MacMillan’s “Alpha and Omega” premieres with Chicago’s SDG

By Lawrence A. Johnson

 

The performance of Bach’s epic St. Matthew Passion last month was the first local fruit of Soli Deo Gloria, the Glen Ellyn-based organization founded by conductor John Nelson to commission and promote sacred music.

 

Soli Deo Gloria is following up with an event more concise yet equally noteworthy with the world premiere of James MacMillan’s Alpha and Omega this Saturday in Hyde Park.

 

The Scottish composer is perhaps best known for Veni, Veni Emmanuel, the percussion concerto that launched both his career and that of percussionist compatriot, Evelyn Glennie in 1992. Emmanuel remains his most performed work yet MacMillan’s subsequent music is even more distinctive, often infused with the composer’s strong Roman Catholic faith yet with a compelling, decidedly contemporary edge.

 

Macmillan, 51, has composed prolifically, and his recent works include a well-received Violin Concerto and Piano Concerto and an individual take on Christ’s Seven Last Words from the Cross for chorus and orchestra.