Jul

27

‘Missa Solemnis’ on the World Stage

Filed Under Beethoven: Missa Solemnis, Recordings | Leave a Comment

SDG Artistic Director John Nelson
B E E T H O V E N:   M I S S A   S O L E M N I S
Chamber Orchestra of Europe/Gulbenkian Choir
John Nelson, conductor

A musical treasure

Writes author Jan Swafford, “The Missa Solemnis may be the greatest piece never heard”, noting the work’s quiet life in the shadow of the better-known Ninth Symphony. Soli Deo Gloria’s forthcoming production promises to shine a supreme light on Beethoven’s choral masterpiece and meet the lofty intent of the composer who once commented, “My chief aim when I was composing this grand Mass was to awaken and permanently instill religious feelings, not only in the singers, but also in the listeners.”

Whereas Bach scales the highest heights of pure liturgical music with a certain objectivity in his B minor Mass, Beethoven takes a far more personal journey addressing the same text in his Missa Solemnis. Both are Mt. Everest experiences, daunting to say the least. We gratefully conquered the B Minor Mass in a beautiful DVD several years ago. Now it is our privilege to climb the Beethoven mountain…

- John Nelson
conductor and SDG Artistic Director

An all-star cast

The Missa Solemnis will be brought to life in grand fashion on February 17 and 18, 2010, in Lisbon, Portugal, at the Gulbenkian Grand Auditorium. Renowned conductor John Nelson will lead one of the world’s greatest orchestras, the Chamber Orchestra of Europe, along with the Gulbenkian Choir and celebrated soloists Tamara Wilson, Elizabeth DeShong, Nikolai Schukoff and Brindley Sherratt.

An audience of millions

Beethoven broadcast on Medici.tv

Soli Deo Gloria is pleased to partner with Medici Arts and Ideale Audience in bringing the Missa Solemnis to an audience of millions through state-of-the-art media technology. First, the February 17, 2010 performance will be broadcast worldwide from Lisbon, live and free of charge, via the Internet. Medici continues to redefine the power of web video for viewers around the world, as they did earlier this month with a live broadcast of Beethoven’s 9th Symphony conducted by John Nelson at the St. Denis Festival in France. This performance is now available in its entirety as video-on-demand at http://www.medici.tv/#/performance/585/ and will remain free through July 31, 2009. The February 2010 Missa Solemnis performance will likewise be featured on medici.tv as video-on-demand and will be subsequently released worldwide on DVD.

A trilogy of masterworks

Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis is the first of three sacred masterworks thus scheduled for sponsorship, broadcast and DVD production. Subsequent installments include Haydn’s The Creation and Bach’s St. Matthew Passion. Stay tuned for details.

Jul

3

Romania to celebrate Haydn masterpiece

Filed Under Project Uplift Romania 2009, Concerts, Videos | Leave a Comment

Soli Deo Gloria is pleased to partner with Crescendo and Jubilate in sponsoring the study and performance of Haydn’s celebrated oratorio The Creation, with musicians and audiences in Romania. Oratorium, a week-long master course, will encourage young professional musicians to encounter sacred music through musical excellence.

SDG’s Associate Artistic Director, Delta David Gier, will lead the orchestra and choir in performances in the cities of Cluj, Brasov and Sibiu. Writes Maestro Gier, “The opportunity to return to Romania after so many years fills me with great anticipation, as that is where I began my conducting career while on a Fulbright. Haydn’s work is not only musically a masterpiece, but a wonderful outpouring of praise to God. People are sure to receive it wholeheartedly, particularly when performed in the context of of this festival.”

In the video below, Maestro Gier shares his thoughts on SDG’s Project Uplift, an international concert sponsorship series, of which the Romanian project is a part. Through Project Uplift, SDG has assisted productions of sacred music in China, Russia, Ukraine, Armenia and Costa Rica.


. . .

Kenneth Tucker, Oratorium organizer, recently commented on the impetus for the Romanian project:

In the past several years we have sensed that now is the time for the large project we had in our hearts. To our knowledge, Oratorium is a first for Romania:  while there have been more local efforts at bringing together believing musicians for musical projects, Oratorium stands out for the seriousness of the repertoire chosen (Haydn’s Creation), the importance of the concert locations, the world-class musicians brought in to give leadership to the project, and the level of training and experience of the participating musicians. Our aim is to help bridge the gap between the faith and the music-making of these artists and to spark the general public’s understanding of the truly spiritual nature of Haydn’s masterwork.

Oratorium will take place July 19 through 26, 2009, with performances on July 24th, 25th and 26th. Stay tuned to www.SDGmusic.org/news for project reports.