As a Seattle native, I feel a little sheepish admitting that I paid my first visit to St. James Cathedral only last Saturday. One of the city’s grandest landmarks, the cathedral’s twin spires have adorned First Hill since 1907. In 2002, St. James famously hosted Conan O’Brien’s wedding to Seattle native Liza Powel.
Celebrity marriages aside, the cathedral is an important space for Seattle’s choral and early music communities, and for a good reason — the building’s echoing acoustics bring the sound of vocal music to life. St. James did not disappoint during my first visit. From my seat on a pew in the cathedral’s grand nave, the voices of the Medieval Women’s Choir transported me back to the ancient churches of Renaissance Europe, where choirs of nuns sung Gregorian chant in the candlelight.
Margriet Tindemans (Photo: William Stickney)
Nearly fifty members strong, the Medieval Women’s Choir was created in 1990 by Margriet Tindemans. A local powerhouse for the early music community, Tindemans does it all. In addition to her position as artistic director of the Medieval Women’s Choir, she plays the vielle (an ancient cousin of the violin), composes, and researches the musical traditions of the Middle Ages and Renaissance. The choir performs three times a year, bringing the timeless simplicity and beauty of the vocal music of the Middle Ages and Renaissance to Seattle’s grand old churches and cathedrals. To complete the package, they’re accompanied by musicians playing on period instruments.
This season, the choir explored the life and work of St. Hildegard of Bingen with three concerts devoted to the medieval mystic. Last Saturday’s performance brought together a collection of songs and antiphons — responsive Gregorian chants — that Hildegard may have heard during her lifetime.