Friday, December 7, 2012 7:30 PM
Saturday, December 8, 2012 4 PM
Sunday, December 9, 2012 4 PM
Handel’s Messiah
The Cathedral Choir
and Baroque Orchestra
With its resounding “Hallelujah” chorus, Handel’s masterpiece glitters through the winter evening. Canon Michael McCarthy directs the Baroque–period orchestra and the Cathedral’s combined boy, girl, and men’s choirs, with guest soloists Gillian Keith, soprano; Julia Mintzer, mezzo-soprano; Rufus Müller, tenor; and Nathan Berg, bass.
Video Invitation
About Nathan Berg
Nathan Berg, bass, was born in Saskatchewan, Canada, and did a majority of his musical studies in Canada, U.S., and France, finishing up at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London, where he studied with Vera Rozsa and won the Gold Medal for Singers. A winner of prizes in the Royal Over-Seas League, Peter Pears, Kathleen Ferrier, and Walther Gruner Lieder Competitions, Berg’s musicality and artistry continue to receive international critical acclaim.
Recent Cathedral Appearances
About Gillian Keith
Gillian Keith, soprano, has emerged as one of Canada’s leading lyric voices. Appearances this season and beyond include Philine in Thomas’s Mignon; Iphis in Jephtha at Buxton; Tytania in A Midsummer Night’s Dream with English National Opera; Bach’s Magnificat with the Northern Sinfonia, Messiah in Calgary; the Angel in Handel’s La Resurrezione with Ars Lyrica Houston; St. Matthew Passion with the Handel and Haydn Society, Boston; and Messiah and Silete Venti with the Sixteen in Hong Kong and New Zealand.
Recent Cathedral Appearances
About Julia Mintzer
Julia Mintzer, American mezzo-soprano, was hailed by La Presse as “a true Carmen: extremely sensual, with the grace of a serpent, the violence of a tiger, and a mezzo of penetrating depth.” She is currently a Domingo-Cafritz Young Artist at Washington National Opera, where she will perform Hansel in Humperdinck’s Hansel and Gretel and Clotilde in Bellini’s Norma. She has appeared at the Kennedy Center as Giovanna Seymour in WNO’s “Opera Insight” of Anna Bolena and in the American Opera Initiative.
Recent Cathedral Appearances
About Rufus Müller
This British-German tenor was acclaimed by the New York Times following a performance in Carnegie Hall as “…easily the best tenor I have heard in a live Messiah.” He is celebrated as the Evangelist in Bach’s Passions, and his unique dramatic interpretation of this rôle has confirmed his status as one of the world’s most sought-after performers. He gave the world premiere of Jonathan Miller’s acclaimed production of the St. Matthew Passion, which he also recorded for United and broadcast on BBC TV; he repeated the role in three revivals of the production at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in New York (“a sensational Evangelist” &mdashNew York Times). Rufus is also a leading recitalist, performing worldwide with pianist Maria João Pires.
Recent Cathedral Appearances