WESTFIELD — Steeple Concerts at St. Paul’s in Westfield has announced an “exciting finale” to the 2024-2025 Steeple Concert Season. This Sunday, May 18, at 5 p.m., live in concert at St. Paul’s, the season will close with a performance of Italian composer Giuseppe Verdi’s dramatic and celebrated Requiem. Music Director Mark Hyczko will conduct a distinguished quartet of vocal soloists with full chorus and symphony orchestra in what promises to be a very special musical experience. St. Paul’s Episcopal Church is located at 414 East Broad Street, Westfield.
Verdi (1813-1901) was at the height of his fame and maturity when he composed the Messa da Requiem. Today’s audiences know and praise him for his famous operas: Rigoletto ( 1851), Il trovatore, La traviata (both 1853), Don Carlo (1867) and Aida (1871), to name a few of his 26 operas. He composed Requiem to honor the first anniversary of the death of the beloved Italian poet and writer Alessandro Manzoni, with whom he shared a close friendship bond.
With Verdi conducting, Requiem premiered in Milan’s Church of San Marco in 1874. Because it was part of the church service, there was no applause. Later, however, that silence was drowned out by “ massive public acclaim.” (Britannica, Ask the Chatbot). “The reaction was ecstatic and Verdi’s Requiem was acclaimed as a masterpiece.” (Udiscovermusic, May 22, 2024).
Given Verdi’s focus on opera, it might be no surprise to the Westfield audience on May 18 that Requiem is infused with operatic elements. In fact, prominentAmerican conductor Marin Alsop calls Requiem “an opera in disguise.” She says, “ Requiem is a conductor’s dream come true. Few pieces in the repertoire offer the drama of opera and the thrill of wonderful symphonic writing combined with stellar, virtuosic solo moments. ButVerdi’s Requiem does all that and more.” (Interview, NPR, June 3, 2011).
Speaking of conductors, Steeple Concerts Music Director and Conductor Mark Hyczko is also director of music at St. Paul’s and at Temple B’nai Or in Morristown. From 2011 to 2021, he was the music director and conductor of the New Brunswick Chamber Orchestra. He is on the music faculty at Rutgers University and holds degrees from both Rutgers (New Brunswick, N.J.) and the Mannes College of Music (New York City).
Tickets to the Verdi Requiem, priced at $40 for adults and $20 for students, are available on the Steeple Concerts website at www.steepleconcerts.org or at the door. Parking is free in the St. Paul’s parking lot off Euclid Avenue or on nearby St. Paul’s Street. A gala reception will follow the event.
