Boston Baroque Releases New Recording of Haydn's LORD NELSON MASS and SYMPHONY NO. 102

On Monday, April 15, 2013, more than 20,000 people were running in the Boston Marathon while the 58 instrumentalists and singers of Boston Baroque were rehearsing for a new recording and upcoming concerts. Two explosions near the finish line of the Marathon irrevocably altered the lives of all Bostonians, and would have an effect on the recording and concerts as well.

That recording - Haydn's Lord Nelson Mass and Symphony No. 102 - features soprano Mary Wilson, mezzo-soprano Abigail Fischer, tenor Keith Jameson, and bass-baritone Kevin Deas, with Boston Baroque's orchestra and chorus under the direction of Music Director Martin Pearlman. It will be released in the United States on Tuesday, October 29, 2013 by Linn Records (CKD 426). The new hybrid SACD can be pre-ordered on Amazon.com, and is available now for digital download from the Linn Records website (www.linnrecords.com).

Martin Pearlman offers a reflection on this recording, to be included in the CD liner notes:

"During our first rehearsal of the two pieces on this recording, the city of Boston was jolted by the news of the terrorist bombing at the Boston Marathon. After the wild swing of events during the ensuing days, our first performance was cancelled, due to a lock-down of the entire city. To be involved during that time in the music that Haydn called Missa in Angustiis (translated variously as 'Mass in difficult, or uncertain, or anxious, times') took on unexpected meaning for our musicians, as well as for our audience. Performing and recording this particular mass -- as well as the jubilant Symphony No. 102 -- provided comfort and release to all of us and made us thankful once again for the greatness and universality of Haydn's genius."