Sydney Philharmonia Choirs Easter Concert Set For Next Month

Join Sydney Philharmonia Choirs for the ultimate Easter musical experience – a rare performance of Felix Mendelssohn’s 1841 interpretation of Bach’s revered St Matthew Passion, performed in historically informed style on 19th-century period instruments and conducted by renowned choral conductor Sydney Philharmonia Choirs’ Associate Music Director, Elizabeth Scott.  

This remarkable concert will be presented for one night only in the magnificent surrounds of the Sydney Opera House Concert Hall on Thursday April 17. It’s an exceptional opportunity to experience the music as Mendelssohn himself had envisioned it, alive with the Romantic-era’s expanded volume, colours and textures. 

Following his commanding performance in Mendelssohn’s Elijah in 2024, the Choirs are thrilled to welcome star baritone Teddy Tahu Rhodes back to the stage for St Matthew Passion, performing the lead role of Christus. Rhodes is part of a starry line-up of soloistsincluding Penelope Mills, Emily Edmonds, Andrew O’Connor, Andrew Goodwin in the role of the Evangelist, and the virtuoso singers of the Choirs’ acclaimed Chamber Singers and VOX.  

In an exciting first, this concert sees Sydney Philharmonia Choirs joined by musicians from the acclaimed Australian Romantic & Classical Orchestra (ARCO), led from the violin by ARCO co-Artistic Director Rachel Beesley. Renowned for bringing historical insights and new perspectives to masterpieces from the Classical and Romantic periods, ARCO’s performances are “rich, impassioned, and faultlessly realised ... a thrilling example of HIP [historically informed performance] with all the right strings attached.” (The Age). 

Book now for this inspirational concert and start the Easter long weekend on a high note, sydneyphilharmonia.com.au/stmatthew/.Tickets from $45 ($41 Concession | $30 for Under 30’s) + booking fee. 

Sydney ticket holders are also invited to a free pre-concert talk on the Concert Hall’s Northern Foyer stairs, 6pm Thursday April 17. Grab a drink at the bar and join 2MBS Fine Music presenter Peter Poole in conversation with ARCO Co-Artistic Director and General Manager Nicole van Bruggen for this fascinating 30-minute presentation, allowing plenty of time to find your seat before the concert. 

Widely regarded as one of the masterpieces of Baroque sacred music, Bach’s St Matthew Passion brings to life the story of Jesus’ last days as told in the Bible by St Matthew the Evangelist. 

With hundreds of performances of the acclaimed oratorio taking place across the globe during the traditional Christian Easter feasts each year, it’s hard to imagine that Bach’s Baroque masterpiece (and Bach himself) was once all but forgotten; and that a passionate young Romantic composer – Mendelssohn – could play such a vital role in changing musical history. 

Only fifteen years of age when his grandmother gifted him a rare hand-copied manuscript of Bach’s score for the St. Matthew Passion, Mendelssohn was inspired to spend the next five years preparing his own (abbreviated) arrangement of the work for performance.  

The debut of the then 20-year old’s Romantic-era version of Bach’s St Matthew Passion in 1829, has long been considered integral to reviving Bach’s reputation and opening the floodgates to the rediscovery of his prolific genius – but the story doesn’t end there. 

Mendelssohn’s love of Bach’s music continued throughout his life, and twelve years later in 1841 he performed a refined version of his 1829 interpretation of the St Matthew Passion, restoring some of Bach’s original arias. 

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