We ar not known for our presentational pizzaz. In fact, we have even been likened, on stage, to a cluster of undertakers. We ordinarily have four-spot music stands arranged in a semicircle and nil much changes throughout a performance, omit for the music. So to feel ourselves, a vocal ensemble, taking part in an unashamedly theatrical work - which requires us non only to sing but also to recite complex texts by TS Eliot, Kafka, Samuel Beckett and Maurice Blanchot, while in reality moving about a stage - has been a seismic shock.
Memorising is not something we routinely do. Even if we don't look at the music often in some of our steady pieces, the score is still in that location in an emergency. David James is the only one of us with experience of the operatic stage. Some of us have never been involved in any kind of stage work whatsoever - and were quite happy with that state of affairs. And then there's the challenge of delivering speech, learning about intonation, accent and timing, things actors spend their unanimous careers wrestle with.
As a group, we're best known for our collaborations with composers Arvo P�rt and Jan Garbarek, which have given us a repute for being willing to try forbidden new ideas. Several age ago, our record caller ECM suggested collaborating with Heiner Goebbels, the German composer known for his experimental work. Although Heiner's initial response to the idea was positive, on that point followed an ominous quiet, which did not unduly concern us, as deep down we were rather sceptical of the unanimous concept. Then, late in 2005, Heiner requested a ticket for one of our concerts with Garbarek. Again, muteness. Had he, we wondered, even attended?
Two months later, we heard from him. He had seen us and was directly keen to meet. He proved so charming that many of our immediate anxieties were allayed. Heiner had especially liked our use of the space in the Garbarek performance, which had presented him with a variety of ideas that he was eager to explore. So we went to Th�tre Vidy-Lausanne in Switzerland, to work with him for a weekend in April last year, really just to escort what would happen.
On that occasion, he didn't give us any music of his own. Instead, we sang through some of our own repertoire, trying to perform it off by heart spell doing things on stage: sitting at desks, reclining on chaises longues, or fiddling with various props. David did some DIY and Steven Harrold played pool with cues that had seen better years - we were just using whatsoever props happened to be lying around, while we continued to sing. Heiner watched and listened intently. We moved about the stage a lot and were often quite far apart. I think it was interesting for Heiner to run across if we could still sing our music without the tout ensemble and tuning suffering. We loved the whole have.
The next time we met was for deuce weeks in March earlier this year. Heiner had chosen texts and written some music. Staging had been reinforced, and at that place would be three scenes. Now we had some actual music to nidus on and some difficult chords to get right. We rehearsed the work, entitled I Went to the House But Did Not Enter, all sidereal day. In the mornings, we were presented with new material, which we would sight-read, and which would then be incorporated into the afternoon rehearsal. Every afternoon saw us on set - with the complete ignition and wardrobe teams in attendance - doing our utmost to reproduce the morning's work while beingness told how to move around the stage.
Usually, we have a good idea of what we are aiming for in a last performance right from the start. We sing through the euphony, often in a hotel room on tour, fundamentally following instruction manual on a page and focusing on technical difficulties such as the tuning of chords. But with Heiner, zip was frozen. Throughout that entire two weeks of rehearsals, he was observing in minute contingent what worked and what didn't, and continuously making adjustments to his score. Even as we write now, with the concluding rehearsal period imminent, the music is probably still not fixed. We await musical changes, maybe new material, perhaps cuts to the first base drafts. We don't til now know.
For most of us with no operatic experience, there's been a lot to get wind. Singing or speaking at the same time as moving and using props was quite a challenge. Simple things, such as not walking at the same pace as what you ar singing, takes a flake of getting used to. From clarence Shepard Day Jr. one, we were expected to be in broad costume for the afternoon session. Because the put was as well fully prepared and well-lighted, it felt like unmatched live performance after another. Even so, the recent final costume fitting sent shudders through us. We suddenly realised there was no turning back. The four more or less sloppily attired undertakers will be on stage at Edinburgh, only this time in smart, handmade suits. This is completely different from anything we receive ever done before. We're excited - and panicked.
I Went To The House But Did Not Enter is at the Royal Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh, from tomorrow until Saturday. Box bureau: 0131 248 4848. The Hilliard Ensemble are Rogers Covey-Crump, Steven Harrold, David James and Gordon Jones.
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