Union Church Honors Chagall

Music and art lovers alike will have a special opportunity this Sunday to revel in the inspiration of Marc Chagall. 

Union Church of Pocantico Hills will be presenting "The Chagall Suite," performed by its composer in the church's sanctuary, surrounded by nine stained glass windows created by Chagall himself. 

In fact, the windows were a catalyst for the performance.  Pastor Paul DeHoff explained.

"We have nine stained glass windows at the church by Chagall, and the 28^th of March is the 25^th anniversary of his death.  So, having heard of this work [the suite], we asked the composer to come and present it." 

The windows themselves were commissioned in the early 60s for the church by the Rockefeller family following another successful commission – the rose window.  The rose window was created to honor the memory of Abby Aldrich Rockefeller by Henri Matisse.  It was his last work before his death in 1954.  When the family later wanted to commission a window to memorialize her husband, John D. Rockefeller, Jr., they turned to Chagall.  The Good Samaritan window was such a success that the family worked with Chagall to create eight more beautiful windows.  The windows will create the perfect atmosphere to hear the piano suite, said composer Seth Weinstein.

"The Chagall windows at the church are an important cultural asset to the area, and I humbly believe that the music will fit the setting," he said. "This is an opportunity to see various forms of art combined – the music, the windows, and other art in the church – and it's especially inspiring for me to play in such surroundings."

Seth Weinstein was commissioned to compose this piano piece in 2007 in honor of the 50^th wedding anniversary of Vivian and Ralph Jacobson.  Vivian Jacobson, a foremost Chagall scholar, will also be on hand to sign copies of her book Sharing Chagall. 

As the former president of the American Friends of Chagall Biblical Museum in Nice, France, and a former Chairman for the Chagall Tapestry Project at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, Jacobson is a Chagall expert.  However, her book draws not only from her studies of his wide-spanning art, but also recollections of the time she spent with Chagall as she worked with him in the last 11 years of his life. 

It was his message of peace, hope, reconciliation, and love that inspired her to commission "The Chagall Suite." Jacobson had worked with Weinstein before, when she'd asked him to compose a piece entitled "Conversations" for a lecture she was giving about the similarities between Chagall and Elvis Presley. 

Weinstein, who wrote the Off-Broadway musical How to Save the World and Find True Love in 90 Minutes, approached the work with a little help from Jacobson.  She specified that the suite should follow the eight themes of Chagallian artwork: Vitebsk (Chagall's hometown in Belarus), the Bible, the circus, lovers and flowers, Jesus and Isaiah (the prince and prophet of peace), Paris, nature, and angels. 

"Vivian provided me with specific paintings to review as well as books and other background information to help me target those themes," explains Weinstein.  "I studied the paintings and the information and then, with all those images swirling around in my head, I began to play and see what came out.  I've been a fan of Chagall since I was a young child.  His works have always given me a sense of calmness."

Pastor DeHoff believes that Weinstein succeeded, and encourages all who want to attend to come out for a special afternoon.

"It's very engaging," he said. "It's for Chagall lovers.  And music lovers.  And just lovers." 

And, as Chagall said, "when there is love, all things are possible."

Chagall's granddaughter Bella Meyer, owner of the florist shop Fleurs Bella in New York City, will introduce this special performance.

The performance will be presented in the sanctuary.  While tickets can be bought at the door, advance tickets are recommended and can be purchased by calling 914-631-2069. The price is $10. 

The performance will be at 3 p.m. with a reception to follow. Union Church is located at 555 Bedford Road in Pocantico Hills

Sharing Chagall is available by contacting ravi@pinehurst.net.

Seth Weinstein's CD "Conversations with Chagall" which contains Conversations as well as The Chagall Suite can be purchased at cdbaby.com.