Rossini: Sacred & Profane

Jakob Lehmann, one of the most exciting young conductors in the field of historically informed performance, makes his MCO debut in a programme that begins a groundbreaking long-term exploration of the music of Gioachino Rossini on period instruments.

Rossini's 1819 opera Ermione – a vibrant drama set in the aftermath of the Trojan War – is one of the best-kept secrets of his output. The sequence of excerpts chosen for this concert comprises dazzling music for soloists, orchestra and chorus.

His impassioned Stabat Mater (completed in 1841) is linked to his earlier opera by the theme of motherhood; Andromache grieves with her son in the ruins of Troy, just as the Virgin Mary grieves for her son, the crucified Christ.

Soloists

Stabat Mater
Ana Maria Labin soprano
Hannah Ludwig mezzo-soprano
Alasdair Kent tenor
Anthony Robin Schneider bass

Ermione
Beth Taylor Ermione
Hannah Ludwig Andromaca
Alasdair Kent Oreste
Anthony Robin Schneider Fenicio
Rebecca Leggett Cefisa
Elinor Rolfe Johnson Cleone
Xavier Hetherington Pilade
Marcus Swietlicki Attalo

Monteverdi Choir
Orchestre Révolutionnaire et Romantique
Jakob Lehmann conductor

Photo credit: Sercan Sevindik