Executive Overview
In a significant cultural mobilization for the Midwestern performing arts landscape, more than 200 vocalists and instrumentalists gathered at Countryside Community Church in Omaha, Nebraska, for a masterwork concert presented by the Résonance Festival Choir and Résonance Consort Orchestra. Conducted by Dr. A. Barron Breland, the event brought together a 170-voice festival chorus—comprising regional masterwork singers, the River City Mixed Chorus, and the Midland University Choir—alongside an orchestral ensemble featuring members of the Omaha Symphony, artist-faculty from the Omaha Conservatory of Music, and emerging instrumentalists.
The program featured two defining 20th-century compositions: Ralph Vaughan Williams’s Flos Campi and Francis Poulenc’s Gloria. Featuring prominent solo performances by soprano Karina Brazas and violist Thomas Kluge, the 90-minute production presented a study in contrasting sacred and sensual aesthetics. Beyond its musical scope, the project serves as a key benchmark for inter-institutional collaboration in Nebraska, backed by a coalition of regional arts councils, endowments, and community partners.
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| PRODUCTION AT A GLANCE |
+------------------------------------+----------------------------------------------+
| Conductors & Soloists | • A. Barron Breland, Conductor |
| | • Karina Brazas, Soprano |
| | • Thomas Kluge, Viola |
+------------------------------------+----------------------------------------------+
| Performing Ensembles | • Résonance Festival Choir (170 voices) |
| | • Résonance Consort Orchestra |
| | • River City Mixed Chorus |
| | • Midland University Choir |
+------------------------------------+----------------------------------------------+
| Featured Repertoire | • Ralph Vaughan Williams: Flos Campi (1925) |
| | • Francis Poulenc: Gloria (1961) |
+------------------------------------+----------------------------------------------+
| Major Sponsors | • Nebraska Arts Council |
| | • Nebraska Cultural Endowment |
| | • Countryside Community Church |
| | • River City Mixed Chorus |
+------------------------------------+----------------------------------------------+Detailed Chronology
Historical Context and Commissioning Legacy
The two works on the program represent pivotal moments in mid-20th-century European composition, each deeply tied to international commissions and transitional periods in their respective composers’ careers.
HISTORICAL TIMELINE OF THE FEATURED WORKS
1925 ----------------------- 1959 ----------------------- 1961 ----------------------- Present
| | | |
Vaughan Williams Poulenc receives Poulenc's Gloria Résonance Festival
premieres 'Flos Campi' Koussevitzky Foundation premieres in Boston presents combined
in London (Aeolian Hall) commission (Boston Symphony Orch.) masterwork program- 1925 — The Genesis of Flos Campi: Written during Ralph Vaughan Williams’s post-World War I creative period, Flos Campi ("Flower of the Field") premiered at Aeolian Hall in London in October 1925, conducted by Sir Henry Wood with Lionel Tertis as the viola soloist. Emerging from the trauma of the First World War, where Vaughan Williams served in the Royal Army Medical Corps, the piece abandoned traditional Victorian hymnody in favor of a sensual, wordless modal landscape inspired by the Song of Solomon.
- 1959–1961 — The Creation and Premiere of Poulenc’s Gloria: Commissioned by the Serge Koussevitzky Music Foundation in memory of Serge and Natalie Koussevitzky, Francis Poulenc composed his Gloria between May and December 1959. Premiered on January 20, 1961, by the Boston Symphony Orchestra and the Chorus Pro Musica under conductor Charles Munch, the work established a transatlantic artistic bridge, showcasing Poulenc’s signature blend of sacred devotion and mid-century French neoclassicism.
Local Production Timeline
The execution of the Omaha performance involved a multi-stage rehearsal and logistical schedule spanning several months:
- Phase 1: Institutional Alignment & Sectional Rehearsals: Secondary ensembles—including the Midland University Choir under collegiate direction and the River City Mixed Chorus—initiated independent rehearsals to master the complex French and Latin diction, modal shifts, and syncopated rhythms characteristic of the two scores.
- Phase 2: Combined Choral Integration: The groups converged to form the 170-voice Résonance Festival Choir under the leadership of Dr. A. Barron Breland. Rehearsals focused on balancing vocal tone, refining dynamic control for the textless textures of Flos Campi, and securing the rhythmic articulation required for Poulenc’s Gloria.
- Phase 3: Orchestra and Soloist Integration: Instrumentalists drawn from the Omaha Symphony and the Omaha Conservatory of Music artist-faculty joined the choir for full dress rehearsals at Countryside Community Church, aligning acoustic balances within the sanctuary.
- Phase 4: The Performance: The single-night performance brought together the combined force of 200 musicians before a regional audience, showcasing the fruit of this multi-tiered collaborative effort.
Supporting Context & Metrics
ENSEMBLE COMPOSITION BREAKDOWN
+-----------------------------------------------------------------+
| [Choral Force: ~170 Singers] |
| ■ Résonance Masterwork Singers |
| ■ River City Mixed Chorus |
| ■ Midland University Choir |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------+
| [Orchestral & Soloist Force: ~30-40 Players] |
| ■ Omaha Symphony Core Musicians |
| ■ Omaha Conservatory Artist-Faculty |
| ■ Featured Soloists (Karina Brazas, Thomas Kluge) |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------+Deep-Dive Musical Analysis
Ralph Vaughan Williams: Flos Campi (1925)
Flos Campi is scored for solo viola, small orchestra, and a wordless six-part choir (SATB). Divided into six contiguous movements, each section is prefaced in the score by a verse from the Latin Vulgate text of the Song of Solomon (Canticum Canticorum).
Rather than setting the text phonetically or semantically, Vaughan Williams utilizes the chorus as an orchestral timbre, instructing singers to hum or sing on open vowels ($a$, $o$, $u$). The solo viola—performed by Thomas Kluge—acts as the central dramatic character, voicing the human longing and erotic-spiritual dualities of the biblical text. The harmonic framework relies heavily on bitonal motifs, Dorian and Phrygian modes, and pentatonic scales, reflecting the influence of early 20th-century French Impressionism on English music.
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| POULENC: GLORIA - MOVEMENT STRUCTURE |
+-----+-------------------------------+--------------------------------------------+
| No. | Movement Title | Key Stylistic & Structural Characteristics |
+-----+-------------------------------+--------------------------------------------+
| I | Gloria in excelsis Deo | Majestic, brass-heavy G major chords; |
| | | sharp, angular harmonic progressions. |
+-----+-------------------------------+--------------------------------------------+
| II | Laudamus te | "Cheeky," syncopated scherzo tempo; |
| | | Stravinskian rhythmic shifts. |
+-----+-------------------------------+--------------------------------------------+
| III | Domine Deus | Soaring operatic soprano solo; lyric, |
| | | melancholic, highly expressive lines. |
+-----+-------------------------------+--------------------------------------------+
| IV | Domine Fili Unigenite | Fast-paced, theatrical, and rhythmic; |
| | | energetic choral interjections. |
+-----+-------------------------------+--------------------------------------------+
| V | Domine Deus, Agnus Dei | Darker modal tones; soprano solo suspended |
| | | over quiet, mysterious choral chords. |
+-----+-------------------------------+--------------------------------------------+
| VI | Qui sedes ad dexteram Patris | Climactic synthesis; alternates between |
| | | explosive joy and a tranquil "Amen." |
+-----+-------------------------------+--------------------------------------------+Francis Poulenc: Gloria (1961)
Francis Poulenc’s Gloria remains one of the most widely performed sacred choral works of the post-WWII era. Scored for solo soprano, large choir, and full orchestra, the piece exemplifies Poulenc’s duality—often described by contemporary critics as part monk, part mischievous child ("le moine et le voyou").
The six-movement setting of the Roman Catholic Mass text breaks from traditional 19th-century liturgical solemnity. Poulenc incorporated staccato syncopations inspired by his visits to traditional Italian churches—where he observed young monks playing soccer—alongside musical references to Igor Stravinsky’s Symphony of Psalms. Soprano Karina Brazas led the vocal solos in the third (Domine Deus) and fifth (Domine Deus, Agnus Dei) movements, navigating wide interval leaps, delicate pianissimo entrances, and expansive lyricism.
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| COMPARATIVE WORK ANALYSIS |
+-----------------------+----------------------------+------------------------------+
| Feature | Vaughan Williams: | Francis Poulenc: |
| | Flos Campi | Gloria |
+-----------------------+----------------------------+------------------------------+
| Composition Year | 1925 | 1959–1960 |
| Premiere Location | London, UK | Boston, USA |
| Primary Text Source | Song of Solomon (Vulgate) | Mass Ordinary (Gloria) |
| Role of Choir | Wordless, orchestral color | Expressive, text-driven |
| Featured Soloist | Viola (Thomas Kluge) | Soprano (Karina Brazas) |
| Musical Style | English Modal Impressionist| French Neoclassical |
| Duration | ~20–22 Minutes | ~25–28 Minutes |
+-----------------------+----------------------------+------------------------------+Institutional Funding and Regional Economic Impact
The production relied on a combination of public and private funding mechanisms. Public funding was secured through matching grants from the Nebraska Arts Council and the Nebraska Cultural Endowment, agencies tasked with distributing state and federal funding from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) to regional projects.
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| FINANCIAL & SUPPORT ECOSYSTEM |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| [Public Funding & State Grants] |
| ├── Nebraska Arts Council (NAC Direct Program Grants) |
| └── Nebraska Cultural Endowment (Statewide Cultural Preservation) |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| [Co-Sponsoring & Venue Partners] |
| ├── Countryside Community Church (Acoustic Venue & In-Kind Space) |
| └── River City Mixed Chorus (Institutional Co-Sponsor & Community Outreach) |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------+Direct institutional support was provided by:
- Countryside Community Church: Provided venue space, rehearsal facilities, and production logistics at its Faith Plaza campus.
- River City Mixed Chorus: Contributed administrative infrastructure, vocalists, and co-sponsoring funds.
- Midland University: Integrated the performance into its undergraduate music curriculum, offering collegiate singers experience with major-orchestral repertoire.
Official Statements
Reflecting on the collaborative scale of the program, Artistic Director and Conductor Dr. A. Barron Breland highlighted the structural importance of uniting diverse regional arts institutions for a single performance:
"Bringing together over 200 musicians—spanning professional orchestral players, university students, and veteran community singers—requires a high degree of artistic coordination. Flos Campi and the Poulenc Gloria represent two opposite ends of 20th-century sacred expression. To balance Vaughan Williams’s wordless, impressionistic textures alongside Poulenc’s sharp, theatrical syncopations in a single evening is a testament to the versatility of our regional musical ecosystem."
Soprano soloist Karina Brazas noted the specific vocal demands of Poulenc’s masterwork within a sanctuary space:
"Poulenc’s writing for the soprano soloist in the Gloria demands both explosive operatic power and extreme vocal control. Navigating the quiet, delicate entrances against a 170-voice choir requires absolute trust in the ensemble’s dynamic control and the conductor’s pacing. It is a work that bridges deep religious devotion with pure theatrical joy."
Violist Thomas Kluge, featured in Flos Campi, emphasized the rare balance between the viola and the wordless chorus:
"Vaughan Williams treats the viola not merely as a solo instrument, but as a vocal storyteller navigating a landscape of sound. Because the choir sings without words, the instrument assumes the responsibility of communicating the emotional narrative of the Song of Solomon. The combination of modal harmonies and wordless choral resonance creates an acoustic atmosphere unlike anything else in the string repertoire."
Future Outlook
The success of the Résonance Festival performance points to a growing trend in mid-sized American metropolitan areas: consolidating regional musical resources to present large-scale masterworks that individual organizations might struggle to produce independently.
FUTURE STRATEGIC ROADMAP
+-----------------------------------------------------------------+
| 1. CROSS-INSTITUTIONAL EXPANSION |
| Establish permanent rehearsal frameworks connecting |
| universities, community choirs, and symphony players. |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------+
│
▼
+-----------------------------------------------------------------+
| 2. SUSTAINED FUNDING MODELS |
| Leverage public-private grant pairings (NAC/NCE) to ensure |
| underwriting for complex masterwork productions. |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------+
│
▼
+-----------------------------------------------------------------+
| 3. REGIONAL REPERTOIRE DIVERSIFICATION |
| Expand festival offerings to include lesser-performed |
| 20th and 21st-century choral-orchestral works. |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------+Strategic Implications for the Regional Arts Scene
- Cross-Institutional Frameworks: By combining professional performers (Omaha Symphony, Omaha Conservatory faculty) with academic institutions (Midland University) and community ensembles (River City Mixed Chorus), the festival model offers a sustainable template for staging major choral-orchestral works outside major metropolitan opera centers.
- Audience Development: Joint productions allow participating organizations to cross-pollinate their audience bases. Community chorus supporters, university communities, and symphony subscribers are brought together into a single audience demographic.
- Grant and Endowment Pipeline: The involvement of state bodies like the Nebraska Arts Council and Nebraska Cultural Endowment underscores the role of public arts policy in funding large-scale artistic projects. Continued funding for these initiatives will remain vital for maintaining technical standards, securing top-tier soloists, and keeping ticket prices accessible across the region.
