Music to our ears

My son, Anthony, checks out Portland's history.

Merrill Auditorium's lavish hallways. 

Downtown Portland, Maine on a Sunday afternoon.

PORTLAND, Maine - For two glorious hours, I forgot about my bills, winter’s cold touch and mankind’s stupidity as a chorus of angelic voices drifted over me.

I had found serenity inside the lavish halls of palatial Merrill Auditorium. My heart rate slowed, my breathing was calm and any trace of apprehension had disappeared as the Vancouver Chamber Choir’s soothing music lulled a couple of hundred patrons into a dream-like state.

There is no question about it — these guys and gals have got some game.

If classical music is the big leagues, then this choir would be one of Major League baseball’s dominant teams. All their powerful voices are home runs.

I won a pair of tickets, which are steep but well worth the price of admission for $44.00 apiece, at work. My son accompanied me to the concert. Terri was nursing an ear infection and elected to remain behind even though I would have gladly purchased a third ticket.

My son and I sat in total silence as the show went on. We didn’t dare speak to each other for fear missing one note of Vancouver’s mesmerizing chorals. Nobody spoke. Not one cell phone interrupted the silence of Merrill Auditorium, which was quieter than a library.

I didn’t give a damn about mankind’s ugliness or politicians’ empty promises. All I could do was just float in and out this brief state of tranquility.

Conductor and Artistic Director Jon Washburn’s gentle demeanor and reassuring voice was a crowd pleaser. He had this adept way of introducing and explaining each musical piece to his audience. I appreciated his knowledge of music, which I am sure is vast.

In the dead of winter, I found myself totally relaxed as Vancouver opened its “A Choral Panorama” with heavy-hitting composer Johann Sebastian Bach’s “Komm, Jesu, Komm."

I had found nirvana as the choir’s interpretation of Bach’s timeless piece emptied my mind of trepidation and melancholy.

The Choir moved on to perform Sir John Tavener’s “The Lamb” and Canadian composer R. Murray Schaler’s “A Medieval Bestiary.”

These are great works performed by a world-class choir, which is also capable of bringing to life English folk songs. My favorite, "Early One Morning," was done masterfully. I have heard this piece in movies and on PBS.

I had the privilege of listening to a select group of mankind's finest voices brighten the lives of an appreciative audience on a Sunday afternoon.

The only problem I had with this outstanding performance is it lasted for only two hours, and all this serenity disappeared after the last round of applause gave way to silence.