Sacred Sounds: Jeffrey Parola

Dr. Jeffrey Parola is an organist, conductor, composer, and liturgical musician whose three-decade career reflects a sustained commitment to the organ and the traditions of sacred music. He serves as Director of Music at the Cathedral of Christ the Light in Oakland, California, where he leads the Cathedral Choir and oversees a music program distinguished by its artistic excellence, reverent liturgy, and dedication to the Church’s rich musical heritage. Through its liturgical celebrations and concert offerings, the Cathedral has earned national recognition for its commitment to sacred music and the presentation of great works of the musical tradition. Parola previously served as Director of Music at St. Paul the Apostle Catholic Church in Los Angeles and as Master of the Music at St. Thomas the Apostle Church in Hollywood.

In addition to his work as an organist and church musician, Parola has pursued a career in composition and higher education. His compositions for orchestra, chamber ensembles, and chorus have been commissioned and performed internationally. His honors include the Rappaport Prize for Music Composition, the Hoefer Prize, and the Charles Ives Scholarship from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. He has also taught at the Colburn School and the University of Southern California.

I. Italian Early Baroque Chromaticism

Toccata Terza & Ricercar sopra il Cimbalo Cromatico

Giovanni Maria Trabaci (c. 1575–1647)

Fantasia Chromatica

Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck (1562–1621)

Toccata Cromatica per l’Elevazione

Girolamo Frescobaldi (1583–1643)

Capriccio cromatico

Tarquinio Merula (c. 1595–1665)

II. The French Classical Tradition

Suite de 2e Ton

Michel Corrette (1707–1795)

I. Plein jeu

II. Duo en Rondeau

III. Trio pour les Flûtes

IV. Basse de Trompette

V. Duo sur les Flûtes

VI. Récit de Trompette ou de Haut-bois

VII. Trio

VIII. Andante

IX. Fugue en toutes blanches

X. Grand jeu

XI. Grand jeu avec la Tonnerre

Concerto in D major

Claude Balbastre (1724–1799)

I. Prélude

II. Allegro

III. Gavotte

IV. Allegro

Prélude et fugue en ré mineur

Claude Balbastre

I. Prélude

II. Fugue

I. Italian Early Baroque Chromaticism

In the early seventeenth century, Italian composers explored the expressive power of chromaticism through unexpected harmonies, bold dissonances, and inventive counterpoint.

Giovanni Maria Trabaci’s Toccata Terza & Ricercar sopra il Cimbalo Cromaticoexemplifies the virtuosic freedom of the Italian keyboard tradition, venturing into the unusual tonal territory suggested by its reference to the chromatic keyboard. Girolamo Frescobaldi’s Toccata Cromatica per l’Elevazione, intended for the solemn moment of the Elevation at Mass, turns chromaticism toward an intensely contemplative expression. Tarquinio Merula’s Capriccio cromatico brings a spirit of experimentation to this adventurous harmonic language, with ascending and descending chromatic scales relentlessly permeating the entire work. Together, these works illuminate the distinctive expressive imagination of the Italian early Baroque.

II. The French Classical Tradition

The French Classical organ tradition offers a strikingly different approach to musical color. Rather than emphasizing chromatic tension, French composers developed an elegant and highly distinctive musical language shaped by the varied timbres of the organ, the rhythms of the dance, and the grandeur of French ceremonial life.

Michel Corrette’s Suite de 2e Ton draws on the established forms and tonal conventions of French liturgical organ music. Claude Balbastre’s Concerto in D, by contrast, reflects the brilliance and theatrical flair of the eighteenth-century French organist. Balbastre’s Prélude et fugue en ré mineur brings the program full circle, with a chromatic, harmonically adventurous prelude recalling the expressive daring of the first half, followed by a fugue that showcases the contrapuntal mastery of the French Classical tradition.