Ave Maria [MacIntyre]

Program Notes:

This compelling composition was inspired by stories of young girls in Bosnia/Herzegovina rushing to the hills to see visions of the Virgin Mary.

Conductor Notes:

MacIntyre’s piece is one of those versatile compositions that seems to work well for either children’s or women’s voices, and for small choirs as well as large (I once heard 500 children sing this remarkable piece). There is wonderful story around its creation. Ave Maria was one of several pieces commissioned by the Canadian Music Centre (CMC) in 1994 to celebrate their 25th anniversary. MacIntyre wrote it specifically with Elektra in mind. He doesn’t use the traditional ‘Ave Maria’ text because the piece is not really about the text but rather the anticipation of the vision and connection with the divine. He simply used the words ‘Ave Maria’ as the repeated chant or mantra of the children. Ave Maria was inspired as MacIntyre says “…by my readings, by the beauty and vitality of Elektra’s sound, by the celebration of the CMC’s events, and by my own mother, Betty Anderson of Victoria, to whom the work is dedicated.”

Composer / Arranger Notes:

In 1994, the request to write a short work for Elektra Women’s Choir came at a time when I was deep in research for a new opera about paranormal spiritual events occurring in war-torn Bosnia-Hercegovina, particularly the daily visitations of the Virgin Mary to a small group of children and adults who live there. During my research, I was struck by the celebratory nature of these visitations and the necessity of connecting with the feminine, maternal nature of the divine.

Text:

Ave Maria

Translation:

Hail, Mary