Arias for All Seasons

Arias for All Seasons

Pillorikput Inuit (Blessed are the People): Inuktitut Arias for All Seasons is a cd of beautiful music. Soprano Deantha Edmunds-Ramsey, tenor Karrie Obed and the Innismara Vocal Ensemble sing sacred songs by Haydn, Handel and Moravian composers.

cd cover Inuktitut Arias for All Seasons

The songs were written in 18th and 19th Europe and brought to Labrador by Moravian missionaries. The Moravians first came to Labrador from Germany in the mid-1700s. Newfoundland Governor Hugh Palliser gave them rights to 100,000 acres of land in northern Labrador. They built mission posts and began their evangelical efforts.

For 200 years, the Moravians functioned as the government of northern Labrador. They operated schools, medical clinics and stores. During the 1900s, the HBC replaced them in trade, the Grenfell mission in health care, the federal and provincial government, and most recently, by the Inuit themselves under a self-government agreement. Religious life remained primarily Moravian, but with Inuit leadership rather than imported missionaries.

Labrador Moravian Music

Music was, and is, central in the Moravian church. “Three years of provisions and two French horns” is a CBC Radio documentary by MUN musicologist Tom Gordon. Its title summarizes the credo of the early Moravian arrivals.

They and their converts translated sacred songs into Inuktitut, and formed brass bands and choirs. Over the years the music was adapted and arranged to fit the instruments and voices available. This music of 18th century Europe, transformed but still true to its original form, became a part of Labrador Inuit culture. The Moravian Church remained strong in Labrador long after missionaries stopped coming from Europe. Brass bands still played in the churches, choirs still sang.

deantha edmunds and karrie obed from cd case

Dr. Tom Gordon found long-forgotten musical manuscripts in church archives. Some of them had fallen into disuse, particularly the solos, due to the quality of voice needed to do them justice. Deantha Edmunds-Ramsey has that voice. The arias on this cd are a joy to hear, indeed, in all seasons.

You can get the cd from Deantha Edmunds-Ramsey on Facebook (you may have to log in yourself). Or contact Memorial University of Newfoundland’s School of Music.


This Post Has 2 Comments

  1. Thank you! Nakummek! 🙂

    1. Glad you saw this, Deantha, and thank you! My husband was delighted when I gave it to him for Christmas. We played it that day and have many times since. We both love it.

Leave a Reply