May Festival 2011 Season |
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| WEEKEND 1 MAY 20 OPENING NIGHT CONCERT Music Hall 8 PM |
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 VERDI: Requiem Verdi’s Requiem Mass premiered on May 22, 1874, and immediately became one of the most popular and widely performed works in Europe. In its first two years, the Requiem had a remarkable 22 performances in Paris, London and Vienna alone, and it remains one of the most popular works in the choral repertoire. A journey of spiritual renewal that flows through the range of human emotion, Verdi’s deeply felt masterpiece expresses everything from mournful cries for mercy to the fiery terror of Judgment Day to impassioned prayers for everlasting light and eternal rest. Pre-Concert Recital 7 PM, Music Hall |
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MAY 21 Music Hall 8 PM | |||
 JANÁČEK: Glagolitic Mass Three radiant, chorus-focused expressions of reverence and praise highlight this evening’s concert, starting with the brass fanfares, choral supplication and affirmation, and layer upon layer of orchestral color of Janáċek’s Glagolitic Mass. The poetic grandeur of Stravinsky’s Symphony of Psalms is punctuated by his characteristic pulsating rhythms and sinuous tone-weaving to brilliantly convey the emotion of David’s Psalms of faith, trust and adoration. And tuneful statements of“ Te Deum, laudamus” (To God, praise) open Dvořák’s Te Deum, a jubilant declaration of thanksgiving. Pre-Concert Recital 7 PM, Music Hall |
Photo credits: James Conlon –Todd Rosenberg; Rodrick Dixon – Dan Demetriad; Morris Robinson – Ron Cadiz; Ekaterina Semenchuck – Sheila Rock |
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MAY 22 Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption 8 PM | |||
 MAY FESTIVAL YOUTH CHORUS: May Festival Youth Chorus, James Bagwell, Director The annual Sunday evening sojourn by the May Festival to this treasured Covington landmark celebrates a centuries-long tradition of presenting cathedral music in a sacred setting, the way it was meant to be heard. After the Youth Chorus performs a collection of splendid sacred works, the May Festival Chamber Choir presents pairings of works that are settings of the same sacred texts, each pair starting with music written by a Renaissance composer. The performance culminates with two works based on the Psalm text “Sing to the Lord a new song”—a fitting conclusion to this program of “old” and “new” interpretations of compelling statements of reverence and faith. |
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| The May Festival Youth Chorus is proudly sponsored by Scripps Howard Foundation. | |||
WEEKEND 2 MAY 27 Music Hall 8 PM | |||
This evening’s program opens with the May Festival premiere of Haydn’s brilliantly crafted Heiligmesse, whose name comes from the Sanctus movement of the piece, translated from Latin to “heilig, heilig, heilig” (“holy, holy, holy”). Each movement of the piece reveals a powerful belief statement and reflects the joyful character of its title. Das klagende Lied is an enthralling retelling of a folk legend about two knights—brothers, one good and one evil—who go into the woods in search of a flower that a beautiful Queen has said will win one of them her hand in marriage. When the evil knight discovers that his brother has found the flower first, he kills him, takes the flower to the Queen and claims his prize. But thanks to a wandering minstrel and the words of the dead brother himself, the truth is revealed. Operatic in style, the music is full of the power and inventiveness that are uniquely “Mahler.” Pre-Concert Recital 7 PM, Music Hall |
Photo credits: James Conlon –Todd Rosenberg; Rodrick Dixon – Dan Demetriad; Ekaterina Semenchuck – Sheila Rock | ||
| MAY 28 2011 FINALE Music Hall 8 PM | |||
 MENDELSSOHN: Elijah
Following Elijah’s premiere in 1846, a reviewer for The London Times wrote, “The last note of Elijah was drowned in a long-continued unanimous volley of plaudits, vociferous and deafening. It was as though enthusiasm, long checked, had suddenly burst its bonds and filled the air with shouts of exultation. Never was there a more complete triumph—never a more thorough and speedy recognition of a great work.” This epic masterpiece, with its powerful choruses, vivid orchestration, miracle-laden story and penetrating central characters, remains one of the best-loved works ever performed at the May Festival. Based on passages found in the Old Testament, Elijah resonates with both the ferocity and passion of one of the Bible’s most influential prophets. Pre-Concert Recital 7 PM, Music Hall |
Photo credits: James Conlon – Todd Rosenberg; Stephanie Blythe – Kobie van Rensburg; Lawrence Brownlee – Marty Umans | ||
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All artists and programs are subject to change. | |||
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