General

3rd March 2024

Our first concert of the year, Brahms’ Ein Deutsches Requiem, was a great success. All performers were on top form – it was quite clear that they enjoyed the performance and the reaction from the audience was quite overwhelming.

This requiem is usually performed with a very large orchestra, but this time Richard Cock had decided to pare down the orchestra, which meant that the focus was much more on the choir – and many in the audience remarked how wonderful it was to hear the dynamics, diction, and lovely harmonies from the choir so clearly. Both this version and the full orchestra version are just magnificent – Brahms’ use of the composer’s tools of the trade to build tension and create relaxation is fantastic.

Our next concert will be equally beautiful

G F Handel Messiah
Good Friday 29th March @ 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm
Linder Auditorium, Parktown, Johannesburg
Soloists: Magdalene Minnaar-soprano, Violina Anguelov- alto, Bongani Kubheka-bass and
Siyabonga Maqungo- tenor
The Phoenix Orchestra
Under the baton of Richard Cock
This is an absolutely superb ensemble of soloists – world class!!

Drawing from the Old and New Testaments, Handel designed the Messiah in three sweeping sections: Prophecy and Fulfilment, Suffering, and Redemption. Although religious, its message remains universal, and although theatrical in many respects Handel intended it for the concert hall rather than for the opera stage. It was composed in a matter of three to four weeks and today 280 years later it is still one of the most well-known and well-loved pieces of music in the world.

Messiah was originally an Easter offering although it now is performed at Christmas time in many countries. It burst onto the stage of Musick Hall in Dublin on April 13, 1742. The audience swelled to a record 700, as ladies had heeded pleas by management to wear dresses “without Hoops” in order to make “Room for more company.” Handel’s superstar status was not the only draw; many also came to glimpse the contralto, Susannah Cibber, then embroiled in a scandalous divorce.

The men and women in attendance sat mesmerized from the moment the tenor followed the mournful string overture with his piercing opening line: “Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God.” Soloists alternated with wave upon wave of chorus, until, near the midway point, Cibber intoned: “He was despised and rejected of men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.” So moved was the Rev. Patrick Delany that he leapt to his feet and cried out: “Woman, for this be all thy sins forgiven thee!” Well, we might not see such a reaction at our concert, but the Messiah remains a magnificent work, still mesmerizing audiences the world over.

This is a concert not to be missed! Book now to avoid disappointment.

Book tickets for Handel’s Messiah (quicket.co.za)

Yours sincerely, on behalf of the Symphony Choir of Johannesburg.

Kate Pape