Spirited New Mass To Premiere

“Only a small fraction of what I hear in my head ever gets written down,” says composer Mark Reiner.

But enough has been written down lately that the world premiere of his Meditation Mass, which he spent a year composing, will be performed here next weekend by the North Idaho Chorale.

Reiner writes what he calls “serious music” - although it is anything but dull. His music is rich and exciting, combining voice and orchestra into a harmonious whole that reflects, as he puts it, a “balance between emotion and intellect.”

The white-haired Reiner picked up a lot of liturgical Latin as a music student at the University of California, Davis. But it was Jean Imperatrice, who retired to the Panhandle after 33 years as a teacher of French, Latin and Spanish in Los Angeles, who assisted with some of the Latin words for Reiner’s spirited new Mass.

While Imperatrice has sung a lot previously, others in the chorale - like soloist Teri Maurice - have not performed in a group since grammar school.

Although The North Idaho Chorale sounds like a who’s who of music in the Panhandle, its members welcome everyone, no matter what the musical training or background.

In addition to local talent, Ed Dominguez, a tenor and former student of Reiner’s, will arrive from Seattle for the two June performances.

Musicians from Montana, Canada, and Maryland will join the local instrumental ensemble. This is the third time in the five-year history of the choir that the singers have had live orchestral accompaniment.

In the late 60s, Reiner was one of the founders of computer music at the Stanford Artificial Intelligence Center. But he now notates his music with pen, ink and staff-lined paper.

He left the Bay Area and for 16 years Reiner lived at Mount Shasta with his family, where he taught school and tried to generate interest among the sparse population for a choir of serious music.

“There were fewer people there. Since we have moved here, there has been a larger group and larger opportunity,” Reiner said enthusiastically.

In 1992, Reiner, his wife Caren, daughter Akasha and son Aryan, moved to the Panhandle. They handbuilt their home at Grouse Creek, complete with solar panels. The house is large enough for two “almost” grand pianos, one of which is a Steinway.

Caren teaches advanced piano students, including accomplished local jazz pianist DiAnn Rosander who, like Caren, also sings in the choir.

Akasha is currently at Montana State studying horticulture, while Aryan is a freshman at Sandpoint High. Aryan plays the trumpet with the instrumental ensemble and won the State Award in Boise this spring.

The premiere of Meditation Mass will be held at 7 p.m. June 3 at the Seventh Day Adventist Church, 2255 West Pine, Sandpoint. Admission is free and everyone is welcome. A second performance will be held at 7 p.m. June 4 at First Lutheran Church, 526 South Olive, Sandpoint.

In addition to his own work, Reiner will conduct Haydn’s “Missa Brevis in F” and Brahms’ “Four Songs” for both June 3 and June 4 performances.

The performances are sure to be - as alto-soprano soloist Camile McKitrick said succinctly - “glorious.”