THE HERE AND NOW
Published by Bill Holab Music duration 33 minutes and available for soloists, chorus and orchestra and now also WIND ORCHESTRA
Chrisopher Hoh wrote in August 2007
Christopher Theofanidis's "The Here and Now" is dramatic, exciting, idiomatic. Overall, excellent writing that shows off the chorus and instruments, very well performed. The texts are terrific. Kudos to conductor Robert Spano and the Atlanta Symphony and Chorus for commissioning it and giving is such a good showing. I agree with the reviewer who compared it to Barber's "The Lovers," but would add that musically it also stands up well against Bernstein's Chichester Psalms despite its secular (profane?) texts. At the same time, Theofanidis's sound is fresh without being gimmicky. Will it become a standard masterwork in the 21st century repertoire? It's certainly a candidate, one that orchestra/chorus programmers and contemporary choral afficionados should explore