The Passion of Opera

This was my first time attending Beethoven's Missa Solemnis  in a live performance, a work so often overshadowed by the Beethoven's Sympthony No. 9 , not only throughout history, but on the very night the two premiered simultaneously. Once again, Anne Midgette of the Washington Post offers an insightful review that focuses a great deal on the nature of the work itself; I will focus more on the performance. General information: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Missa_solemnis_(Beethoven) Missa solemnis | Ludwig van Beethoven Soprano | Julia Sophie Wagner Mezzo-Soprano | Daniela Mack Tenor | Vale Rideout Bass | Kevin Thompson Violin | Nurit Bar-Josef Conductor | Julian Wachner Washington Chorus & Orchestra Presented in the Concert Hall of the Kennedy Center ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ The ensemble for the evening was led by Julian Wachner, who conducted with an eco...

War Requiem | Benjamin Britten Soprano | Sabina Cvilak Tenor | Allan Clayton (In for the indisposed Andrew Kennedy) Baritone | Roderick Williams Conductor | Semyon Bychkov Off-Stage Conductor | James O'Donnell BBC Symphony Orchestra & Chorus Crouch End Festival Chorus Choristers of Westminster Abbey General information:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_Requiem ___________________________________________________________________________________ My first exposure to Britten's War Requiem was last spring when Lawrence University's orchestra and choirs mounted a concert for the piece with professional soloists. That experience was particularly moving for me. We put a lot of work into that piece both musically and emotionally, and the result was stunning. Especially touching was the conductor's pause for 30 seconds at the end of the piece in silence. I preface this review with this for two reasons. One, it was wonderful to be able to finally s...