The Outermost House
Bo Ericsson (cello), Nancy Armstrong (soprano), Jane Harrison (oboe), Robert J. Lurtsema (narrator), Claude Cobert (flute), Elizabeth Doriss (oboe), Seth Orgel (horn), Jeanne Paella (horn), Elizabeth Schultz (cello), Ann Trout (double bass), Donald Enos (piano), Evan Lattimore (percussion), Chatham Chorale
The big draw for this disc is the fact that Robert J. Lurtsema from WGBH' s Morning Pro Musica does the narration. For 27 years he has been known to classical music lovers everywhere. Ronald Perera was born in Boston and studied with Leon Kirchner and Randall Thompson. Today he is Elsie Irwin Sweeney Professor at Smith College. The text of The Outermost House is taken from Henry Beston's A Year of Life on the Great Beach of Cape Cod written in 1928. Though the book produced only modest initial sales, its readership continued to grow, and after World War II it began to achieve something of a cult status. Rachel Carson said that it was the only book that influenced her writing. Today it is generally acknowledged as a classic of American nature writing, and many of Beston's words have become part of the modern environmental credo: "The world today is sick to its thin blood for lack of elemental things." "Creation is here and now." "Touch the earth, love the earth, honor the earth." Ronald Perera's The Outermost House received its premiere on November 16, 1991 with the Chatham Chorale. Canticle of the Sun by Saint Francis of Assisi was commissioned for the one hundredth anniversary in 1984 of Groton School, a venerable independent secondary school in Massachusetts with a religious affiliation symbolized by a splendid gothic chapel in which the piece was premiered on April 21, 1985.
Track Listing
| Title | Composer | Performer |
|---|---|---|
| The Outermost House | Ronald Perera | Chatham Chorale, Margaret Bossi, conductor, Nancy Armstrong, soprano, Robert J. Lurtsema, narrator |
| The Canticle of the Sun | Ronald Perera | Chatham Chorale, Margaret Bossi, conductor, Robert J. Lurtsema, narrator |
Reviews
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"The Outermost House is a musical tribute to the beauty and power of the Cape Cod seashore composed by Ronald Perera, the Elsie & Irwin Sweeney Professor at Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts. Perera took 13 excerpts from Henry Beston's account of A Year of Life on the Great Beach of Cape Codand set them for choir, solo soprano, narrator, and small orchestra....Much of the music is quite likeable. Perera has latched onto gorgeous written material. Beston's descriptions of the Cape have been captivating readers since he wrote them in1925. Rachel Carson, the notes tell us, was inspired by his love affair with nature...So let's total it up. Both pieces contain nice things. Narrations, choral writing, and orchestrations are "go."Choral execution and Perera's solo writing aren't going to win any major awards. Conclusion: If you've ever walked Nauset Beach at sunset, or driven Route 6 from Orleans Circle to the Provincetown dunes in early morning, you'll be thrilled to own this. For the rest of you, it would make pleasant, but hardly mandatory, listening."
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