I believe the reason we "accept" (and, for me increasingly, *prefer*) soloists in oratorio using their music is that it is wholly inappropriate for an oratorio/sacred soloist to gesture with the hands, face, body, etc. Sacred oratorio is not meant to be *acted*. The "book in hands" is not there so much as a reference for the singer as a prop to prevent the singer from indulging in gesticulations, etc. IN oratorio, *all* expression should be through the voice, possibly reinforced by the eyes and a subtle change in facial expression. The music is meant to be wholly NON-self-serving - to glorify God, not the singer. The singer is merely the vessel and instrument by which the music glorifying God is conveyed. Obviously, most human beings are to fallible to be truly egoless when performing sacred music. The next best thing is to *try* to be egoless and to at least *appear* to be egoless so that your concern with self is not conveyed to the listener. (It's much the same reason that one doesn't applaud at the end of music in a church service, no matter how well-performed.)
I believe the practice of soloists using music in non-sacred Oratorio and in some symphonic solo work is far less justifiable, and probably arises more from lack of time to prepare to anything like the extent one prepares an operatic role. I must say, though, I've been rather put off by performances I've seen of works like Mahler's "Das Lied von der Erde", Orff's "Carmina Burana", and similar secular symphonic vocal works in which the soloists used the music. In the case of the Mahler, the same soloist would never dream of holding onto music when singing a Mahler song-cycle with piano, and in the latter, there just isn't enough music there for the soloists to justify the "crutch".
Karen Mercedes ===== My NEIL SHICOFF Website: http://www.radix.net/~dalila/shicoff/shicoff.html
My Website: http://www.radix.net/~dalila/index.html
----- I sing hymns with my spirit, but I also sing hymns with my mind. - 1 Corinthians 14:15
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