Stonewall Chorale to Perform Marianna Martines' Work for Women's History Month

The Stonewall Chorale, the nation's first LGBTQIA+ choir now in its 49th season, will present two works composed at the height of the Classical era in its spring concert, Remembrance, on Saturday, March 21, 7:30 pm and Sunday, March 22, 4:00 pm, Holy Apostles Church, Chelsea. Performed by the nearly 70-member mixed voice ensemble and full orchestra, the program presents Mozart's monumental Requiem in D minor (1791)-one of the most dramatic and deeply moving works in the choral canon.

In celebration of Women's History Month, the Requiem is paired with the exuberant Dixit Dominus (1774) by Marianna Martines, a trailblazer of the era. More than 250 years ago, Martines broke the glass ceiling in the male-dominated classical music world as the first woman elected into the venerated Bologna Academy of Music in its 100 year history, paving the way for a wave of women who followed. Stonewall is the first LGBTQIA+ choir to perform Dixit Dominus, which has been presented only once before in New York City.

From the thunder of the "Dies Irae" to the aching beauty of the "Lacrimosa," Mozart's Requiem invites reflection, remembrance, and renewal. Legend and mystery swirl around the Requiem-notably that Mozart was so convinced of his own imminent death that he commented, "They have ordered a requiem; it is for myself I am writing this." In fact, Mozart began composing the Requiem in October 1791, and died just two months later, leaving it unfinished. The enduring musical and emotional relevance of the work has made it an international concert hall staple for centuries, and frequent go-to in pop culture as part of film/tv soundtracks and heavily sampled in pop music.

Dixit Dominus celebrates Martines who, in addition to her entry into the Bologna Academy, is credited as the first woman of record to compose a symphony. Martines' success had an impact: Female composers now had the opportunity to work professionally, teach at music institutions and write larger scale orchestral works. Although her notoriety was obscured for centuries due to cultural and institutional biases, in recent decades Martines has regained her rightful place in Western classical music. Stonewall's performance of Dixit Dominus continues the discussion about representation, identity, and power for women in the arts.