The San Diego Chamber Orchestra's famous annual presentation of Handel's Messiah gets a whole new look this season with the addition of video of great works of art accompanying this most beloved masterpiece of music. The Orchestra, under the leadership of Artistic Director and Conductor Jung-Ho Pak, will be joined by the Bach Collegium San Diego chorus (Ruben Valenzuela, Music Director) and four extraordinarily talented guest soloists to perform Handel’s Messiah in this new dramatic presentation.
This authentic 18th century re-creation of George Frideric Handel’s Messiah has become a tradition for the San Diego Chamber Orchestra. The Orchestra has created a sensation for the past two years, resulting in two sold-out performances last year, with forces that are lighter and more transparent than traditional approaches, much like it would have been performed in 1742. New this year is a dramatic video presentation of great masterpieces of art during the concert performance.
Guest artist Megan Weston, soprano, is hailed as a "gorgeous light lyric soprano" (Opera), "persuasive" (New York Times) and "displaying remarkable virtuosity and charm" (Financial Times). She has gained international attention for her portrayal of Lisa in La sonnambula with the Orchestra of St. Luke’s at the Caramoor Festival, and has received top awards from prestigious organizations. Ms. Weston performed with the Orchestra in their Poetic Pairs concert last season.
Alto Katherine Lundeen reprises her role as a guest soloist for the San Diego Chamber Orchestra’s Messiah performances with her rich and expressive voice, matched by her technical agility. Well-known for her dramatic personality and stage presence, she is a frequent concert artist throughout California. As the winner of the International Opera Singers Competition, Katherine made her New York debut in 1002 at Carnegie Hall. For the past nine years, she has been alto section leader and soloist with the Village Presbyterian Church in Rancho Santa Fe.
Tenor Robert MacNeil has been praised by the Los Angeles Times for possessing a voice that is "clarion" and "clear", An accomplished concert artist, the tenor has been soloist in more than fifty performances of Handel’s Messiah. He has soloed with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir in performances of Elijah, the Sydney Choral Festival in the Berlioz’ Requiem and in Orff’s Carmina Burana with the Central Union Philharmonic in Beijing. He made his Carnegie Hall solo debut in Britten’s The World of the Spirit and appeared in Rome with the Orchestra Roma Symphonia in Verdi’s Requiem.
Bass-bariton Philip Larson has performed avant-garde music at concert halls in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Paris, London, Tokyo, Munich, Lisbon and Warsaw. He’s been a featured soloist with the Ensemble Intercontemporain in Paris, the Cleveland Chamber Symphony and SONOR?, the resident new music ensemble at the University of California, San Diego, where he is a professor of music.
Bach Collegium San Diego was founded in 2003 by Ruben Valenzuela with the purpose of presenting historically informed performances of music of the Renaissance and Baroque periods of history. The chorus consists of the finest singers in San Diego. Ruben Valenzuela, music director, holds an M.A. in musicology from San Diego State University and is currently a Ph.D. student at Claremont Graduate University. In 2005, he toured Germany as organist and tenor with the chamber choir Capella Gloriana. He is currently the director of music and organist for St. Peter’s Episcopal Church in Del Mar.
The Masterpiece Messiah concert series will be performed at three venues:
Friday, December 12, Solana Beach Presbyterian Church, Solana Beach, 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, December 13, St. James By-the-Sea Episcopal Church, La Jolla, 7:30 p.m.
Tickets: 858-350-0290 or www.sdco.org.
Sunday, December 14, California Center for the Arts, Escondido, 4:00 p.m.
Tickets: 800-988-4253 or www.artcenter.org
