Chorale celebrates 15 harmonious years
April 24th, 1996 in the Oak LeavesBy: Lucia Mauro
For Oak Park and River Forest musician-historian Victor Hildner, who directed his first choir at the age of 13, music has guided him down a path of joy and enlightenment. Under his dedicated direction, the Oak Park Concert Chorale is celebrating its fifteenth anniversary on Sunday with a 4:00 p.m. concert at Grace Episcopal Church, 924 Lake St., Oak Park.
"Music is the road to freedom," he announced over coffee and a Danish. "But it's a freedom that comes about through discipline and a desire to learn. Whether or not an individual makes a career out of music, the study of it is vital to living--that discipline carries over into all segments of our lives. I'm a firm believer that everyone you see walking down the street has creativity in them."
As young piano student in his native Oberlin, Michigan, Hildner, whose father was a pastor and his mother a nurse, discovered his own natural talent for "sight reading like mad." He played organ at his father's church at St. Clair, Michigan and went on to study music with some of the best instructors during the 1930's and 40's. From 1944 to 1983, the scholar taught music education, voice and organ at Concordia University in River Forest.
"When I started at Concordia, there were 20 students in what used to be its high school," recalled Hildner (who holds degrees in music education and organ, including an honorary doctorate in music from Concordia College-Bronxville, N.Y.) "Everyone was required to take one piano lesson a week. There wasn't anyone in that high school who didn't read notes."
Later, he moved into Concordia's college-level choral program, where he broke new ground in this vibrant field. In 1967, Hildner became head of the Symphony Chorus of Oak Park and River Forest, encouraging members to perform more technically demanding pieces each year. By 1981, he branched out to form the Oak Park Concert Chorale, which specializes in a cappella singing as well as accompanied styles, and a "broader scope of literature."
Members are drawn from Forest Park, Elmwood Park, Melrose Park, Northlake, Des Plaines, Arlington Heights, Hoffman Estates, Berwyn, Chicago, Wheaton, and Stickney as well as from Oak Park.
"After one season, I realized the body of musical knowledge Victor carried in his head, his innovativeness, joy and dedication," commented longtime member Judy Wittenberg of Oak Park. "I like the way he works--in leaps and bounds, challenging us to go home and fine-tune our technique through repetition."
Hildner and his late wife, Agnes, helped bring the ensemble to Europe, where they performed and received brimming accolades.
"There is no limit to our repertoire," said the director, who also founded and directed the Chicago Baroque Ensemble. Take a look at our programs over the years. They all represent ascending levels of difficulty."
Capable of making seamless transitions from a cappella styles to organ-accompanied works, the Oak Park Concert Chorale has reached its high point of singing choir music from memory.
Good enough to repeat
" For the anniversary concert, we're starting with English Cathedral music and ending with gospel, jazz and American Folk songs," he added good-naturedly. "It's so important to catch the style. A madrigal must be sung like a madrigal. We often repeat certain compositions, because I believe that if a piece ain't good enough to repeat, it just ain't good."
Listeners at this weekend's event will hear English Cathedral music by Vaughan Williams, Thomas Tallis and Herbert Howells accompanied by Grace Church's four manual Casavant organ; Randall Thompson's "Alleluia"; "Cindy," a folk song arrangement for double choir by Mack Wilberg, and selections from Robert Ray's "Gospel Mass."
Although he does not call himself a composer "If I need something, I write it"', Hildner has been consistently involved in writing and arranging choral works.
"I do a lot of improvising," explained the scholar. "It's a skill in which you have to think with your fingers. And that ties in with my idea of music being reflexive; it's as much in your spine as it is in your brain."
His approach to choral directing can be contrasted with leading an orchestra. Pointing out that many choral conductors cannot lead orchestras and vice versa. Hildner introduced his theory of the "emergent voice" espoused by Kenneth N. Westerman.
"In an orchestra, you play an instrument; in a choir, your body is the instrument and it is subject to so many subtle physiological changes," he explained. "With emergent voice, the singer's sound is a result of the total source. One must know how the body is put together, as well as the muscular organization that sends energy upward and downward.
"The key is managing your breath so that musically it grows the notes and physically makes you know what to do."
When conducting, he reads the nuances in the faces of his 55 members to determine where to guide them. In the group-oriented realm of choir, individuals can often turn into an anonymous ensemble. But Hildner--who has an intense desire to meet new people and live life to its fullest capacity--views his members in a sensitive, familial light.
"I tell each member, 'You are a soloist,' stressed Hildner. "They are all individuals enjoying the freeing quality of music, bringing their unique personalities to works that are forever evolving based on our own ear and experiences."
Following the concert, all are invited to a reception with light refreshment prepared by the chorale. At this time, conducted tours of Grace Episcopal Church, a landmark in the English Gothic Revival style, will take place. Tickets are $10; $6 seniors/students. For reservations, call (708) 383-4742.