H. Berlioz: REQUIEM (Grande Messe des Morts)
Program
Conductor: Charles Dutoit
Slovenian Philharmonic Orchestra
Slovenian Philharmonic Choir
Chorus master: Jerica Bukovec
Ave Chamber Choir
Chorus master: Gregor Klančnik
Munich Philharmonic Choir
Chorus master: Andreas Herrmann
Virtuosi Festival Choir
Artistic director: Bojan Suđžić
Soloist: Branko Robinšak, tenor
The dramatic possibilities of the Requiem text had long interested Berlioz. In March 1837, the French government commissioned him to write a requiem to commemorate King Louis-Philippe’s escape from assassination on the anniversary of the July Revolution, and he set to work with great enthusiasm. The work conveys a yearning for faith, an awareness of the need to worship. His own lack of faith, as it were, is used to evoke the eternal hopes and terrors of the human race. From time to time we get a glimpse of peace, but the prevailing tone is tragic. Through all the music’s contrasts of form and mood, the idea of humanity’s wonder and bafflement before the enigma of death is central and constant. The magnificent requiem, which requires a large ensemble, including sixteen timpani in pairs, four gongs, and four brass groups, will be performed by the Slovenian Philharmonic Orchestra and Slovenian Philharmonic Choir, Ave Chamber Choir, Virtuosi Festival Choir and Munich Philharmonic Choir under the baton of Charles Dutoit, one of the world’s most sought-after conductors, whose long career boasts performances with the world’s best orchestras and soloists on the most prestigious stages. As a young man, he was invited by Herbert von Karajan to work with the Vienna State Opera, which led him to the finest operatic venues such as the Metropolitan Opera in New York and the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden. Branko Robinšak, champion of the SNG Opera and Ballet of Ljubljana, will perform as a soloist.