Ars Musica Chicago Concert is part of DePaul U’s Yearlong Centennial Celebration

A musical score for an oratorio dedicated to St. Vincent de Paul that has laid dormant in a Vincentian archives for more than a century will be brought to life May 8 when Ars Musica Chicago performs "Vincent de Paul: An Oratorio in Three Parts" at St. Vincent’s Church, 1010 W. Webster Ave. The free public concert at 7 p.m. is sponsored by DePaul University as part of its centennial celebration.

The origins of the oratorio are a bit of a mystery, according to Enrique Alberto Arias, an assistant professor at DePaul’s School for New Learning and president of Ars Musica Chicago, a performance organization devoted to historically informed music of the 12th through 18th centuries. "The oratorio was written by Vicomte Fernand de Beaufranchet, an obscure but well-educated and talented French composer," Arias said. "We’re not sure when it was written, but we believe it was about 1875. We don’t know who commissioned it, but our feeling is that the oratorio was written to commemorate a big event."

Arias said it was not unusual for 19^th century composers to be commissioned to write choral pieces honoring saints and the founders of religious orders. St. Vincent de Paul, a 17th century French priest, founded the Congregation of the Mission, known as the Vincentians. The Vincentians established DePaul University (originally known as St. Vincent’s College) 100 years ago, instilling the institution with St. Vincent’s values of respect for the individual and a dedication to serve to others.

St. Vincent’s values and good works are celebrated in the oratorio, Arias said.

"Oratorios are big sacred choral pieces, such as Handel’s ‘Messiah’," he explained. "This oratorio celebrates St. Vincent’s work and recounts episodes from his life. It’s a meditation on his mission and historical importance. It also says a lot about late 19^th century romantic views of St. Vincent."

The oratorio score was discovered by an archivist at the Vincentian mother house in Paris about five years ago. The archivist gave it to the Rev. John Rybolt, C.M., a DePaul life trustee living in Paris, who sent it to the university. The Rev. Edward R. Udovic, C.M., senior executive for university mission and the presiding officer of the Vincentian Studies Institute of the United States, gave it to Arias and Ars Musica, which had performed at DePaul sponsored concerts in the past.

Ars Musica Chicago, which often presents music that has never been heard by Chicago area audiences, engaged in some intensive musical detective work to prepare the oratorio for performance. The original orchestration had never been published and was lost. "We reconstructed the work for orchestra from the scores for piano and voice," he said. "We discovered that musically it’s a very good piece."

"We feel we’re not just performing the oratorio, but bringing the work back to life, reflecting the original work and its intention," Arias said.

Arias will give a free lecture, "Beaufranchet and Vincent de Paul Oratorio" at DePaul’s John T. Richardson Library, 2350 N. Kenmore Ave, at 6 p.m. on May 5. He will be joined by National Lewis University Professor Elinor Olin who will discuss "The Sacred Music of Late 19th Century France." For more information about the concert, call Ars Musica 312/409-7874.