Vancouver Bach Choir to perform Rossini's Petite Messe Solennelle, May 14 at the Playhouse

Neither small nor solemn, the mass has a light and operatic flair

Post Sponsored by Vancouver Bach Choir

Vancouver Bach Choir

Vancouver Bach Choir is preparing to sing a dramatic choral mass written by one of opera’s greatest composers.

The choir performs Gioachino Rossini’s Petite Messe Solennelle on May 14 at the Vancouver Playhouse.

After a string of opera successes, Rossini shifted to other musical works, and out of that period came this choral piece—full of drama, and written not for a church, but for a small audience at a Parisian Countess’s town home.

Rossini drew on the long tradition and legacy of religious music by predecessors like Bach, Haydn, and Mozart for the Petite Messe. With great virtuosity, he combined the religious musical tradition with an innate humanity, writing with operatic drama and expression.

While the mass is neither “petite” (small) nor “solennelle” (solemn), it is pious and reverent in its conviction to the sacred mass text, with a light and operatic flair.

Leslie Dala conducts, with Tina Chang on harmonium, and Perri Lo and Amy Seulky Lee on piano.

Artists from the Vancouver Opera Yulanda M. Faris Young Artist Program are on hand to lend their voices.

Soloists include soprano Jonelle Sills, mezzo-soprano Hillary Tufford, tenor Ian Cleary, and baritone Luka Kawabata.

Vancouver audiences are sure to delight in this charming choral work, perfect for a spring evening.

You can find more information and tickets here. And remember if you can’t make the concert in person, all ticket purchasers will receive access to a video recording of the concert.

Post sponsored by the Vancouver Bach Choir.

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