As Music Director it is my privilege to introduce to you our enticing mix of composers and performers for 2017 .
When Johann Sebastian Bach was appointed music director to St Thomas ’ s Church in 1723 he had to sign a statement in which he agreed to avoid the ‘ Theatrical Style ’. Bach loved the opera of the day and showed his superior talent of composition for drama , story and theatre in his passions and cantatas . I closely relate to Gottfried Ephraims Scheibel ’ s statement , “ I do not know why opera alone should have the privilege of squeezing tears from us ; why is that not true in the church ?” When I first heard the St John
Passion at the Bach Akademie Stuttgart as a teenager I was so deeply moved to a point that still resonates with me today .
The inspiring programme of our special tribute In Flanders Fields – Passchendaele 100 places new music by young New Zealanders alongside romantic works by Belgians César Franck and Eugène Ysaÿe , and French composer Duruflé ’ s serene Requiem .
The greatest of all Romantic oratorios , Mendelssohn ’ s epic Elijah is headed by Kiwi-Swiss superstar bass Martin Snell singing the dramatically expressive title role .
Mendelssohn ’ s majestic score will leave you deeply touched and elated and in 2017 we are thrilled to be performing a work that was very much the Messiah of its day .
Our 2017 Christmas welcomes the return of our annual performance of Handel ’ s glorious masterpiece , Messiah . Just as gripping and meaningful today as it was at its premiere in 1742 , you will hear a fine quartet of soloists and Handel ’ s joyously exhilarating choruses in the sumptuous acoustics of our treasured Town Hall .
Uwe Grodd Music Director
Photo : Charles Brooks