With the holidays come time for local Madrigal groups to dust off their brocade robes and tune their pipes.
From Dec. 2 to Dec. 12, the Hinsdale Central High School Madrigal choir will perform about a dozen shows, said Central’s choir director, Jennifer Burkemper.
The locations of their appearances include middle schools, the Hinsdale Golf Club and as part of a Christmas concert at 7:30 p.m. Dec. 7 at Notre Dame Church in Clarendon Hills, in addition to concerts at Central for the students and parents.
Charlie Cave, a senior from Clarendon Hills, said he enjoys the opportunities to perform that the Madrigal group offers, as well as the faster-paced learning.
The music, from 15th to 17th century Europe, is sung a cappella, with different parts of the choir singing different lines at the same time.
For senior Grace Notbusch, it was the next step in her musical progression, she said.
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Among her favorite songs the Madrigals perform are “Ave Maria” and the “Carol of the Bells.” The latter, with its refrain of “Merry, merry, merry, merry Christmas,” is “almost haunting,” said Notbusch.
Hinsdale South High School’s Madrigal singers are gearing up for their performances at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 6, and Saturday, Dec. 7. Tickets for the shows, which include dessert, sell out every year, the school staff said.
Sixteen South students from sophomore through senior year comprise the Madrigals, whose repertoire includes “The 12 Days of Christmas,” said music director Katheryn Vukson.
The shows include skits, with Central’s called “Peasants on Parade,” a 15th century version of “The Dating Game.” Hinsdale Central’s Perry Zhao plays Ned, a man interviewing three candidates, sight unseen, to be his wife. The questions use antiquated phrasing and include Ned asking the women what dowry they would bring.
“We’ve had so much fun rehearsing it,” said Ash Murphy, a senior from Clarendon Hills, who plays one of the women. “Spoiler alert. I’m not the one chosen.”
