As usual around the feast of All Souls and All Souls (what the Anglo-Saxons celebrate as Halloween and the Mexicans as Day of the Dead), once again comes the impressive ‘Mozart’s Requiemsurely his most emblematic work, even if it does not entirely belong to him since he died before having finished it. And on this occasion, Fundación Excelentia brings it twice. The first session will take place on October 31 at 7:30 p.m. with the Excelentia Choral Society of Madrid and the Santa Cecilia Classical Orchestra, under the direction of Kynan Johns, with Daniel Oyarzabal on organ and with soprano Ekaterina Sadovnikova, mezzo Martina Mikelic . , tenor Víctor Sordo and bass David Cervera. The first part includes Reznicek’s Donna Diana overture and the beautiful “Organ Symphony” by Saint Saëns, while on the second day, also at the National Auditorium but at 6:00 p.m., they rehearse everything except the organ and complement each other with Beethoven’s Symphony. No. 8.
The fascination of Mozart’s “Requiem” lies not only in the grandeur of its music, but also in the mysterious circumstances of its anonymous commission and, of course, in the fact that Mozart died during its composition. During the last year of his short life, Mozart received a disturbing visit from a stranger dressed in gray who refused to identify himself. He said that he was the messenger of a gentleman who wished to order a Requiem or a Mass for the Dead to honor the memory of his wife. Mozart accepted the order, but the visit tormented him. He was exhausted from work and drinking, almost financially ruined, and the mysterious illness that would kill him had already taken hold of him. Mozart began to think that the visitor was a messenger from the afterlife, that the order came from God and that the music would be intended for his own death.
He devoted all his energies to completing the “Requiem,” although interrupted by work on other commissions. When he returned to “Requiem” he was seriously ill. He had completed about half of the score and had written sketches for three more movements. But Mozart did not want to finish the “Requiem”. He died shortly after midnight on December 5, 1791 in Vienna. He was only 35 years old. He was so poor that he was buried in a mass grave. The production of the “Requiem” was entrusted to his friend and student Franz Sussmayr. This is how the myths of Mozart’s death and the “Requiem” began.
Süssmayr’s work includes some fairly light movements and lots of repetition, but the power of the opening sections is overwhelming and the choir performed them well, with sustained singing of the opening Requiem and precise articulation and intonation.
Throughout his short life, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart created more than six hundred creations of all musical genres, most recognized as masterpieces of symphonic, concertante, chamber, piano, opera and choral music, achieving universal popularity and distribution. Among all, the famous Requiem Mass in D minor KV 626, one of the 19 masses written by Mozart, is one of his most representative works. Perhaps for this reason and because many consider that Mozart created it with his own death in mind, it is the best known and most performed.
Next to a classic like the Requiem K. 626, in the two performances of Excelentia two completely different works are presented which, however, may have their connection with the Salzburg genius: the Symphony No. 3 – also known as the name for “symphony with organ” from French Camille Saint-Saëns–, in which the solo organ moves from its original location in the church to the concert hall, and an overture to a Viennese operetta; genre that comes from classic singspiele, like “The Magic Flute” or “The Abduction from the Seraglio” by Mozart himself.
Ludwig van Beethoven is a colossus in the world of classical music, famous for pushing boundaries and being a pioneer of the Romantic era. Among his illustrious output of symphonies, operas, chamber works and piano sonatas, his Symphony No. 8 in F major, Op. 93, is often overshadowed by its sisters, particularly the monumental Symphonies No. 5, No. 6 and 9. To ignore the Eighth is to miss a unique combination of innovation, humor and classical elegance which testifies to the genius of Beethoven.
Unlike its predecessors and successors, Symphony No. 8 avoids grandiloquent themes and melancholic atmospheres. Instead, he appreciates lightness, rhythmic playing and sometimes pure spirit. This piece serves as a bridge between the strict classical rules of the 18th century and the emotional freedom that Beethoven brought in the 19th century. Its energy, vitality and character open a window into the composer’s state of mind during its creation and into his evolving musical style.
Different types of fertilizers
Excelentia presents its new 2024/25 season in the Symphony Hall of the National Auditorium “Grands Classiques Series” with a total of 11 concerts that welcome great international soloists and conductors, among which the violinists Ye-Eun Choi stand out and Liya Petrova, trumpeter Pacho Flores, pianists Alexei Volodin, Lukáš Vondrácek, Lise de la Salle and cellist Santiago Cañón-Valencia. To this wide range of artists is added the participation of the Orfeón Donostiarra in the concert on May 13, 2025. In the new season you will be able to hear works from the great repertoire such as the Concerto for cello and orchestra by Dvořák, the concerto for piano and orchestra number 3 by Rachmaninov or the Piano Concerto no. 5 ‘Emperor’ by Beethoven. Among the symphonic repertoire, you will be able to hear works as consecrated as Symphony No. 3 “Eroica” by Beethoven, Symphony No. 3 “with organ” by Saint Saëns, Scheherazade by Rimsky-Korsakov, Symphony No. 4 by Brahms , West Side History by Bernstein, among many others.
The cycle is also marked by choral importance. Thus, the great choral works of all time stand out, such as Mozart’s Requiem on October 31, Mozart’s Coronation Mass on November 19 and the St. Matthew Passion on March 20. Extraordinary concerts include Handel’s Messiah on December 23, Carl Orff’s Carmina Burana on February 20 and Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony on June 12.
With the subscription for 11 concerts, you will have preferential access to the programming of the 2024/25 “Grands Classiques” season in the Symphony Hall of the National Auditorium, choosing the best seats and also benefiting from other exclusive privileges , such as reductions on the Subscription (15%), free participation in previous explanatory conferences of the works of each concert of the “Grands Classiques” Cycle, reductions and advantages for other concerts outside of Subscription, free subscription to the Premium Magazine “Excelentia: Music and Art”, flexibility in case you cannot attend any of the subscription concerts. In addition, the subscription is not nominative, different people can therefore attend the different concerts that make it up.
The price of this pass varies between 426 euros and 779 euros, depending on the seat chosen. Subscription to the 9 concerts in the Salle de Chambre where you can hear works by Bach, Mozart, Mendelssohn, Vivaldi, Rodrigo and Beethoven, among others, costs between 505 and 581 euros.
