As a faithful fan of Fairfield’s Glee Club, I’ve seen the majority of their concerts during my three-and-a-half years at Fairfield, including all of their Christmas performances. I even followed them once to a church in Greenwich to hear them perform. That is why I feel I’m relatively qualified to say (at least as an observer) that their performance this past Friday was not up to their usual standards.
While there were moments of excellence during the show, it didn’t last throughout the performance. None of the groups or selections were bad by any means, but from what I’ve seen in years past and even earlier this semester at the Inauguration of Fr. von Arx, this show was merely average.
Perhaps this unusually lackluster performance is because the Glee Club has been performing more often this semester than any previous one. I know for certain that their presence during the Inauguration is not usually on their schedule of events. This in addition to parents’ weekend and off campus performances adds up to a potentially worn-out Glee Club, which was obvious during the performance.
Likewise, although I love when an orchestra accompanies the Glee Club, I feel the orchestra this year only emphasized their weaker points. It either overwhelmed the singers or was at the same volume as the voices, so those of us who were sitting in the back couldn’t quite hear the singers. This could be because the Glee Club seemed smaller this year than usual, but if that is the case there shouldn’t have been an orchestra at all.
Although I almost always prefer the selections that the entire Glee Club sings (I’m a sucker for multiple-part harmony and a full sound), this year the magic was in the smaller groups. In particular, Sine Nomine, a four-part harmony ensemble, delivered an excellent and humorous performance. Sweet Harmony, a women’s group, also performed well with cute pantomime that the audience found enjoyable.
One of the great aspects about the performances is that there are traditions that the audience has come to enjoy and expect. For instance, almost every Christmas show the club will perform “Night of Silence,” which is a variation of “Silent Night.” Glee Club alumni who may be in the audience are invited to join the Glee Club on stage and even the audience sings during the refrain of the song. Touches such as this really emphasize how close the Glee Club is as a group, as well as how loyal they are to their fans.
Speaking of their fans, the performance was nearly sold out. Therefore, although I’ve enjoyed past performances more, I don’t think the Glee Club is in any danger of losing fans or support. After all, it is one of the most popular clubs at Fairfield, with good reason. However, from my untrained ear it seems the club was tired, adding to an unusually unimpressive performance.
Leave a Reply