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So there was plenty from the European Renaissance to delight the ear and offer spiritual food for thought on Sunday afternoon at "Music Then," presented in St. Peter‘s Lutheran Church, Kitchener, _ by the Kâ€"W Philharmonic Chamber Even the experts on preâ€" classical church music (genâ€" erally, anything before Bach) can never be totally sure just from the evidence of notes on a page. ow did they do it H"then?" What did it really sound like? And was it gospel... or art? Philharmonic Chamber Singers combine beauty and reverence in sacred choral works Music Then is music for now: * The troubadours of the Dufflebag Theatre put on their own tale at the latest session of Roundâ€"about Theatre at the Wate audience member Keisha Thomas, pictured centre, Rod Keith wellâ€"known fable. By PavuNe FincH For The Chronicle In what was probably a frequent practice of the early 1600s, especially in worship Sunday‘s 90â€"minute proâ€" gram was built around the luminous Missa Aeterna Christi Munera by Giovanni Luigi da Palestrina (1525â€" 1594), and a cantata on the famous Lutheran hymn, Jesu Meine Freude, by Dietrich Buxtehude (1637â€" Singers, led by Howard Dyck. The program also feaâ€" tured as special guests the Toronto periodâ€"instruments trio Arbor _ Oak (Larry Beckwith and Marty Davids, violins; Felicity Deak, cello; Stephanie Martin, harpsiâ€" chord). 1707) Beauty and the Beast their own entertaining version of the Beauty and the Beast fairy at the Waterloo Recreation Complex last Saturday. With the help of , Rod Keith, Natalie Robataille and Jim Doucette reworked the hoeepiny Great Lood 1 Reality? 1GNNATPS BisTiRro 8$84â€"9297 While none are houseâ€" hold names, and likely never will be, their compact and rhythmically varied suites captured what â€" violinist Beckwith aptly called the "improvisatory feel" of their day, when musical language wasn‘t as â€" grammatically detailed, rigid, or precise as it is now. Modern explorers of these early works must contexts, the choral moveâ€" ments of the mass (exquisâ€" itely delivered from the rear balcony} were interspersed with brief â€" instrumental sonatas by littleâ€"known periâ€" od composers Lelio Colista, Tarquinio Merula, Giovanni Battista Fontana and Johann Rosenmuller. In addition, as the Arbor Oak players demonstrated so eloquently, there is the challenge of _ expressing colour and nuance through stringed instruments whose straighter necks, lowerâ€"tenâ€" sion gut strings, and pliant curved bows were designed for preâ€"concert hall spaces. Their _ sound _ "blooms" acoustically at a much lower volume and resonants with a more intimate warmth. And use the notes of the score as a starting point only and colâ€" lectively intuit the rest based on long immersion in the overall style and character of the era. Continued on page 15 80B VRBANAC PHOTG Tickets for the Laurier performances of Street Scene are $10 for seniors and students and $15 for adults, and can be purchased at the door. River Run Centre tickets are $10 and $20, and are available through the Centre‘s box office at (519) 763â€"3000. Marilyn Powell directs WLU‘s obe'rérp;(‘;dfil.laion for the first time this year and is only the third stage direcâ€" tor at Laurier in the last 20 years. Taking a production on tour poses a number of unique challenges, especially with set design and costs. The opera program‘s partnership with the University Players not only met these challenges, but also brought in the extra actors needed to fill the opera‘s many walkâ€"on roles. In addition to Laurier‘s opera students, the Street Scene cast also includes three alumni â€" tenor Mark Rowson, baritone Kevin Bradshaw and tenor Brian Duyn who has performed in productions like The Phantom of the Opera. "We look at what are the genres of performing arts that we‘d like to get on the stage and opera is the one that has eluded us," says River Run Centre general manager Rob Mackay. "This will be our first time putting on opera and we‘re quite excited." Since most opera productions are mounted by much larger and more expensive companies, it‘s not usually feasible to bring opera to a venue to the size of the River Run Centre. As a university with smaller opera productions, however, WLU has the ability to fill a niche in the regional arts scene while reaching out to the community. "Street Scene has something for everyoneâ€" a variâ€" ety of music from classical to jazz and an interesting mixture of comedy and tragedy. It‘s a very powerful show," says musical director Leslie De‘Ath. "I‘ve always wanted to do a touring show like this and Street Scene is the best choice because it not only plays to the faculty of music‘s strengths, but it‘s wellâ€" suited to the River Run Centre‘s stage and audience." Playing in WLU‘s Theatre Auditorium at 8 p.m. on March 1 and 2, Street Scene moves to the River Run Centre for a special performance at 3 p.m. on March 4. Set on the Lower East Side of New York in the 1940s, Street Scene takes place outside a tenement and tells the story of a tumultuous day in the life of the Maurrant family. The mother is frustrated by her husâ€" band and is having an affair, the daughter is frustrated with her parents and aspires to better things, the father learns of his wife‘s affair and reacts with tragic consequences. he Wilfrid Laurier University faculty of music‘s I production of Kurt Weill‘s Broadway opera Street Scene marks many firsts, not only for the opera program but for the City of Guelph as well â€" the program‘s first tour, its first partnership with the University Players, its first new director since 1995 and the River Run Centre‘s first opera performance. WLU Opera hits the road