Venue: Concert Hall, Sydney Opera House
Finally, Mendelssohn's Elijah is happening, presented by the Sydney Philharmonia Festival Chorus. SPC's supporters and followers will remember that due to COVID-19, this concert has had its share of cancellations: first, for its May 9, 2020 at 3pm, for September 11, 2021 at 3pm, and then again, for December 16, 2021 at 7pm.
"The tone and beguiling quality of Rhodes' voice remains untouched. There is a velvet like richness... great resonance... a touching sense of fragility..."
~ Limelight, 2021~
In Elijah, Mendelssohn combines the majestic tradition of Handel and the worshipful spirit of Bach with his own Romantic style.
Elijah, Op. 70, MWV A 25, is an oratorio by Felix Mendelssohn depicting events in the life of the Prophet Elijah as told in the books 1 Kings and 2 Kings of the Old Testament. It premiered in 1846 at the Birmingham Festival. When Mendelssohn’s Elijah received its triumphant premiere at this festival there were more than a hundred musicians in the orchestra and several hundred singers in the choir. This is choral music on a grand scale, and the Sydney Philharmonia Choirs will do it justice with the imposing sound of the 400-voice Festival Chorus and the perfect ambience of the Sydney Opera House Concert Hall.
Mendelssohn’s Elijah is a ‘bigger than Ben Hur’ Biblical drama with a cast of hundreds. And Sydney Philharmonia Choirs is thrilled to bring it with operatic baritone Teddy Tahu Rhodes in the title role and the 400-voice Festival Chorus filling the Sydney Opera House Concert Hall.
If you’re a fan of Handel oratorios, you’re in good company – so was Felix Mendelssohn. Elijah was his response to the English oratorio tradition, with its Old Testament story (earthquake! fire! and the ‘still small voice’) imagined for the concert hall. In its more reflective moments you can hear the worshipful influence of Bach. The result is a thrilling Romantic picture of a ‘grand and mighty prophet…borne on the wings of angels’, but it also conveys a very human drama with tremendous sympathy.
Whether you come for the sheer magnificence of the performance or for the powerful and moving drama, you’ll experience first-hand the triumphant choral masterpiece that inspired a generation.
Sydney Philharmonia has no recorded video of this oratorio. Instead, below, I'm sharing this superb performance of Mendelssohn's Elijah, Op.70, MWV A25 / Part 1 - "Thanks be to God" excerpt performed by the Edinburgh Festival Chorus · Stephen Doughty · Orchestra of The Age of Enlightenment · Paul Daniel. Provided to YouTube by Universal Music Group. Accessed April 22, 2024.
"Thanks be to God!"
Thanks be to God, He laveth the thirsty land.
The waters gather, they rush along!
They are lifting their voices!
The stormy billows are high; their fury is mighty.
But the Lord is above them, and Almighty!
Sydney Philharmonia Choirs
This performance will run for 2 hours and 30 minutes, including one 20-minute interval.
PROGRAM
Felix MENDELSSOHN Elijah
(Sung in English)
ARTISTS
Brett Weymark conductor
Celeste Lazarenko soprano
Sian Sharp mezzo-soprano
Andrew Goodwin tenor
Teddy Tahu Rhodes baritone
Pacific Opera octet
Festival Chorus
Sydney Philharmonia Orchestra
Pre-concert Talk
Grab a drink and hear Dr. Neil McEwan AM introduce the music in this program. From 6:15PM in the SOH Northern Foyer.
Pre-concert talks are supported by 2MBS Fine Music.
TICKETS
Premium $135 | A $110 | B $85 | C $60 | D $45
Concessions $122 | A $96 | B $75 | C $55 | D $40
Under 30 $30
A booking fee of $8.95 per transaction applies.
BOOK TICKETS HERE
Reviews:
Mendelssohn’s Elijah (Sydney Philharmonia Choirs). Brett Weymark and Sydney Philharmonia Choirs pull out all the stops for Mendelssohn's swansong. SOH, Concert Hall. Limelight. Reviewed by Steve Moffatt, 18 May, 2024. 
"With a choir of 400 voices, four soloists backed by nine featured vocalists and an orchestra of 60 musicians, it doesn’t get much bigger – or more magnificent – than a one-off performance of Felix Mendelssohn’s swansong masterpiece Elijah." Accessed May 20, 2024.
Mendelssohn’s Elijah. Sydney Philharmonia Choirs. Opera House Concert Hall. May 19, 2024. Reviewed by Peter McCallum.
The Sydney Morning Herald. Accessed May 19, 2024.
Review: Mendelssohn’s Elijah, Sydney Philharmonia Choir. - by Aryan Mohseni May 20, 2024. Accesed May 21, 2024. "Life breathed into an old form."
- by Aryan Mohseni May 20, 2024. Accesed May 21, 2024. "Life breathed into an old form."
Related Links:
Elijah, Op.70 No. 1- Help Lord, Wilt Thou Quite Destroy Us? Uploaded by Dame Gwyneth Jones. Accessed March 25, 2024.
Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy. Inspired Pen Web, Tel Asiado. March 25, 2024.
Mendelssohn's Oratorio Elijah, Op. 70. Inspired Pen Web, Tel Asiado. March 25, 2024.
Mendelssohn's Elijah, conducted by Ann Howard Jones. Boston University. Accessed March 25, 2024.
Video Credit:
Mendelssohn's Elijah: "Thanks Be To God" - YouTube, uploaded by ClassicalMusic. Accessed March 25, 2024.
Resources:
Mendelssohn's Elijah. Sydney Philharmonia Choirs. (Available at the time of access, March 25, 2020.)
Sydney Philharmonia Choirs 2024 Season.
Sydney Philharmonia Choirs' Mendelssohn Elijah. ClassicON.
COVID-19 SAFETY | CURRENT | WILL BE UPDATED WITH RELEVANT ORDERS WHEN ADVISED
- Audiences will be required to QR code register upon entry to the Sydney Town Hall.
- As a condition of the venue, audiences will be required to wear masks throughout the performance. If this changes we will inform patrons as soon as possible.
- Hand sanitiser will be available.
- We will publish a digital program book on our website a week prior to the concert. A limited number of printed program books will be available for $5 each at the concert.
Details about Sydney Philharmonia Choirs' COVID safe plan.
(c) March 2024. Tel Asiado. Inspired Pen Web. All rights reserved.
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