There is a new a cappella group on campus, a new name that might not sound entirely familiar. The Modern Madrigal Singers focus on traditional madrigal tunes, particularly those of the 16th century.
The difference between their performances and those of other groups is that the songs they sing were actually meant for the a cappella format. There will be no pop tunes for this group.
Madrigal music, which has been around since the 14th century, flourished first in Italy, then Europe, finding its final popularity in England. It resurfaced in Hanover in the Fall of 1997, when the Modern Madrigal Singers were founded by Daniel Shaw '98, who is a music major and Steven Fox '00, who is the group's current director.
The group has had few concerts on-campus so far but is looking to increase its number of performances. Besides traditional Renaissance pieces, the group also performs "modern" madrigal pieces composed this century.
A madrigal is a short song, generally with rhyming lines. The topics covered by madrigals tend to be "short pieces, some happy, some sad, several of which are love songs," Shaw said.
One of the more familiar modern composers on their program is Vaughan Williams. The group performs several of his songs, including "The Dark Eyed Sailor" and "The Turtle Dove." A typical example of their older songs is William Byrd's "Ave Verum Corpus."
According to Kristin L. Romberg '01, the common unifier of the music is that the songs can be "sung with an intensity that transmits the heart of the song directly to the listener's soul."
One of the reasons that most students are unfamiliar with the group is that many of their concerts have been off-campus. The latest, a community outreach effort, was at the Kendell Retirement Home.
The focus on madrigal tunes is not the only difference between Modern Madrigal Singers and other classical groups like the Chamber Singers. Modern Madrigal Singers is entirely student run, with no faculty conductor.
"I just saw this huge hole in between the faculty led and student led groups," said Fox. So far the effort has been self-funded, but the group hopes that its concerts will begin to pay for themselves.
There is a perception, however, that if a group does not perform contemporary pop tunes that they will not fit into the current performance scene. Many of the a cappella groups perform at Greek houses after meetings and on special occasions.
So far, the Modern Madrigal Singers have not had that same opportunity to perform at houses. They are in negotiations with a few sororities at this time, but still do not have any definite plans.
Would the group's unique sound work in a more informal setting? Jennifer Nycz '00 seems to think that audiences would appreciate their performance. "That is the whole drive behind madrigals," she said. "We all like to make good music."
The group has restricted its practice time so that members can fit Madrigals into their schedules. Because of this the group members can maintain a presence in other singing groups, such as the Chamber Singers and the Dodecs.
The short rehearsal time is another reason they have yet to have many performances. This term's schedule is beginning to shape up and the group is eager to perform to a larger group of students.
Upcoming shows include an April 29th engagement at the Sykes Concert in Collis Commonground at 5 p.m. and a May 21st show at the Hyphen at 10:15 p.m.
Other members on this term include: Erika Doody '01, Evangeline Choe '01, Jack Rice '00, Sasho Emlen '00 and Pete Land '99.
