Concevitch, John E. (April 1977). "Historic Concert for Lehigh Women". Bethlehem Globe Times.
Bethlehem's musical heritage received added enrichment last night when the Lehigh University Women's Choir took its rightful place alongside the Lehigh Valley's outstanding choral organization.
It was indeed an historic occasion, for it marked the first time that the recently-organized Women's Choir invited a men's Glee Club from another university to participate in its annual spring concert.
Joining the Lehigh women for this presentation was the University of Virginia Glee Club under the leadership of Donald Loach.
Lehigh's Jerry T. Bidlack certainly didn't pick an easy piece of literature for this historic occasion, and many in the audience of 300 marveled at the cohesive manner in which the 100 choristers from the two schools presented Arthur Honegger's symphonic psalm, "King David."
It wasn't one of your usual Bach - Brahms - Beethoven nights. Honegger flavors this contemporary work with a sprinkling of Near Eastern style melodies to go along with solemn passages and scintillating dissonance.
Although the Witch of Endor's appearance was brief, it was quite dramatic as suddenly about midway in the 27-part composition, a spotlight cut through the dimly-lit sanctuary, splashing a radiant, piercing light upon the chapel's pulpit as the audience began to hear the resonant voice of the Witch.
All eyes turned toward the pulpit to see a pair of slender arms reaching out over the front of the pulpit facade. Jessica Woods gradually emerged and gracefully pranced upon a platform set out in front of the pulpit as she called out "'Tis time, I call thee from Sheol's darkness…"
Then, almost as suddenly as she had appeared, the black-garbed Witch of Endor slipped down behind the pulpit and was gone forever.
If there was one drawback in this performance, it was that the 18-member orchestra – the Lehigh University Chamber Ensemble – produced a volume much too loud for the soloists.
Combined with the chapel's acoustical drawbacks, the words of soloists soprano Margery Daley, contralto Beverly Miller Belnome and tenor Jeffrey Thomas were often barely audible to the majority of the audience.
Mrs. Belnome is at her best in the lower registers and her "Song of the Handmaid" was a moment one would like to capture on a recording, so certain and confident was her approach as she sang, "Oh, my love, take my hand."
Thomas' lyric tenor voice seemed almost out of place, but he added much to the presentation.
Honneger incorporates a wide range of musical expression in this 90-minute work, from melodies which one might have expected to hear in the halls surrounding King Solomon's Temple, to the chorus at the start of Part III, "Now My Voice in Song," with the first few measures reminding one of the start of a rousing Broadway musical.
In the "Crowning of King Solomon," the regal music might even be likened to an antiphonal German chorale; these are just a few of the ways Honegger keeps his listeners' attention.
There's nothing predictable in the work, yet the music seems to fit each occasion being portrayed.
The choruses were a joy to hear, especially when the men's and women's groups brought their sound to full voice in the grand finale "Alleluia, Alleluia!"
Sustained applause brought the principals – Bidlack, Ms. Daley, Mrs. Belnome, Thomas, Ms. Woods, narrator James B. Hill and Loach – back to the front of the chapel several times.