Interview: The Polyphonists

 Get to know The Polyphonists, making their Concert Series debut in the chapel on Sunday, October 3rd, at 4 p.m. Soprano Amy Nicole Broadbent talks about the group’s beginnings, reveals what The Polyphonists aim to achieve with their music and concerts, and discusses the building of a typical concert program.  She then reveals the inspiration behind both the program  “[im]mortal—reflections on time and transcience” and the final selection—composer Conrad Winslow’s “No Longer Mortal,”—which will receive its world premiere at St. Louis. Finally, Amy reflects on losses and gains brought on by the pandemic and the amplified sense of importance of transience in music during this time. 

THE POLYPHONISTS ARE A YOUNG GROUP, JUST A LITTLE MORE THAN ONE-YEAR-OLD.  HOW DID THE GROUP COME TOGETHER, ESPECIALLY DURING THE PANDEMIC?

The Polyphonists are a quartet in two households, made up of two singing couples: Amy and Matt, and Edmund and Sylvia. All four of us had overlapped while performing throughout the country — at the Oregon Bach Festival, with American Bach Soloists, at Trinity Wall Street — before finding ourselves together here in D.C., where we’ve sung at the Basilica of the National Shrine, at the National Cathedral, and even at the White House! Our musical collaboration as a quartet began unceremoniously in summer 2020, after COVID-19 had decimated in-person music making. We met up under an arch outside the National Cathedral to sing some beloved anthems and motets (standing at a safe distance, of course). We sang together as a group  again and again after that, and now we are The Polyphonists. 

DOES EACH MEMBER HAVE A SPECIFIC ROLE OR ARE THE RESPONSIBILITIES SHARED/ROTATED?

Our music making is very collaborative. All four members share responsibilities of programming, musical leadership, and coordinating logistics for the ensemble. 

HOW DO THE POLYPHONISTS IDENTIFY AS A VOCAL QUARTET?

In many ways, the quartet combines the “best of both worlds,” in regards to ensemble singing and solo singing. The Polyphonists straddle the line of a chorus and group of solo voices. Despite these rewards, we have found the mixed vocal quartet to be something of an under-explored classical genre (unlike its relative, the more ubiquitous string quartet). We feel that we fill a unique place and point of view, bringing a wealth of solo and ensemble experience, but also being two couples. Through our concerts, we hope to make known many great chamber works written for vocal quartet, incorporate standard four-part choral literature into our repertoire, and advocate for composers whose work has historically been underrepresented. 

WALK US THROUGH THE PROCESS OF DECIDING ON A PROGRAM THEME AND DETERMINING PROGRAM SELECTIONS.

Initially, we sang many of our “favorite” choral pieces. We were just excited to make music in person! Since then, many of our programs have incorporated those favorite pieces. When planning a larger scale program, one piece or thematic idea is typically the seed of inspiration. From this seed, we’ll brainstorm many different ideas for musical pairings. From there, creating the program is like crafting a web that connects the pieces of music, whether by composer, nationality and language, thematic idea, or poetry. We carefully consider the order of the pieces, evaluating the flow, energy level, and key relationships. Of course, we must also consider the practical side; namely, finding music that is written for only four voices! 

FOR THE OCTOBER 3RD CONCERT, THE THEME IS [IM]MORTAL--REFLECTIONS ON TIME AND TRANSIENCE.  WHAT’S THE GENESIS/INSPIRATION FOR THE TITLE?

“There is a time when you realize you are no longer mortal.” Wait, no — that is, “no longer immortal.”

This quotation — and subsequent correction — from fashion designer Diane von Furstenberg, printed in The New York Times in 2016, is the source text of Conrad Winslow’s “No Longer Mortal,” which will receive its world premiere at the St. Louis concert. 

Though the piece plays up the humor of the misstatement, it also acknowledges the accidental profundity of von Furstenberg’s words. Conrad, an Alaskan composer living in Berlin, surprised us with the gift of this new composition in March 2021. It had been a year since the COVID-19 pandemic abruptly halted all live musical performances (preciously ephemeral), and music making became entirely “virtual”: pre-recorded, edited, and posted on the Internet for eternity. In that year, we all did our fair share of meditating on (or agonizing over) the value of transience in music. In a way, musicians everywhere had reached that time when, suddenly, we were “no longer mortal” — and it was...uncomfortable. At the same time, the threat of the virus made all of humankind newly aware of our mortality. For the four of us, this has been a time of both loss and gain: While our individual careers suffered frightening setbacks, we also found each other as new friends and musical collaborators, and the Polyphonists might not have come into being in more “normal” circumstances. 

As we began to learn Conrad’s piece, we reflected on a year of the pandemic, all the existential questions it stirred up, and our excitement for the future of our nascent ensemble. Those reflections inspired this concert program, which draws from our broad repertoire spanning the Renaissance to the present day, and culminates in a world premiere of “No Longer Mortal.” Without attempting any answers or explanations (are any possible?), the Polyphonists present this program of unaccompanied vocal music that grapples with questions of mortality and immortality, transience and permanence, death and life, endings and beginnings.

WHAT MAKES A PERFORMANCE MEMORABLE FOR YOU?

There is magic created when the music itself is truly excellent, the singers committed to musical detail, and performers are able to relax and enjoy themselves. The most memorable and meaningful performances transcend performance alone, and create connection between the musicians and the audience. In our first in-person performance in July 2021, both we the performers and the audience both felt immense gratitude for the ability to gather in person and share this experience. 

Our first virtual “performance” was memorable in a different way, straddling the ridiculous and the sublime! After singing together for about 10 weeks, we decided to live-stream a pop-up concert from Edmund and Sylvia’s porch on Election Day 2020 - a program of music to calm and inspire. Our ramshackle rigging included running cables through the window and balancing a microphone on the table. The wind was blowing hard enough that we had to put on coats, and chimes were clanging from a few houses down the whole time. Once we had been singing for a few minutes, a friend called to report that we’d forgotten to actually turn on the microphone, and had not been transmitting any sound! 

Despite the shaky start, once we got underway, the music took over. The act of taking unsettled energy and turning it into art not only transformed us, but those who listened as well. One listener commented, “Thank you for this gift of music. I didn't realize how much I needed it until you started singing.” 

IS THERE ANYTHING NOT ADDRESSED ABOVE ABOUT THE POLYPHONISTS OR THE [IM]MORTAL PROGRAM THAT YOU’D LIKE TO SHARE?

We would love to connect over social media, where subscribers can find recordings, concert announcements, and more. 

Website: https://thepolyphonists.com/ 

Youtube: The Polyphonists (link: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOhzqr-TSGMchk6bRJ5_hfA )

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thepolyphonists/ 

Instagram: @thepolyphonists