HAMPTON ROADS, VA [December 8, 2017] — The Virginia Symphony Orchestra released a highly anticipated recording of the Berlioz Requiem, performed in May 2017 as part of the Virginia Arts Festival. The CD can be purchased at the VSO Boutique during most concerts, the VSO’s website, virginiasymphony.org and CDBaby.com. It is also available for download on iTunes, Amazon and Google Play.
This 2017 performance came together through the support of Susan and David Goode and the collaboration of Robert Cross, Perry Artistic Director for the Virginia Arts Festival; JoAnn Falletta, Music Director for the Virginia Symphony Orchestra; Robert Shoup, Virginia Symphony Orchestra Chorus Director; and the Choral Arts Society of Washington, led by Scott Tucker.
“In this masterwork, shattering walls of sound contrast with moments of exquisite intimacy, marrying the overwhelming terror of death with faith in the mercy of God…” said Falletta. “We are delighted that our beloved Virginia Symphony Chorus was with us to share in this musical milestone, and that they were joined by the Choral Arts Society of Washington, who brought their stellar musicianship to the Requiem, and helped fill Chrysler Hall to the rafters with the beauty and power of Berlioz’ score.”
Performing the work was a dream come true for all parties involved with its production. Seldom performed live due to its sheer magnitude, Berlioz’s monolithic Requiem was premiered in 1837 with more than 400 performers, and in fact Berlioz’s score allowed for many more. It calls for up to 10 timpanists, a massive wind section, and four antiphonal brass bands, all needed to balance the enormous choir of voices.
“To marshal the forces of hundreds of musicians and singers is a task for a general, and JoAnn Falletta proved a leader of grace and strength,” said Cross. “It was a distinct honor for me, 40 years after my first experience with this mythical work of grand inspiration, to be a part of this unforgettable performance.”
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About the Virginia Symphony Orchestra
Under the leadership of music director JoAnn Falletta, whose recordings have won two Grammys and 10 nominations, the Virginia Symphony Orchestra is Virginia’s preeminent professional symphony orchestra with a mission of inspiring, educating and connecting audiences of all ages.
Founded in 1921, it is ranked in the top ten percent of professional orchestras nationwide and serves the entire Southeastern Virginia region with Classics, Pops and Family concert series in Norfolk, Virginia Beach, Newport News and Williamsburg as well as performances in outlying Virginia and North Carolina communities, reaching nearly 150,000 concert-goers every year. Additionally, the orchestra annually reaches 45,000 children, students and lifelong learners with its education and community programs. The Virginia Symphony has performed at Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center and is the cornerstone of the performing arts in Hampton Roads.
About the Virginia Arts Festival
Since 1997, the Virginia Arts Festival has transformed the cultural scene in southeastern Virginia, presenting great performers from around the world to local audiences and making this historic, recreation-rich region a cultural destination for visitors from across the United States and around the world. The Festival has presented numerous U.S. and regional premieres, and regularly commissions new works of music, dance, and theater from some of today’s most influential composers, choreographers and playwrights. The Festival’s arts education programs reach tens of thousands of area schoolchildren each year through student matinees, in-school performances, artists’ residencies, master classes and demonstrations.