The Concord Chorale and Chamber Orchestra is pleased to present “Celebrating Handel & Haydn,” the second of three concerts in our 40th anniversary season. The program was conceived as a commemoration of the anniversary of the deaths of both composers, Georg Friedrich Handel in 1759 and Franz Josef Haydn in 1809.
The concert opens with Handel's last major liturgical work, “Dettingen Te Deum,” written in 1743 to celebrate the victory of the British and Austrian armies over the French at Dettingen in Bavaria. Relative to other baroque masses, Handel features the chorus in this varied piece that includes many moments of pomp and circumstance interspersed with introspective interludes. Written only two years after the widely known “Messiah,” concertgoers will recognize several familiar melodic and harmonic sections, which Handel copied in “Dettingen Te Deum.”
The second half of the concert features Haydn's Missa in Augustiis “Lord Nelson Mass,” written in 1798 to pay homage to the famed British admiral. The Lord Nelson Mass is Haydn's largest and most well-known choral work, integrating solo arias and choral sections throughout the piece. This mass also features trumpet fanfares, vocal “fireworks” during the soprano arias and equally impressive string and choral serenades.
The Concord Chorale will present “Celebrating Handel & Haydn” at Saint Paul's Episcopal Church, 21 Centre St., on Saturday, March 28 at 8 p.m., and on Sunday, March 29 at 3 p.m.
Tickets are available at Merrimack County Savings Bank on Main Street, at Ballard's Party Shop on Broadway or by calling 224-0770.
The Concord Chorale, founded in 1969, is an auditioned vocal ensemble, dedicated to excellence in the performance of choral music for the cultural enrichment and enjoyment of its audience and its members. Chorale repertoire ranges from Renaissance to Contemporary literature, providing performance opportunities for professional and amateur New Hampshire vocalists. For more information about the chorale, please go to concordchorale.org.
Concord Chorale
