Sydney Philharmonia Choirs - Elgar: The Dream of Gerontius

Choral Singing / Elgar's The Dream of Gerontius, Op.38

 

 

Based on the Victorian poem by Catholic Cardinal John Henry Newman, Sir Edward Elgar's oratorio Dream of Gerontius (1900), has a dramatic framework within which the music expanded orderly, a massive piece for chorus and orchestra. It relates the journey of a pious man's soul from his deathbed to his judgment before God and settling into Purgatory.

Dates:
   Thursday 19 October, 8pm
   Saturday 21 October, 2pm

Venue:
   Concert Hall, Sydney Opera House
 

 

                                                      Image credit: Eric Hansen

 

Artists: 

Brett Weymark conductor

Jacqueline "Jacqui" Dark mezzo soprano

Andrew Goodwin tenor
Jose Carbo baritone
Sydney Philharmonia Choirs
The Sydney Youth Orchestra

 

 

At the end of the music score of Sir Edward's The Dream of Gerontius, the composer wrote: “This is the best of me.” This monumental work embodies Elgar’s spiritual and artistic ideals – it is as stirringly Romantic and grand as you’d expect, but it is also Elgar’s most personal utterance. Elgar poured his “heart’s blood” into Gerontius, responding to the words with evocative, sincere and imaginative music – imposing marches full of pomp and circumstance, choirs of demons and angels, and celestial harmonies – that takes us from earth to heaven. Elgar’s masterful choral writing celebrates the beauty and power of the voice in partnership with the orchestra.

Sydney Philharmonia Choirs - Italian Opera Arias and Rossini Stabat Mater

Choral Singing / Music from Italian Masters

Rossini Stabat Mater and Opera Highlights from Italian Masters

Dates:
   Saturday, 6 May 2017, 8 pm
   Sunday, 7 May 2017, 2 pm
   Concert Hall, Sydney Opera House




Reviews:

Rossini Stabat Mater (Sydney Philharmonia Choirs), by Clive Paget. LimelightMagazine.Com. May 7, 2017.

The Passion and Powers of Italian Prayers. www.garjones.com. May 7, 2017. 

Experience the celestial power of the voice. Soloists and choir perform highlights from the operas of the Italian masters which find characters addressing heaven, from Moses leading his people in prayer to a glorious Easter Hymn in an Italian village.

When masters of the stage compose sacred music, they create work as powerfully dramatic as any opera.  Gioachino Rossini, best known as a composer of brilliant comedy and moving tragedy, also wrote a handful of choral masterpieces after his early retirement from the theatre.  Like his operas, they celebrate the beauty of the human voice, none more so than his Stabat Mater.

This medieval poem describing Mary’s contemplation of her son on the cross is a vividly drawn drama in its own right and it has elicited profound musical responses from composers for centuries. Rossini sets the words with exquisite sensitivity to emotion and mood in the manner of his grandest operas, including virtuoso solos and ensembles and overwhelming choruses, sweeping listeners up in a gripping, living narrative.

Unfortunately, Sydney Philharmonia Choirs don't have a video recording of Stabat Mater that I can share; in place, I've included this performance of  Gioachino Rossini's Stabat Mater performed by hr-Sinfonieorchester (Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra) ∙ Solisten ∙ MDR Rundfunkchor ∙ Andrés Orozco-Estrada. With soloists Marina Rebeka, Sopran ∙ Marina Comparato, Mezzosopran ∙ Michele Angelini, Tenor ∙ Marco Spotti, Bass ∙ MDR Rundfunkchor ∙ Andrés Orozco-Estrada, Dirigent ∙ Rheingau Musik Festival 2015∙ YouTube, uploaded by FRankfurt Radio Symphony. Accessed April 30, 2021.