Bainbridge Symphony Orchestra & Bainbridge Chorale Will Present A GERMAN REQUIEM

Bainbridge Symphony Orchestra (BSO) and Bainbridge Chorale join forces for another extraordinary partnership on April 25 and 26. Together they perform one of Brahms' most intensely spiritual works, A German Requiem. Its humanistic vision distinguishes this unique work from other more typical settings of the Requiem. Instead of following the standard liturgical meditations on death, Brahms included biblical text of his own choosing to comfort the living. The BSO and the Chorale previously collaborated in the spring of 2017 for a presentation of iconic sacred works by Mozart, Beethoven, Brahms, and Carl Orff's famed Carmina Burana. They additionally collaborated in the spring of 2014 for a production of Vaughan Williams' Serenade to Music and Verdi's Requiem.

Led by Bainbridge Symphony Orchestra Music Director & Conductor Mario Alejandro Torres and featuring soloists Janeanne Houston (soprano) and Charles Robert Stephens (baritone), this performance takes place off-site at the Bainbridge High School Gym.

Mario Alejandro Torres is a conductor, teacher, and performer native to San Pedro Sula, Honduras. Currently based in Seattle, Washington, Mr. Torres made his Benaroya Hall conducting debut in collaboration with Maestros Ludovic Morlot and David Alexander Rahbee in an exciting concert with the University of Washington Symphony Orchestra. For the past two years, he has served in a conducting fellowship with the Seattle Symphony, assisting Maestro Morlot in collaboration with artists such as Hilary Hahn and John Luther Adams. As the former Music Director of Poulsbo Community Orchestra, he brought a new and exciting sound to the ensemble. Outside of the United States, he has conducted performances with the Eddy Snijders Orchestra in Paramaribo, Suriname, and in his hometown with the professional Chamber Orchestra of San Pedro Sula, and Victoriano Lopez School of Music Choir.

Michael Austin Miller is currently celebrating his tenth year as Artistic Director of the Bainbridge Chorale. Under his direction, the Chorale has attracted new singers and audience members, has advanced in vocal skills, and has explored both contemporary and classic choral repertoire. As evidence of its increasing stature in the choral community, the Chorale has been privileged to perform at Seattle's St. Mark's Episcopal Cathedral on three occasions and has had opportunities to perform at Benaroya Hall as well. Videos of the Chorale's performance at St. Mark's can be found on YouTube. In addition to his role as Director of Music Ministries at Christ the King Lutheran Church in Snohomish, Miller is an award-winning music educator and a composer and arranger. He serves as Composer in Residence for reSound: a Northwest Chamber Ensemble. He has guest-conducted that ensemble as well as a number of other choirs, including Orchestra Seattle's Chamber Singers.

A versatile and passionate concert artist, soprano Janeanne Houston has sung with most of the northwest region's major choral and orchestral organizations. Her recent performances include Beethoven's 9th Symphony with Oregon Symphony, multiple performances of Verdi's Requiem that include Bainbridge Symphony. She has been a guest artist with Seattle Symphony, Oregon Symphony, Northwest Chamber Orchestra, Northwest Sinfonietta, and Helena Symphony. She sang the Mater Gloriosa in the first Oregon performance of Mahler's Symphony No. 8 with Eugene Symphony. On the opera stage, she was most recently Madame Lidoine, in Poulenc's Dialogues of the Carmelites. Her recordings are on Naxos, Albany, and the Elmgrove labels.

Baritone Charles Robert Stephens has enjoyed a career spanning a wide variety of roles and styles in opera and concert music. In his 20 years in New York City he sang leading roles with the New York City Opera and was hailed by the New York Times as a "baritone of smooth distinction." He also appeared frequently in Carnegie Hall with the Opera Orchestra of New York and was active in regional opera throughout the US. On the international stage, he sang opera roles in Montevideo Uruguay, Taiwan, Santo Domingo and Mexico City. Now based in Seattle, Charles has sung with most of the orchestras and opera companies in the Pacific Northwest.

Bainbridge Symphony Orchestra and Bainbridge Chorale present Ein deutsches Requiem April 25 and 26, Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 3:00 p.m., off site at Bainbridge High School Gym, 9330 High School Rd. NE, Bainbridge Island. Tickets, $26 for adults, $23 for seniors (62+), and $18 for students, military, and teachers (over 18), may be purchased online at Brown Paper Tickets. Admission is free for students and children (18 and under).

BSO extends special thanks to Media Sponsors Classical KING FM 98.1 and KCTS-9 Public Television, Community Sponsor Carly's Rolling Bay Café, and "Youth in Music Initiative" Sponsor Wicklund Dental. BPA and Bainbridge Chorale are supported, in part, by Bainbridge Community Foundation, the City of Bainbridge Island, and One Call for All. Additional Bainbridge Chorale sponsors include Cooper Fuel & Auto Repair, Rotary Club of Bainbridge Island, Kitsap Great Give, and Kitsap Community Foundation.

Bainbridge Performing Arts is pleased to offer an "Open Doors" program. Free and reduced-cost tickets to most events are available to community members in need through our partner Helpline House thanks to a grant from the Mabee Family Foundation. Please contact the BPA Box Office at 206.842.8569 or Helpline House to reserve tickets today.

Find out more about BPA at www.bainbridgeperformingarts.org

To post a comment, you must register and login.