Program - Verdi Requiem

MEDIA PARTNER

SPOTLIGHT

2019/20

2019/20 SEASON PRESENTING SPONSOR:

VERDI REQUIEM – 35TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION – COLORADO SYMPHONY CHORUS PERFORMED BY YOUR COLORADO SYMPHONY BRETT MITCHELL, conductor LEAH HAWKINS, soprano JENNIFER JOHNSON CANO, mezzo-soprano ISSACHAH SAVAGE, tenor ALEKSEY BOGDANOV, baritone COLORADO SYMPHONY CHORUS, DUAIN WOLFE, director Saturday, October 26, 2019 at 7:30pm Sunday, October 27, 2019 at 1:00pm Boettcher Concert Hall

VERDI Messa da Requiem Introit and Kyrie Dies irae

Dies irae Tuba mirum Liber scriptus Quid sum miser Rex tremendae Recordare Ingemisco Confutatis Lacrymosa

Offertorio Sanctus Agnus Dei Lux aeterna Libera me

CONCERT RUN TIME IS APPROXIMATELY 1 HOUR AND 24 MINUTES WITH NO INTERMISSION. FIRST TIME TO THE SYMPHONY? SEE PAGE 8 OF THIS PROGRAM FOR FAQ’S TO MAKE YOUR EXPERIENCE GREAT! Friday’s Concert is Gratefully Dedicated to Raymond and Suzanne Satter Saturday’s Concert is Gratefully Dedicated to Jane Costain and Gary Moore PROUDLY SUPPORTED BY SOUNDINGS

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SPOTLIGHT WELCOME October 25, 2019 marks the 35th Anniversary of the first-ever performance by the worldrenowned Colorado Symphony Chorus. Founded in 1984 by Chorus Director Duain Wolfe, the CSC has earned a reputation as one of the finest symphonic choruses in the United States, performing annually in Boettcher Concert Hall and across Colorado.

On October 26 and 27 — nearly 35 years to the day — we’ll celebrate the CSC’s vast achievements with the piece they performed during their acclaimed debut with a renewal of Verdi’s monumental Requiem.

Our Chorus is unique and exceedingly rare among United State orchestras, as we support them as an integral element of our organization, giving us the ability to perform works that are otherwise too expensive or logistically impossible to achieve, including Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, Carmina Burana, Britten’s War Requiem, and more.

As Colorado Symphony audience members and music-lovers all over the state know, we are so fortunate to have this world-class symphony chorus to call our own. Duain Wolfe, Mary Louise Burke, Travis Branam, Taylor Martin, the singers of the Colorado Symphony Chorus, and their entire team put incredible love, time, and dedication into every performance.

Made up of 185 volunteer musicians, the Colorado Symphony Chorus also includes nine charter members of the ensemble who still sing with the chorus today. In an average season, the CSC participates in 50 rehearsals supporting 30 performances, which means as many as 240 hours of volunteered time for each chorus member per year.

None of this would be possible without the time and efforts of a dedicated management staff (led by Eric Israelson and Barbara Porter) that oversees all 200 musicians as well as the scheduling of rehearsals, distribution of music, travel planning, and more.

On behalf of the Colorado Symphony musicians, our staff, and loyal patrons, we congratulate the Colorado Symphony Chorus on 35 years of performing excellence. Bravo!

With deep gratitude,

Jerome H. Kern CEO & Chair of the Board of Trustees

The Colorado Symphony Chorus made its debut appearance in 1984 in performances of Verdi’s great Requiem – thirty-five years ago this week. We present this masterpiece now in commemoration of those first performances. Nine of our current members sang those concerts and we proudly honor them for their thirty-five years of service as they sing these concerts.

CHARTER MEMBERS of the COLORADO SYMPHONY CHORUS Priscilla Adams, Ruth Coberly, George Cowen, Barbara Deck, Ellen Janasko, Roy Kent, Barbara Porter, Ronald Ruth, Kenneth Zimmerman PROGRAM 2

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SPOTLIGHT BIOGRAPHIES LEAH HAWKINS, soprano A native of Philadelphia, soprano Leah Hawkins returns for her second year to the Lindemann Young Artist Development Program at The Metropolitan Opera where she will be seen as Strawberry Woman in Porgy & Bess and Masha in The Queen of Spades. She also debuts at the Bayerische Staatsoper in the world premiere of 7 Deaths of Maria Callas starring Marina Abramović and the Colorado Symphony in Verdi Requiem. Last season she made her debut at the Met as Alms Collector in Suor Angelica and the High Priestess in Aida. Additional 2018-2019 engagements included a Park Avenue Armory Recital; a return to the National Symphony Orchestra for a Labor Day Concert and DECLASSIFIED, and a Gala Concert with the Chesapeake Youth Symphony Orchestra.

PHOTO: FAY FOX

JENNIFER JOHNSON CANO, mezzo-soprano Since graduating from the Lindemann Young Artist Development Program at The Metropolitan Opera, mezzo-soprano Jennifer Johnson Cano has appeared in over 100 performances with the Metropolitan Opera. She has also performed with Boston Lyric (Carmen and Donna Elvira), Opera Theater of St Louis (Nicklausse and Orfeo), Cincinnati Opera (Diana), Des Moines Metro Opera (Orfeo), Arizona Opera (Donna Elvira), and Cleveland Orchestra’s Cunning Little Vixen (Sharp Eared Fox). The directors have included, among others, Robert Carsen, Richard Eyre, Robert Lepage, Joan Anton Rechi, Chas Rader-Shieber, Yuval Sharon, and Bartlett Sher. Major orchestras have included the New York and Los Angeles Philharmonics, Cleveland Orchestra, and San Francisco and Baltimore Symphonies with distinguished conductors such as James Levine, Yannick NézetSéguin, Franz Welser-Möst, Manfred Honeck, Sir Andrew Davis, Alan Gilbert, and Marin Alsop.

SPOTLIGHT BIOGRAPHIES

PHOTO: KRISTIN HOEBERMANN

ISSACHAH SAVAGE, tenor Dramatic tenor Issachah Savage is garnering acclaim as a “heldentenor par excellence” with “trumpet-like, clear, open-throated, powerful” singing (San Francisco Examiner). Praised for his “impressive natural instrument” (Opera News), Mr. Savage is the winner of the Seattle International Wagner Competition sweeping all the major categories. Mr. Savage made his Metropolitan Opera debut as Don Riccardo in Verdi’s Ernani conducted by James Levine. He recently sang Siegmund in Die Walküre at the Canadian Opera Company under Johannes Debus to great critical acclaim and made his mainstage debut as Bacchus in Ariadne auf Naxos at Seattle Opera; his Los Angeles Opera debut as Narraboth in Salome conducted by James Conlon; the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra in Kurt Weill’s Lost in the Stars; Houston Grand Opera debut as Radames in Aida opposite Liudmyla Monastyrksa and Dolora Zajick; his European debut as Bacchus in Ariadne auf Naxos at Théâtre du Capitole in Toulouse; and Siegmund in Die Walküre with Opéra National de Bordeaux conducted by Paul Daniel. In concert, he has performed Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 with Los Angeles Philharmonic and Gustavo Dudamel, National Symphony and Gianandrea Noseda, Orchestre National de Bordeaux-Aquitaine under Paul Daniel, Utah Symphony and Verdi’s Messa da requiem with the Melbourne Symphony in Australia, Boston Philharmonic, and Detroit Symphony. He also debuted at the Aspen Music Festival as Radames in Aida under conductor Robert Spano, a role he sang with the Boston Symphony Orchestra at Tanglewood under Jacques Lacombe. He was invited by Riccardo Muti to make his Chicago Symphony debut as the Messenger in concert performances of Aida.

PHOTO: KEI MORENO

ALEKSEY BOGDANOV, baritone Russian-American baritone Aleksey Bogdanov continues to establish himself as one of the most compelling performers of his generation.

2019-2020 highlights include a debut at Hawaii Opera Theatre as Scarpia in Tosca, Jack Rance in La fanciulla del West with Royal Swedish Opera, and the title role in Rigoletto with Central City Opera.

In recent seasons, he made his role debut as Jack Rance in La fanciulla del West with Opera Carolina, Scarpia in Tosca with Opera North, The Demon with Commonwealth Lyric Theater, Escamillo in La tragédie de Carmen with Colorado Music Festival, and Vitellius in Hérodiade with Washington Concert Opera. He also appeared with Washington National Opera as Escamillo in Carmen and covered Donner and Gunther in Francesca Zambello’s Ring Cycle. Praised as “pitch-perfect” by The Washington Post, his many roles in over 100 performances with WNO include Mozart’s Figaro and Don Giovanni.

Mr. Bogdanov made a last-minute debut at The Glimmerglass Festival as Escamillo in Carmen to great acclaim, and he has appeared in this signature role with The Atlanta Opera, Washington National Opera, and Columbus Symphony Orchestra. He returned to The Glimmerglass Festival as Sharpless in Madama Butterfly and Samuel Griffiths in Tobias Picker’s An American Tragedy.

SPOTLIGHT BIOGRAPHIES Other career highlights include his Canadian debut as the title role in Eugene Onegin with Edmonton Opera, and his Carnegie Hall debut as Bass Soloist in Handel’s Messiah. He has been featured as a soloist in Mozart’s Requiem at Place des Arts in Montréal, Beethoven’s Fidelio with National Symphony Orchestra, Barber’s A Hand of Bridge with Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, and the Requiems of Mozart, Fauré, and Duruflé at the Washington National Cathedral.

DUAIN WOLFE, director, Colorado Symphony Chorus Recently awarded two Grammys® for Best Choral Performance and Best Classical Recording, Duain Wolfe is founder and Director of the Colorado Symphony Chorus and Music Director of the Chicago Symphony Chorus.

This year marks Wolfe’s 35th season with the Colorado Symphony Chorus. The Chorus has been featured at the Aspen Music Festival for over two decades.

Wolfe, who is in his 25th season with the Chicago Symphony Chorus has collaborated with Daniel Barenboim, Pierre Boulez, Bernard Haitink, Riccardo Muti, and the late Sir George Solti on numerous recordings including Wagner’s Die Meistersinger, which won the 1998 Grammy® for Best Opera Recording. Wolfe’s extensive musical accomplishments have resulted in numerous awards, including an honorary Doctor of Fine Arts from the University of Denver, the Bonfils Stanton Award in the Arts and Humanities, the Governor’s Award for Excellence in the Arts, the Mayor’s Award for Excellence in an Artistic Discipline, and the Michael Korn Award for the Development of the Professional Choral Art. Wolfe is also founder of the Colorado Children’s Chorale, from which he retired in 1999 after 25 years; the Chorale celebrated its 40th anniversary last season. For 20 years, Wolfe also worked with the Central City Opera Festival as chorus director and conductor, founding and directing the company’s young artist residence program, as well as its education and outreach programs.

Wolfe’s additional accomplishments include directing and preparing choruses for Chicago’s Ravinia Festival, the Bravo!Vail Festival, the Berkshire Choral Festival, the Aspen Music Festival, and the Grand Teton Music Festival. He has worked with Pinchas Zuckerman and Alexander Shelly as Chorus Director for the Canadian National Arts Centre Orchestra for the past 17 years.

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SPOTLIGHT BIOGRAPHIES COLORADO SYMPHONY CHORUS The 2019/20 Colorado Symphony concert season marks the 36th season of the Colorado Symphony Chorus, celebrating their official 35th Anniversary in the autumn of 2019 with a performance of Verdi’s Requiem. Founded in 1984 by Duain Wolfe at the request of Gaetano Delogu, then the Music Director of the Symphony, the chorus has grown over the past three decades into a nationally respected ensemble. This outstanding chorus of 185 volunteers joins the Colorado Symphony for numerous performances (more than 25 this year alone), and radio and television broadcasts, to repeat critical acclaim. The Chorus has performed at noted music festivals in the Rocky Mountain region, including the Colorado Music Festival, the Grand Teton Music Festival and the Bravo! Vail Valley Music Festival, where it has performed with the New York Philharmonic, the Philadelphia Orchestra and the Dallas Symphony. For over two decades, the Chorus has been featured at the world-renowned Aspen Music Festival, performing many great masterworks under the baton of notable conductors Lawrence Foster, James Levine, Murry Sidlin, Leonard Slatkin, Robert Spano, and David Zinman.

Among the seven recordings the Chorus has made is a NAXOS release of Roy Harris’s Symphony No. 4, as well as a remarkable recording of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9. The Chorus is also featured on a Hyperion release of the Vaughan Williams’ Dona Nobis Pacem and Stephen Hough’s Missa Mirabilis. Most recently, the Colorado Symphony and Chorus released a world-premiere recording of William Hill’s The Raven. In 2009, in celebration of their 25th anniversary, Duain Wolfe conducted the Chorus on a 3-country, 2-week concert tour of Europe, presenting the Verdi Requiem in Budapest, Vienna, Litomysl, and Prague, In 2016 the chorus returned to Europe for concerts in Paris, Strasbourg, and Munich. From Evergreen to Brighton, and Boulder to Castle Rock, singers travel each week to rehearsals and performances in Denver, totaling about 80 a year. The Colorado Symphony and Denver community continue to be grateful for the excellence and dedication of this remarkable all-volunteer ensemble. For an audition appointment, visit the symphony website for an online sign up form. www.coloradosymphony.org

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SPOTLIGHT ROSTER COLORADO SYMPHONY CHORUS Duain Wolfe, Founding Director and Conductor; Mary Louise Burke, Associate Conductor; Travis Branam, Taylor Martin, Assistant Conductors; Brian Dukeshier, Hsiao-Ling Lin, Pianists; Eric Israelson, Barbara Porter, Chorus Managers SOPRANO I Black, Kimberly Brazell, Madeline Brown, Jamie Causey, Denelda Choi, LeEtta H. Coberly, Sarah Collins, Suzanne Coppage, Zoie Dirksen, Sarah Emerich, Kate A. Gile, Jenifer D. Gill, Lori C. Graber, Susan Hedrick, Elizabeth Heintzkill, Mary-Therese Hinkley, Lynnae C. Hittle, Erin R. Hofmeister, Mary Jordan, Cameron Joy, Shelley E. Look, Cathy Machusko, Rebecca E. Maupin, Anne Moraskie, Wendy L. Plender, Elizabeth Porter, Barbara A. Ropa, Lori A. Saddler, Garlyn Schawel, Camilia Schweitzer, Laura Sladovnik, Roberta A. Stegink, Nicole J. Wuertz, Karen Young, Cara M. SOPRANO II Ascani, Lori Barker, Ashley Blum, Jude Bowen, Alex S. Brauchli, Margot L. Coberly, Ruth A. Cote, Kerry H. Dakkouri, Claudia Dean, Lindsay Headrick, Alaina Heimann, Abigail Kraft, Lisa D. Kushnir, Marina Lang, Leanne Linder, Dana

Long, Lisa McLaughlin, Sarah Montigne, Erin Nesbit, Angie Nyholm, Christine M. O’Nan, Jeannette R. Pflug, Kim Rae, Donneve S. Roth, Sarah Ruff, Mahli Saddler, Nancy C. Sullivan, Madeleine Tate, Judy Timme, Sydney Travis, Stacey L. Von Roedern, Susan K. Walker, Marcia L. Woodrow, Sandy Zisler, Joan M. ALTO I Adams, Priscilla P. Branam, Emily M. Braud-Kern, Charlotte Brown, Kimberly Cauthen, Rachael Clauson, Clair T. Conrad, Jayne M. Fairchild, Raleigh Franz, Kirsten D. Frey, Susie Gayley, Sharon R. Groom, Gabriella D. Guittar, Pat Guttmann, Emily Henningson, Linnea Holst, Melissa J. Hoopes, Kaia M. Kim, Annette Kolstad, Annie LeBlanc, Genevieve McNulty, Emily McWaters, Susan Nordenholz, Kristen Overton, Delaney Passoth, Ginny Pringle, Jennifer Rudolph, Kathi L. Ryan, Emily Schmicker, Kate Stevenson, Melanie Thaler, Deanna K.

Thayer, Mary B. Tiggelaar, Clara Virtue, Pat York, Beth ALTO II Bender-Moore, Jane Boothe, Kay A. Cox, Martha E. Daniel, Sheri L. Deck, Barbara Dominguez, Joyce Eslick, Carol A. Gangware, Elizabeth Golden, Daniela Holmes, Kelsey Hoskins, Hansi Jackson, Brandy H. Janasko, Ellen D. LeBaron, Andrea London, Carole A. Maltzahn, Joanna K. Marchbank, Barbara J. Mattingly, Melinda Nelson, Annélise Nittoli, Leslie M. Schalow, Elle C. Scooros, Pamela R. Townsend, Lisa Trierweiler, Ginny Worthington, Evin TENOR I Dougan, Dustin Gordon, Jr., Frank Guittar, Jr., Forrest Hodel, David K. Jordan, Curt Moraskie, Richard A. Mosser, Shane Muesing, Garvis J. Nicholas, Timothy W. Rehberg, Dallas Reiley, William G. Roach, Eugene Thompson, Hannis Zimmerman, Kenneth TENOR II Babcock, Gary E. Bradley, Mac Carlson, James

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Davies, Dusty R. Dinkel, Jack Fuehrer, Roger Gale, John H. Ibrahim, Sami Jin, Yi Kolm, Kenneth E. Lively, Mark McCracken, Todd Meswarb, Stephen J. Milligan, Tom A. Richardson, Tyler Ruth, Ronald L. Seamans, Andrew J. Shaw, Kyle Sims, Jerry E. BASS I Adams, John G. Cowen, George Gray, Matthew Grossman, Chris Hesse, Douglas D. Hume, Donald Hunt, Leonard Jirak, Thomas J. Lingenfelter, Paul Plakorus, Ryan Quarles, Kenneth Ragan, Jimmy Ravid, Frederick Smedberg, Matthew Snyder, Kyle Struthers, David R. BASS II Friedlander, Robert Israelson, Eric W. Jackson, Terry L. Kent, Roy A. Morrison, Greg A. Nuccio, Eugene J. Phillips, John R. Potter, Tom Skillings, Russell R. Swanson, Wil W. Taylor, Don Teplansky, Alexander Virtue, Tom G.

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SPOTLIGHT PROGRAM NOTES GIUSEPPE VERDI (1813-1901): Messa da Requiem, in Memory of Alessandro Manzoni Giuseppe Verdi was born on October 10, 1813 in Le Roncole, Italy and died on January 27, 1901 in Milan. He composed his Requiem between June 28, 1873 and April 10, 1874, and conducted its premiere, on May 22, 1874 in Milan’s San Marco Cathedral. The score calls for three flutes (third doubling piccolo), two oboes, two clarinets, four bassoons, four horns, four orchestral trumpets and four additional off-stage trumpets, three trombones, tuba, timpani, percussion, and strings. Duration is about 95 minutes. The Requiem was last performed on October 18, 2014, with Duain Wolfe leading the orchestra and chorus.

Verdi was, above all, a patriot. From his earliest years, he was an ardent supporter of the Risorgimento — the “resurgence” of ancient national pride — to free Italy from foreign domination and unify it under a single, native rule. Though he never personally manned the barricades, he became, through his music, one of the most illustrious embodiments of the Italian national spirit.

Almost all of Verdi’s early operas ran afoul of the censors because of the political implications of their plots. In 19th-century Europe, no one doubted that music and drama could inspire strong emotions and, perhaps, even action. The political arbiters were ever wary about allowing ideas of insurrection or royal fallibility to escape from the stage into the public consciousness.

One such idea that did slip through their suspicious examination, however, was contained in Verdi’s Nabucco of 1842. The chorus of longing for their lost homeland sung in that opera by the Israelites captive in Babylon, Va, pensiero, sull’ali dorate (“Fly, thoughts, on wings of gold”), was quickly adopted by the Risorgimento as an anthem of struggle for Italy’s freedom. So great and enduring was the fame of this stirring music that it was sung by the crowds that lined the streets for Verdi’s funeral procession almost six decades later.

During the insurrections of 1848, the name VERDI became a rallying cry for the nationalists, and was scrawled across walls and carried on signs. Beside being a tribute to their beloved composer, the letters of his name were also an acrostic for “Vittorio Emanuele, Re d’Italia,” the Duke of Savoy whom the nationalists were fighting to bring to power as “King of Italy.”

When Cavour called the first parliamentary session of the newly united Italy in 1859, Verdi was elected as the representative from Busseto. Though reluctant to enter the political arena, he was sufficiently patriotic and cognizant of his standing with his countrymen to accept the nomination.

With his love of country and constant efforts to promote Italian culture, Verdi viewed the death of Rossini in Paris on November 13, 1868 as a national tragedy. He wrote to the Countess Maffei, “A great name has disappeared from the world! His was the most vast and most popular reputation of our time and he was a glory of Italy.” Verdi felt that a musical memorial should be erected to Rossini — not as a religious expedient to usher his soul into heaven, or as an expression of personal grief (the two were never close friends), but rather as an act of patriotism.

One of the great Italians was gone, and Verdi believed the nation should properly mourn his passing.

Verdi proposed the composition of a composite Requiem Mass for Rossini to which the leading Italian composers would contribute. (“No foreign hands!” he insisted.) The performance was to take place on the first anniversary of Rossini’s death. Following Verdi’s instructions, the

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SPOTLIGHT PROGRAM NOTES composers were chosen by lot by the publisher Giulio Ricordi, and each was assigned a section of the work. The closing Libera me fell to Verdi. However, preparations for the Rossini Mass foundered on Verdi’s proposal that all those involved offer their services free of charge. The twelve other composers agreed to this, and the Mass was actually written, but the performers could not be secured. The project was cancelled, and the manuscripts were returned to their composers, whose reputations faded along with the prospects for the memorial Mass — Platania, Mabellini and Cagnoni, for example, are unknown today even in Italy. (The scores for this Messa per Rossini were discovered in Ricordi’s archives in 1970 by musicologist David Rosen during his research in preparing the complete edition of Verdi’s works. A performance of the work, its first ever, took place in Stuttgart on September 11, 1988 under the direction of Helmut Rilling; the New York Philharmonic gave the American premiere on October 12, 1989. A recording is available on the German label Hänssler Classic.) Verdi’s Libera me was filed away and forgotten, as were the plans for the Rossini Requiem.

In 1871, Alberto Mazzucato, a friend of Verdi and a composition teacher at the Milan Conservatory, discovered the Libera me manuscript in Ricordi’s vaults. He was enraptured with its beauty, and wrote to its creator urging him to complete the entire work. Verdi responded, “Your words nearly prompted me to compose the whole Mass.... Think what a disastrous result your praise could have had! But have no fear; this is only a temptation, which, like others, will pass.” He continued that to add yet another Requiem to the “many, many” that existed was “useless.” Soon, however, he was to find a use for such a work, and give in to the temptation to take up his Libera me once again.

 Alessandro Manzoni was one of the dominant figures of 19th-century Italy. His poems, plays and novels spoke directly to the Italian soul as it quested for freedom and national identity.

His most famous work was the novel I promessi sposi (“The Betrothed”), which was considered not only the greatest Italian prose piece of the time, but also, as William Weaver noted in his study of Verdi, “a kind of stylebook for the country, which ... was linguistically chaotic.” Manzoni accomplished for Italy with that book what Luther’s translation of the Bible had done three centuries before for Germany — brought a standardized language to a country factionalized by innumerable dialects.

Verdi venerated Manzoni. He often referred to him as “a saint” and his letters show boundless admiration for the great writer. Of I promessi sposi he said, “In my opinion he has written a book which is not only the greatest product of our times, but also one of the finest in all ages which has issued from the human mind. And, more than being just a book, it is a comfort to humanity as well.... My enthusiasm for this work is undiminished; nay, it has increased with my understanding of humanity; for this book is true, as true as ‘truth’ itself.” After the two first met in 1868, Verdi wrote, “What can I tell you of Manzoni? How express the new, inexplicable, happy feeling which the sacred presence of this man aroused in me? I would have knelt before him if men worshipped men.”

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SPOTLIGHT PROGRAM NOTES Manzoni died at the age of 87 on May 22, 1873. Verdi was stricken with grief. A few days after receiving the news he wrote, “With him ends the most pure, the most sacred, the highest of our glories. I have read many of the newspapers, and not one of them speaks of him as he should be spoken of. Many words, but none of them profoundly felt.” Verdi could not bring himself to attend the funeral. While thousands of mourning Milanese poured into the streets of the city to witness Manzoni’s funeral procession, Verdi stayed at his country home, Sant’ Agata, too distraught to leave until he found the strength to make a private visit to the graveside on June 3rd. As he had been five years earlier with the passing of Rossini, Verdi was again inspired to commemorate the death of a great Italian with a memorial Mass. He sent his proposal to compose a Requiem in honor of Manzoni to the mayor of Milan, and it was eagerly accepted.

Verdi scheduled the Requiem’s premiere for the first anniversary of Manzoni’s death, and began the score immediately. Remembering his earlier experience with the Rossini Requiem, however, he decided this time to control the entire project himself — composition, preparations and performance. He revived the Libera me for inclusion in the Manzoni Requiem, and newly composed the rest. As the work proceeded, he arranged for performers, printing, and publicity, and even made acoustical tests to determine the most suitable of Milan’s churches for the premiere. The work was finished on April 10, 1874, and the first performance six weeks later in San Marco Cathedral was a complete success.

Verdi’s Requiem is in seven large movements, based on the text. Throughout, the ancient words are illuminated and enriched by the composer’s broad strokes and subtle touches, which are best perceived by following the text as the piece unfolds around them. The Requiem’s initial gesture, in the cellos, comes as if from a great distance and establishes the grave solemnity of the movement. The chorus intones a sweet, pathetic invocation for departed souls that leads directly into the Kyrie eleison (“Lord have mercy”), a broad, flowing prayer for divine compassion.

The Dies irae paints the awe-inspiring “Day of Wrath” when the world will stand in judgment.

Verdi rose to the challenge of these words with music “full of things terrifying and at the same time moving and pathetic,” wrote the critic Filippo Filippi following the premiere. This movement, which occupies fully one-third of the Requiem’s length, is divided into nearly a dozen successive scenes, which encompass a broad range of musical moods and technical devices.

The Offertorio (Domine Jesu Christe — “Lord Jesus Christ”) that follows comes like a halcyon spring breeze after the winter’s blast. Its gently swaying rhythm and huge melodic arches bear to celestial reaches the supplicant’s entreaty for the deliverance of the departed from the pains of hell. Its contrasting center section (Quam olim — Hostias — Quam olim repeated) is followed by a brief return of the gentle opening music.

The Sanctus (“Holy, Holy, Holy”) begins with a joyous shout. The music then launches into a bracing fugue on two subjects for divided chorus, which is followed by an antiphonal setting (i.e., choruses in alternation) of the Hosanna.

Agnus Dei (“Lamb of God”) is the shortest movement of the Requiem and the simplest. Plain in texture and introspective in expression, it is dominated by the voices with only the most sparse of orchestral accompaniment. The Lux aeterna (“Light eternal”) is memorable for some of the most ethereal, translucent orchestral scoring in all of Verdi’s works.

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SPOTLIGHT PROGRAM NOTES The concluding Libera me (“Deliver me”) is the remnant of the earlier Requiem for Rossini. In the Manzoni Requiem, the movement consists of several sections: an introductory verse for soprano soloist that rises from a freely chanted beginning; a recall of the tempestuous Dies irae movement; a reminiscence of the opening Requiem aeternam in a breathtakingly beautiful setting for unaccompanied chorus and soprano; and a fugue which concludes with the quiet, resigned chanting that opened the movement. It is thought that the fugue and the opening chant were the only music originally written for the earlier Mass, and that the Dies irae and Requiem aeternam reminiscences were inserted when the work was newly composed for the Manzoni commemoration.

Verdi’s Requiem is one of music’s greatest masterpieces, providing artistic, emotional, and spiritual sustenance whenever it is performed. No amount of discussion or analysis could exhaust its content, and yet any comments on it seem almost unnecessary — the Requiem speaks eloquently for itself and its composer. Perhaps it is most prudent to agree with Johannes Brahms, a curmudgeonly soul disinclined to compliments, who honored his Italian colleague when he said, simply, “Verdi’s Requiem is a work of genius.” ©2019 Dr. Richard E. Rodda

SPOTLIGHT TRANSLATION Requiem Kyrie Quartet and Chorus Requiem aeternam dona eis, Domine; et lux perpetua luceat eis.

Grant them eternal rest, O Lord; and let perpetual light shine upon them.

Te decet hymnus Deus in Sion; et tibi reddetur votum in Jerusalem: exaudi orationem meam; ad te omnis caro veniet.

Kyrie eleison.

Christe eleison.

Kyrie eleison.

A hymn to Thee, O God, is fitting in Sion; and a vow to Thee shall be paid in Jerusalem: O hear my prayer; to Thee all flesh shall come.

Lord, have mercy upon us.

Christ, have mercy upon us.

Lord, have mercy upon us.

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SPOTLIGHT TRANSLATION Dies irae Chorus Dies irae, dies illa Solvet saeclum in favilla, Teste David cum Sibylla.

The day of wrath, that day the world will dissolve in ash, as David prophesied with the Sibyl.

Quantus tremor est futurus, Quando Judex est venturus, Cuncta stricte discussurus.

What great terror there will be when the Judge shall have come to thresh out everything thoroughly.

Tuba mirum spargens sonum Per sepulchra regionum, Coget omnes ante thronum.

The trumpet, spreading a wondrous sound through the tombs of all lands, will gather everyone before the throne.

Bass

Mors stupebit et natura, Cum resurget creatura, Judicanti responsura.

Death and nature will be stunned when creation rises again to respond to the Judge.

Mezzo-soprano and Chorus

Liber scriptus proferetur, In quo totum continetur, Unde mundus judicetur,

A written book will be brought forth in which is contained everything for which the world will be judged.

Judex ergo cum sedebit, Quidquid latet, apparebit: Nil inultum remanebit.

Thus when the Judge takes his seat whatever was hidden shall appear, nothing shall remain unpunished

Soprano, Mezzo-soprano, Tenor and Chorus Dies irae, dies illa Solvet saeclum in favilla, Teste David cum Sibylla.

The day of wrath, that day the world will dissolve in ash, as David prophesied with the Sibyl.

Quid sum miser tunc dicturus, Quem patronum rogaturus, cum vix justus sit securus?

What shall I, wretch, say then? to whom may I turn as protector when even the righteous are scarcely safe?

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SPOTLIGHT TRANSLATION Solo Quartet and Chorus Rex tremendae majestatis, Qui salvandos salvas gratis, Salva me, fons pietatis.

King of fearful majesty, who freely saves the redeemed, save me, O Fount of Pity.

Soprano and Mezzo-soprano

Recordare, Jesu pie, Quod sum causa tuae viae, Ne me perdas illa die.

Recall, merciful Jesus, that I was the reason for Thy journey: do not destroy me on that day.

Quarens me, sedisti lassus, Redemisti crucem passus: Tantus labor non sit cassus.

Seeking me, Thou didst sit down weary, Thou didst redeem me, having endured the ross: let not such great pains have been vain.

Juste Judex ultionis, Donum fac remissionis Ante diem rationis.

Just Judge of punishment, give me the gift of redemption before the day of reckoning.

Tenor

Ingemisco tanquam reus, Culpa rubet vultus meus, Supplicanti parce, Deus.

I groan like a guilty man, my face blushes with my fault; spare the suppliant, O God.

Qui Mariam absolvisti, Et latronem exaudisti, Mihi quoque spem dedisti.

Thou who didst absolve Mary [Magdalen], and hear the prayer of the thief, hast given hope to me also.

Preces meae non sunt dignae; Sed tu bonus fac benigne, Ne perenni cremer igne.

My prayers are not worthy, but thou, O good one, show mercy, lest I burn in everlasting fire.

Inter oves locum praesta, Et ab haedis me sequestra, Statuens in parte dextra.

Give me a place among the sheep, and separate me from the goats, placing me on Thy right hand.

Bass and Chorus

Confutatis maledictis, Flammis acribus addictis, Voca me cum benedictis.

PROGRAM 14

When the damned are confounded and given over to biting flames, call me with the blessed.

C O L O R A D O SY M P H O N Y.O R G

SPOTLIGHT TRANSLATION Oro supplex et acclinis, Cor contritum quasi cinis: Gere curam mei finis.

I pray, a suppliant on my knees, my heart as contrite as ashes: take into Thy care my ending.

Dies irae, etc.

The day of wrath, etc.

Lacrymosa dies illa, Qua resurget ex favilla Judicandus homo reus.

Solo Quartet and Chorus That day is filled with tears on which the guilty shall rise again from ashes to be judged.

Huic ergo parce, Deus, Pie Jesu Domine, Dona eis requiem. Amen

Therefore spare this one, O God, merciful Lord Jesus.

Grant them rest. Amen.

Offertorium Solo Quartet Domine Jesu Christe, Rex Lord Jesus Christ, King gloriae, libera animas omnium of Glory, deliver the souls of all the fidelium defunctorum de poenis faithful departed from the pains inferni, et de profundo lacu; of hell and from the deep pit: libera eas de ore leonis, deliver them from the mouth of the lion, ne absorbeat eas Tartarus, that Tartarus may not swallow them up, ne cadant in obscurum; and they may not fall into darkness, sed signifer sanctus Michael but may the holy standard bearer Michael repraesentet eas in lucem sanctam. bring them into the holy light; Quam olim Abrahae promisisti, as Thou didst promise of old to Abraham et semini ejus. and to his seed.

Hostias et preces tibi, Domine, laudis offerimus; tu suscipe pro animabus illis, quarum hodie memoriam facimus; fac eas, Domine, de morte transire ad vitam.

Quam olim Abrahae promisisti, et semini ejus.

Sanctus, sanctus, sanctus, Dominus Deus Sabaoth.

Pleni sunt coeli et terra gloria tua.

Hosanna in excelsis.

Benedictus qui venit in nomine Domini.

Hosanna in excelsis.

We offer Thee, O Lord, sacrifices and prayers of praise: receive them on behalf of those souls whom we commemorate this day.

Grant them, O Lord, to pass from death to life as Thou didst promise of old to Abraham and to his seed.

Sanctus Double Chorus Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of Sabaoth.

Heaven and earth are full of Thy glory. Hosanna in the highest.

Blessed is he who cometh in the name of the Lord.

Hosanna in the highest.

SOUNDINGS

2 0 1 9/2 0 PROGRAM 15

SPOTLIGHT TRANSLATION Agnus Dei Soprano, Mezzo-soprano and Chorus Agnus Dei qui tollis peccata mundi, dona eis requiem.

Agnus Dei qui tollis peccata mundi, dona eis requiem.

Agnus Dei qui tollis peccata mundi, dona eis requiem sempiternam.

O Lamb of God, that takest away the sins of the world: grant them rest.

O Lamb of God, that takest away the sins of the world: grant them rest.

O Lamb of God, that takest away the sins of the world: grant them eternal rest.

Lux aeterna Mezzo-soprano, Tenor and Bass Lux aeterna luceat eis Domine, cum sanctis tuis in aeternum: quia pius es.

Requiem aeternam dona eis Domine, et lux perpetua luceat eis cum sanctis tuis in aeternum, quia pius es.

Let everlasting light shine on them, O Lord, with Thy saints for ever; for Thou art merciful.

Grant them eternal rest, O Lord, and let everlasting light shine upon them with Thy saints for ever; for Thou art merciful

Libera me Soprano and Chorus Libera me, Domine, de morte aeterna in die illa tremenda, quando coeli movendi sunt et terra, dum veneris judicare saeculum per ignem.

Tremens factus sum ego, et timeo, dum discussio venerit atque ventura ira, quando coeli movendi sunt et terra.

Dies irae, dies illa calamitatis et miseriae, dies magna et amara valde.

Deliver me, O Lord, from death eternal on that awful day when the heavens and earth shall be moved: when Thou shalt come to judge the world by fire.

I am seized with trembling, and I fear the time when the trial shall approach, and the wrath to come: when the heavens and the earth shall be moved.

A day of wrath, that day of calamity and woe, a great day and bitter indeed.

Requiem aeternam dona eis, Domine, et lux perpetua luceat eis.

Libera me, etc.

Rest eternal grant them, O Lord, and may light perpetual shine upon them.

Deliver me, O Lord, etc

PROGRAM 16

C O L O R A D O SY M P H O N Y.O R G