CHORUS GIVES NEW DISNEY VENUE A VOICE.

Byline: Fred Shuster Music Writer

Downtown's gleaming new Walt Disney Concert Hall came alive with the sound of vocal harmony for the first time Friday in a working rehearsal of the Los Angeles Master Chorale. Observers described the sound as vibrant, deeply resonant and reminiscent of Europe's great halls.

Grant Gershon, music director of the 120-voice chorus, deemed the evening ``a voyage of discovery,'' to give the ensemble a feel for the acoustics and atmosphere of the Douglas fir-paneled venue. As the uncannily well-matched chorus sang a segment of the traditional ``Alleluia,'' the room swelled with a rich tone and pleasant hint of reverb.

All surfaces within the concert hall are curved - including the organ pipes, which resemble an explosion of giant chopsticks - and the design helps provide more effective sonics than the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion one block away on Grand Avenue.

``The beautiful wood makes the inside of the hall very live and that certainly sweetens the sound significantly,'' observed Juliana Gondek, the internationally known opera, concert and recording artist who was invited to the Master Chorale run-through. ``There's a slight grade of echo in the sound like you'd find in a cathedral. But it's been calibrated very carefully because, unlike a cathedral, you don't have a bleed-through from tone to tone. So, when the choir finishes singing one tone and is onto the next, you don't hear the remnants of the previous pitch.''

Disney Hall, new home to the Los Angeles Philharmonic and the Master Chorale, opens Oct. 23 with a trio of gala events after a series of community concerts. The chorale, now in its 40th season, was in rehearsal for an a cappella concert this Sunday at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels and opens its Disney Hall season Nov. 16.

``It's a bright, exciting, lively sound,'' said singer Helene Quintana, who has been with the chorus for eight seasons. ``The hall embraces you when you sing. There's a very intimate feeling.''

Another chorale member, Tonoccus McClain, said during a break that the new venue was clearly designed with the human voice as well as the symphony orchestra in mind, ``and that's wonderful from a chorus member's perspective,''

There are no VIP boxes at Disney Hall, no roped-off seating where upper-crust patrons can rattle their jewelry. In fact, a democratic atmosphere pervades the place, to the extent that some of the most satisfying of the 2,265 seats will apparently be among the least pricey.

``As I moved around from spot to spot, the sound was good everywhere, even in what's traditionally been considered inferior seats,'' said Gondek, known for her interpretations of Mozart, Baroque, bel canto and contemporary repertoire, and currently head of the Voice and Opera Studies area at the University of California, Los Angeles.

``The second row has its attractions,'' she continued. ``You're right under the conductor's nose, and it's a very exciting place to be sitting. You feel like you're part of the performance. But for enjoying the complete sound, I think I'd rather sit in the back. However, no matter where you sit, you're going to be rewarded with great sound and an unobstructed view.''

An especially appealing aspect of Disney Hall is the prospect of sitting along the chorus benches behind and above the orchestra platform. During performances when the Master Chorale is not seated there, patrons can enjoy a unique experience.

``I once attended a concert at the Amsterdam Concertgebouw, where I sat (in the chorus stalls) facing the conductor,'' Gondek recalled. ``Riccardo Chailly was conducting the Brahms Fourth Symphony, and it was like listening from inside the orchestra itself. Facing the conductor and watching his every expression was a musical experience I will never forget. Our audiences here have the possibility of experiencing something like that every time they come to the hall.''

The ribbon cutting at Frank Gehry's steel-clad architectural landmark is set for Oct. 20. The building occupies a full block at the intersection of First Street and Grand Avenue in the historic Bunker Hill area downtown.

``This is certainly not one of those spaces where the sonics was an afterthought,'' Gondek said. ``To end up with acoustics this good, the architect clearly had sound quality very high up on his list.''

Fred Shuster, [phone]

fred.shuster(at)dailynews.com

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Photo:

(1 -- 2) The Los Angeles Master Chorale rehearses Friday in the recently completed Walt Disney Concert Hall in the Bunker Hill district of downtown L.A.

Andy Holzman/Staff Photographer