Evening Concert, Saint-Chapelle by John Updike

Over the past few weeks, I have practiced pieces on my oboe to try to earn scholarships and a place in the band at different colleges. I like music; I play because I love to play and have fun (I cannot see myself growing up to be a famous musician though). I picked the Evening Concert, Saint-Chapelle by John Updike because the poem seemed centered around music like my life as been while I prepare my audition pieces.

Before I start, John Updike was born March 18, 1932 in Pennsylvania. Updike died on January 27, 2007 at the age of 76 from lung cancer. He received two Pulitzer Prizes for fiction.

The celebrated windows flamed with light
directly pouring north across the Seine;
we rustled into place.  Then violins
vaunting Vivaldi's strident strength, then Brahms,
seemed to suck with their passionate sweetness,
bit by bit, the vigor from the red,
the blazing blue, so that the listening eye
saw suddenly the thick black lines, in shapes
of shield and cross and strut and brace, that held
the holy glowing fantasy together.
The music surged; the glow became a milk,
a whisper to the eye, a glimmer ebbed
until our beating hearts, our violins
were cased in thin but solid sheets of lead.

I loved the imagery in this poem. I was able to see the church and windows in my mind; sometimes, I could hear a violin playing in the background. I loved the lines "the celebrated windows flamed with light," "the music surged," and "so that the listening eye say suddenly the thick black lines, in shapes of shield and cross and strut and brace, that held the holy glowing fantasy together." When I read the line "so that the listening eye," I laughed because I imagined an eye with ears since I have never heard the senses of sight and hearing combined in such a way. Plus, when the music was described as a "holy glowing fantasy," I thought to the few times when I played a piece of music that moved me deeply in heart and sole. Sometimes the songs I sing (out of tune most of the time!!!) and play (in tune), bring tears to my eyes, and I would consider them a "holy glowing fantasy." After reading the poem, I wanted to see what Saint-Chapelle actually looked like and how it compared to the image in my head.

I found the pictures and information at http://www.paris-architecture.info/PA-015.htm. La Sainte-Chappele means "The Holy Chapel" in French. The church is found on the Ile de la Cité in Paris, France. (I have never been out of the country, but I really would like to travel to France to see the Sainte-Chapelle because the church is beautiful!) The church became a Historical National Monument in 1862. There is an upper and lower chapel. The upper chapel is home to statues of the twelve apostles and religious relics. Plus, this chapel displays the Gothic architecture of the time. On the other hand, the lower chapel has a vaulted ceiling that was painted to remember the "star-filled heavens." Also, this chapel is dedicated to the Virgin Mary (statue in the center) and has twelve medallions that represent the twelve apostles. Finally, the most interesting piece─ the stained glass. All of the stained glass covers around 600 square meters or 6456 square feet. (That is a lot of stained glass!) Surprisingly, the glass tells the biblical story from creation to the redemption through Christ, and reads like a book (left to right and top to bottom).


I really found this poem interesting and learned new things. I am glad I decided to research the Sainte-Chapelle. The place seems so interesting, I would like to visit the church someday.