The Ohio State University School of Music to Present REQUIEM, 3/8

More than 160 vocalists, four soloists and a large orchestra will join together to perform Giuseppe Verdi's Requiem, the dramatic funeral mass first performed in Italy in 1874, at 3 p.m. Sunday, March 8 in Ohio State's Mershon Auditorium. Marshall Haddock, Ohio State's director of orchestral studies, will conduct the performance.

The Ohio State Symphony Orchestra is conducted by Haddock. Chorale is conducted by Robert Ward and Scott McCoy. Men's Glee Club is directed by Ward. Symphonic Choir and Women's Glee Club are directed by Kristina MacMullen. Accompanist is Casey Cook. Soloists are School of Music faculty members Katherine Rohrer and C. Andrew Blosser, and students Chelsea Hart and Jaman E. Dunn.

A pre-concert talk begins at 3 p.m., presented by James Naumann, PhD candidate in musicology.

Bringing together such a large number of vocalists and musicians to perform one major choral work is a massive undertaking. Said Ward, "With so many singers in four different choirs, we thought it best to start preparing the first week of autumn semester. We have rehearsed as separate ensembles, and every six weeks on a Friday evening, all 165 singers come together to rehearse for two hours.

"It's a monumental work that's been described as 'an opera in ecclesiastical robes,' and that is so true. It has drama and character and emotion. . . but unlike opera there are no costumes and no scenery. The singers have been loving it."

The Catholic funeral mass, sung in Latin, is the only masterwork by Verdi that was not written for the stage as an opera. Requiem was composed in memory of poet and novelist Alessandro Manzoni, a leading Italian literary figure who died in 1873. It was first performed a year later in the Cathedral of St. Mark in Milan. The following year, it toured Europe, with a pinnacle performance taking place in Albert Hall, with Verdi leading a chorus of more than 1,000 vocalists and a 140-piece orchestra.

Tickets to the March 8 performance are reserved seating, available through the Wexner Center ticket office, (614) 292-3535. Tickets are $20 public; $10 senior citizens, Alumni Association members, Ohio State faculty and staff, students and children. The concert will also be aired live on WOSU Classical 101. For more details, see music.osu.edu.

The College of Arts and Sciences is the academic heart of Ohio State. With more than 80 departments, schools, centers and institutes, the college delivers 60 percent of the academic curriculum to Ohio State students. Its vast academic diversity is its greatest strength, combining the best of a major research institution with a rich liberal arts foundation. Arts and Sciences faculty create new knowledge to solve global problems, fuel Ohio's economy, spark student inquiry, and engage with the local community.

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