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Details
St Oswald’s Church
Church Street
Durham
County Durham
DH1 3DQ
England
Tickets
Prices: £15/£10 Students/Under 16s free
Book Tickets
Programme
Johannes Brahms – A German Requiem, Op.45 (arr. piano four hands)
Johannes Brahms – Schicksalslied, Op.54
Clara Schumann – Abendfeier in Venedig, Op.19 no.1
George Frideric Handel – Messiah: 'I know that my redeemer liveth'
Performers
Tom Edney – Music Director
Joshua Lane – baritone
Ana Dias – soprano
Alison Gill – piano
David M. Harris – Conductor / piano
Programme Note
The centrepiece of the evening is Brahms’ Ein deutsches Requiem — arranged by the composer for piano, four hands — exhibiting the chamber-like detail of the work, with Alison Gill and David M Harris as the accompanists. The Requiem, premiered in 1868, was likely inspired by the death of Brahms’ mentor Robert Schumann in 1856 and that of his own mother in 1865.
To begin the concert, we sing Clara Schumann’s ‘Abendfeier in Venedig’ (‘Evening celebration in Venice’). Written as the first of Drei gemischte Chöre (‘Three mixed choruses’), the piece reminds us of the close friendship between Clara and Brahms. Brahms’ exquisite cantata Schicksalslied (‘Song of Destiny’), often dubbed “Little Requiem’, is also arranged for four-part chorus and piano, four hands.
And the much-loved aria ‘I know that my Redeemer liveth’ from Handel’s Messiah, is sung by soprano Ana Dias. It was the last movement at the first performance of Brahms’ Requiem.
