Tufts ensemble to perform challenging masterpiece

The ominous strains of Mozart's Requim will be heard across the Tufts campus on Saturday during a combined performance by the Tufts Chorale, Chamber Singers and Symphony Orchestra in Cohen Auditorium.

The program also features the winners of the music department's annual concerto competition, as well as several other works by celebrated composers.

The performance of the requiem was originally scheduled for Dec. 7; however last semester's first heavy snow storm forced organizers to reschedule the event.

The ensembles have been working on the repertoire for Saturday's concert since the early fall and almost 200 students are involved in the performance.

Malka Yaacobi conducts the Orchestra, and Andrew Clark conducts Chorale and Chamber Singers.

"I'm very impressed with the skills level of this orchestra -- one of the finest I've heard at a college like Tufts," Clark said, and is excited about the opportunity the ensembles have to collaborate in this concert. "They bring tremendous energy to the performance, and the chorus and orchestra seem to raise the bar for each other and feed off of one another's energy and talent."

The ensembles' talent finds a fine showcase in the musical works they will perform. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Requiem is one of the greatest choral-orchestral works in Western classical music history.

A requiem definition is a mass for the dead. Traditionally, in the Catholic Church, requiem masses follow a specific form and text. This particular mass was commissioned by a count in memory of his wife in early 1791. However, Mozart died while he was still writing, leaving the work unfinished. Franz Sussmayer, a friend and student of the venerated composer, finished a version of Requiem for performance. Sussmayer's completed version of Mozart's mass is most frequently performed today.

Requiem is a beautiful and powerful piece. Mozart's last melodies are haunting and at times tortured. Chorale conductor Clark's favorite part of the program is the "Dies Irae" ("Day of wrath"). He described the Dies Irae as "probably the most well-known part of the piece. It's relentless, horrifying, tragic and basically 18th century heavy metal rock and roll."

The rest of the program is composed of lighter, although still high-quality, fare (after all, every course can't be chocolate fudge). The orchestra will perform Brahms' Academic Festival Overture, which Clark describes as "a collection of Austro-German college songs, almost like a medley of fight songs, alma maters and drinking ballads." Together, the ensembles will present Beethoven's Elegy for strings and chorus, and the orchestra will play selections from the Grieg Piano concerto and the Sibelius violin concerto, featuring the winners of the December concerto competition as the student soloists.

The concerto competition is an annual event sponsored by the music department and is open to all students in the applied music program. This year's winners were sophomore Klementyna Weyman, freshman Daniel Jones and 2nd-year Fletcher student Tomoko Hayashi, and the three will perform movements from concertos by Sibelius, Grieg, and Schumann.

Weyman will perform the first movement of the Sibelius Violin Concerto in D minor. She decided to compete with the piece in December at the request of her friends as well as personal reasons.

"I grew up with it," Weyman explained. "The piece is deep and emotional, and I get to work through a lot of emotions I didn't even know were there. Playing it is very cathartic in places."

Both the conductors and student performers encourage the Tufts community to attend the concert. "A concert of this caliber should not be missed," Clark assured. "I guarantee students will be pleased they took the time to experience this musical journey."