Sunday, Oct 26, 2014
Mahler's Symphony No. 2 "Resurrection" in Philadelphia and New York October 30 - November 2.
Read Professor Jack Sullivan's reflection on the Westminster Symphonic Choir's relationship with Mahler's Symphony No. 2 "Resurrection."
The Westminster Symphonic Choir perform Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 “Resurrection” with The Philadelphia Orchestra conducted by Yannick Nézet-Séguin at the Kimmel Center in Philadelphia October 30, November 1 and 2. They will also perform at Carnegie Hall in New York on Friday, October 31. Ticket information is available on The Philadelphia Orchestra’s website at www.philorch.org.
In the spring the ensemble will return to Philadelphia for to perform two different choral masterworks with The Philadelphia Orchestra also conducted by Maestro Nézet-Séguin at the Kimmel Center. April 1 and 4, they will present J.S. Bach’s St. Matthew’s Passion. All concerts were sold out when the orchestra and choir performed this work in 2013, the first time in 30 years.
They will also perform Leonard Bernstein’s monumental Mass; A Theatre Piece for Singers, Players and Dancers April 30 through May 3. Rarely performed due to the large forces required, this work has been described by Maestro Nézet-Séguin as calls it “the pinnacle” of the Orchestra’s requiem series. Information about all performances are on the Philadelphia Orchestra’s website at www.philorch.org.
Earlier this month the ensemble performanced Carl Orff’s Carmina Burana and Claude Debussy’s Nocturnes with the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra conducted by Jacques Lacombe. The Symphonic Choir will collaborate with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra and conductor Daniele Gatti to perform Johannes Brahms’ Ein Deutsches Requiem (A German Requiem) on Sunday, March 1, 2015, at Carnegie Hall. Learn more at www.carnegiehall.org.
Composed of students at Westminster Choir College of Rider University, the Westminster Symphonic Choir has recorded and performed with major orchestras under virtually every internationally acclaimed conductor of the past 78 years. Its first major collaboration was in 1934 when Leopold Stokowski brought the Philadelphia Orchestra to Princeton to perform Bach’s Mass in B Minor with the Westminster Symphonic Choir in the Princeton University Chapel to celebrate the opening of the Westminster Choir College campus.
Recognized as one of the world’s leading choral ensembles, the choir has sung more than 350 performances with the New York Philharmonic alone. Recent seasons have included performances of Verdi's Requiem with The Philadelphia Orchestra and Yannick Nézet-Séguin; Berg's Wozzeck with the London Philharmonia and Esa-Pekka Salonen; Villa-Lobos' Choros No. 10 and Estévez’ Cantata Criolla with the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela and Gustavo Dudamel; Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 with the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra and Daniel Barenboim and Rouse’s Requiem with the New York Philharmonic and Alan Gilbert.
Performances with the Westminster Symphonic Choir are defining milestones in the musical lives of Westminster alumni.