SEATTLE SYMPHONY DEDICATES BACH B-MINOR MASS CONCERTS TO ALL THOSE AFFECTED BY THE VIOLENT TERRORIST ATTACKS IN NEW ZEALAND

Music Director Ludovic Morlot leading the orchestra and Seattle Symphony Chorale on this week’s program of Bach Mass in B minor. Photo by Brandon Patoc.

SEATTLE, WA – In memory of victims of violence, the Seattle Symphony dedicates this week’s performances to the lives lost and all those affected by recent terrorist attacks, particularly those who died in the recent tragic shootings at two mosques in central Christchurch, New Zealand on Friday.

“Our differences should never matter more than our humanity, and we cannot normalize this violence,” shares Krishna Thiagarajan, President & CEO of the Seattle Symphony. “When these horrible acts of hatred leave me at a loss for words, I turn to music to find comfort and strength. We want to say to all those affected that we are with you, and you are not alone.”  

Concerts dedicated in memory of these victims include two performances of Bach’s Mass in B minor on Saturday, March 16 and Sunday, March 17. Concert details listed below.  

CONCERT INFORMATION

BACH MASS IN B MINOR 
DELTA AIR LINES MASTERWORKS SEASON
Saturday, March 16, at 8 p.m.
Sunday, March 17, at 2 p.m.

Ludovic Morlot, conductor 
Jane Archibald, soprano 
Meg Bragle, mezzo-soprano
Kenneth Tarver, tenor 
Andreas Wolf, bass-baritone 
Seattle Symphony Chorale 
Seattle Symphony 

J.S. BACH: Mass in B minor 

When Bach assembled the B-minor Mass in his final years, he crystallized his lifelong mission to express faith through music into one staggering compendium of intellectual and spiritual exaltation. Thunderous fugues and brilliant choruses wrest maximal impact from the combined forces of choir and orchestra, while focused solos for voices and their instrumental companions rival any opera in terms of tenderness and dramatic presence. The Mass is not a singular object; it is a synthesis of Bach’s music going back 35 years, built upon techniques and trends developed over centuries. The B-minor Mass is a pillar of human achievement on par with Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel ceiling or Shakespeare’s collection of plays, and to witness it live is quite simply an essential life experience.

Pre-concert Talk presented one hour prior to each performance. 

Bach’s Mass in B minor is generously underwritten by the Judith A. Fong Music Directors Fund. Kenneth Tarver’s performances are supported in part by the Melvyn Poll Tenor Fund.  

SEATTLE SYMPHONY

The Seattle Symphony is one of America’s leading symphony orchestras and is internationally acclaimed for its innovative programming and extensive recording history. Since September 2011 the Symphony has been led by Music Director Ludovic Morlot and in September 2019 Principal Guest Conductor Thomas Dausgaard will become the next Music Director. The Symphony is heard from September through July by more than 500,000 people through live performances and radio broadcasts and performs in one of the finest modern concert halls in the world — the acoustically superb Benaroya Hall — in downtown Seattle. Its extensive education and community engagement programs reach over 65,000 children and adults each year. The Seattle Symphony has a deep commitment to new music, commissioning many works by living composers each season. The orchestra has made nearly 150 recordings and has received five Grammy Awards, 26 Grammy nominations, two Emmy Awards and was named Gramophone’s 2018 Orchestra of the Year. In 2014 the Symphony launched its in-house recording label, Seattle Symphony Media.

###