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Jorge Córdoba

AleluyaMusiC resourCe guide

¡Cantaré! series

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Aleluya Music resource guideWritten by Melissa Bergstrom with contributions from Caitlin BadgerEdited by Kimberly D. Meisten, VocalEssenceDesigned by Katryn Conlin, Dakota Street Design

special ThanksChristopher AspaasPhilip BrunelleJorge CórdobaNick PeterDaniel Fernilius

Photography Credits

Cover: Southern Minnesota Landscape: Photograph by Katryn Conlin for VocalEssence

Jorge Córdoba: Photograph by Katryn Conlin for VocalEssence

St. Olaf Viking Chorus, Christopher Aspaas, conductor: Photograph by Stephen Maturen for VocalEssence

Purchase the musicAleluya is available for purchase at:http://www.vocalessencemusicpress.org/works/aleluya

Our mission is to help choruses,

conductors and composers

connect in meaningful ways by

publishing exciting new music

for singers at all levels.

VocalEssence Music Press is a

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in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Founded in 1969 under the

enthusiastic leadership of

Philip Brunelle, VocalEssence

champions choral music of all

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AleluyaJorge Córdoba Valencia (b.1953) difficulty Level Aleluya (TTBB) is a rhythmically complex piece with each voice part independently layering rhythmic patterns using frequent syncopation. Additionally, the harmonic language often uses open intervals of fourths, fifths, and octaves requiring precise tuning and vowel unification. Ranges of voice parts are fairly standard (see figure A). This piece is most appropriate for collegiate-level men’s ensembles and possibly advanced church choir or community groups.

Composer’s NoteThe composition of this piece was inspired by rehearsals of the St. Olaf College Viking Chorus where sacred music predominates. I find the meaning of Aleluya to be universal in different places and cultures of the world. For example, I saw many beautiful things along the road I traveled many times from Minneapolis to St. Olaf College — Aleluya was a synthesis of all of the feelings that I felt in these experiences. The enthusiastic style of the choral conductor, Christopher Aspaas, and the voices of the young men gave me a special energy and I felt the impulse to compose a very fresh piece with a lot of different feelings and moods. I wrote the piece to include moments of joy, reflection, meditation and explosion through different techniques, but I was always searching to reflect a gratitude for life! It is important to remember that México is a country that was conquered by the Spanish. Our spiritual heritage is still that of the Catholic Church and that syncretism is present in many Mexican artistic fields. However, I tried to compose this piece without direct reference to Mexico’s spiritual history. For me, the idea was to compose a universal piece with a special intention to provoke in the audience a desire to live!

Composer BiographyJorge Córdoba Valencia was born on December 15, 1953 in Mexico City. As a young adult he had very diverse experiences in music. He informally studied popular music including rock, jazz and folk music before attending the National Conservatory of Mexico where he received a traditional music education. He later traveled to Spain, Hungary, Boston, Brazil and the Dominican Republic to participate in conducting courses. Córdoba is a highly respected composer who has won many awards and honors including first place in the Third National Contest of Choral Music and served as composer-in-residence at Brandon University in Manitoba, Canada. He has been Artistic Director of the National University of Mexico Choir, University

of Mexico-Iztapalapa Choir, Children’s Choir Legaria Theater and Madrigalists Choir from Mexico’s National Institute of Fine Arts. Córdoba also performs frequently as a guest conductor of instrumental groups including the National University of Mexico’s Symphonic Orchestra and Percussion Orchestra, the Symphonic Orchestra of Oaxaca, the Chamber Orchestra of San Angel, the Chamber Orchestra of Mexico City, the Festival Orchestra of Pecs, Hungary, the Chamber Orchestra of the Academy Kuronuma, the Schola Cantorum Choir in Hudson, New York, and the Culture Institute Choir of León, Guanajuato.

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Conductor’s Notes “Aleluya!” was premiered as part of the 2009 VocalEssence ¡Cantaré! Community Concert at Orchestra Hall by the St. Olaf College Viking Chorus, a freshman men’s choir (photo above). Conductor Christopher Aspaas offered the observations below.

When Jorge visited campus, he told the story of his first day at St. Olaf. Most of his time was spent exploring campus, interacting with people and places and taking many pictures. On his way out of town, he stopped at a roadside stand to buy some fruit, and really saw the vista of the farmland, campus, and everything that is beautiful about fall in Minnesota. His only response was “Alleluia.”

The biggest challenges in this piece were rhythm and attitude. Rhythmically, the section in the middle where all of the voices are carrying different rhythmic material took quite some time to acquire. In terms of attitude, Jorge wanted so many ideas to be expressed throughout the piece, and it was a challenge to create so many different colors in one anthem.

I think that this is the kind of work that you need to live with and experience. Jorge’s descriptions did make it helpful. I do believe, however, that he wants the ensemble to “realize” the piece and not just follow his directions.

In Aleluya, even though we sing only one word, we need to explore all of the different facets of that text. In the same vein, each part is rather independent of the others, so each part has to realize what its role in every section is. Also, it takes all four parts to create even the first iteration of the first “Aleluya!” We are all important — each of us counts and must contribute in order for the piece to work. — Dr. Christopher Aspaas

TextAleluya is the Spanish-language spelling of “Hallelujah” or “Alleluia” and can be defined as “Praise to God” or a non-religious exclamation of joy or gratitude. Derivatives of the word Aleluya can be found in all three major monotheistic religions: Judaism (where it originated — literally “Halelu Yah” or “Praise Yahweh” as found in the Book of Psalms), Christianity (four appearances in the Book of Revelations), and Islam (Al-Hamdulillah— literally “the-feeling-of-gratitude-belonging-to-Allah” as found in the first sura [chapter] of the Qur’an). “Aleluya” is truly a universal expression of praise and/or thanksgiving with similarly pronounced variations in languages across the world.

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rehearsal Considerations,strategies & Presentation ideas

Form/Text AnalysisIntroducing Aleluya with form and text analysis can help singers develop an understanding of the whole piece, strategize a step-by-step rehearsal approach and discover the motivic relationships between sections in this challenging work. By doing so, conductors will replace the singers’ initial trepidation at the difficult melodic, harmonic and rhythmic elements with appreciation for the compositional process and emotional range possible in a single word.

•Discusstheusualformsofvocalmusicand/orformsofotherpiecesintheensemble’scurrent repertoire, noting together how the shape of the text (refrains, verses, other uses of repetition) often influence the composer’s approach to musical form (strophic versus thorough-composed) in both classical and popular genres. Have students bring in recordings and lyric sheets of their favorite songs and analyze form together.

•Havesingersperusethescoretodiscoverthetextofthispieceandits“form”(orlackthereof!).

•Asksingerstoimagineand/orshareideasaboutpossiblecompositionalapproachesto form when text does not indicate a specific shape.

•DisplayorhavesingerswriteintheirscoresthefourdescriptorsCórdobalistsasemotional qualities he portrays in the piece: Joy, Reflection, Meditation, Explosion.

•ListentotherecordingavailableonVocalEssenceMusicPresswebsite(premiereperformance by the St. Olaf Viking Chorus, Dr. Christopher Aspaas, conducting) with those four descriptors in mind.

•Singersmaywanttonoteintheirscoresastheyfollowalongwiththerecordingwhere they hear music that expresses those particular qualities or even write in other emotional states the music inspires in them.

•Analyzetheform,perhapsusingavisualchartwithmelodic,rhythmic,andtexturalnotes (see pages 6-8 for an example and a blank chart). Make connections between musical motifs and “label” sections with those emotional qualities if consensus can be reached. These section labels can then be used in rehearsal, sectional assignments, or memorization aids later in the process (i.e., “work on the ‘Meditation’ section this week!”). Later section labels can also be used to aid and illustrate vocal quality/color, dynamics, rhythmic or lyric approaches, etc.

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Aleluya – A singer’s guideWho: Jorge Córdoba Valencia (b.1953) Born in Mexico City Studied and performed rock, folk, jazz, and classical style music Conductor and composer with eclectic and international influences

“I wrote Aleluya to include moments of joy, reflection, meditation and explosion through different technique treatments, but always I was searching to reflect a gratitude for life!” —Jorge Córdoba Valencia

Aleluya/Hallelujah/Alleluia/ Halelu Yah/ Al-Hamdulillah — no matter the spelling or transliteration, no matter if it is Judaism, Christianity or Islam, all are an expression of praise and thanksgiving.

Compositional Building Blocks for ALeLuYA

Did you know?

~Mexico is about three times the size of Texas~

~Mexico’s indigenous civilizations have roots as early as 2500 B.C. and include Maya, Toltecs, and Aztecs~

~Mexico is the most populous Spanish-speaking country in the world (although 60 indigenous languages are still spoken)~

~Mexico City (the capital) is the second largest metropolis after Tokyo with a population of 22 million (20% of Mexico)~

~Mexican music grows out of influences from Spanish conquistadores, Catholic missionaries and indigenous folk traditions~

~Mexico boasts the oldest conservatory of music in the Americas – Conservatorio de las Rosas, founded 1743~

singer Handout

Page 7

Mea

sure

Se

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n

Tem

po

Met

er

Rhyt

hm

Text

ure

Tim

bre

m.1

-5

m.6

-36

m.3

7-68

m

.69-

109

m.1

10-1

46

m.1

47-e

nd

Fanf

are

Intr

o Jo

y Re

flect

ion

Med

itatio

n Ex

plos

ion

Fest

ive

Coda

Ale

luya

Jo

rge

Cord

oba

Vale

ncia

singer Handout

Page 8

Mea

sure

Se

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Tem

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Rhyt

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Text

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Tim

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m.1

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o, w

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Ale

luya

Jo

rge

Cord

oba

Vale

ncia

Answer Key