Oahu Choral Society Presents MESSA DA REQUIEM, 4/6

O?ahu Choral Society Symphony Chorus, Brigham Young University Hawaii Chorus and the Hawai?i with the Hawai?i Symphony Orchestra presents: "Messa da Requiem" by Giuseppe Verdi, Esther S. Yoo, conductor.

This "one night only" performance is Thursday April 6, 2017, 7:30 pm Neal S. Blaisdell Concert Hall, 777 Ward Avenue Honolulu, Hawaii 96814.

Our stellar soloists are: Grammy Award winning recording artist, Angela Brown, Soprano Honolulu based Charlene Chi, Mezzo-Soprano, Bishop Estate Kamehameha School attendee Keith Ikaia Purdy, Tenor and the much-in-demand Leon Williams, Baritone.

Verdi's Requiem Mass was composed relatively late in an illustrious career that included such hits as Rigoletto, La traviata, La forza del destino, and Aida. The Requiem has its origins in a collaborative project to write a memorial mass after the death of fellow opera composer Gioachino Rossini. Verdi completed his part in 1869, but the project was abandoned when the other composers failed to produce their assignments. Verdi picked up his part-what is now "Libera me"-again four years later as the kernel of a memorial mass for acclaimed Italian novelist Alessandro Manzoni. The "Manzoni Requiem," as it is often called, was first performed in Milan on the first anniversary of Manzoni's death and then quickly toured to the rest of Europe, though not to the acclaim it received in Italy.

Can an opera composer write a religious service? That was the question on many people's minds in the 1870s, and it is a question debated to this day every time Verdi's Requiem is performed-most often not in a religious setting. Certainly, the solo voice parts were written with opera singers in mind, and the chorus parts have much in common with Verdi's opera choruses. Either way, the agnostic melodies are pure Verdi: catchy and memorable, even-perhaps especially-when he writes about the judgement of God. We're quite sure you will leave this concert with one of those melodies stuck in your head-don't worry, that's been happening for a long time.

This dramatic and amazing musical evening is not to be missed. Tickets range from $30.00 - $65.00 and are exclusively http://www.HIsymphony.org/ or through the Blaisdell Ticket Office at www.blaisdellcenter.com. Tickets may also be purchased by phone 94-MUSIC or in person at the HSO Box Office 3610 Waialae Ave., Honolulu, HI 96816.

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