Ottawa Bach Choir presents Brahms ‘Ein deutsches Requiem’

When: Saturday, March 11, 2023
What time: 8 PM
Where: St. Matthew’s Church, 130 Glebe Avenue
Admission: Reserved $50, Adults $40, Seniors $35, Students $20, Free for under 12 • Click here to purchase tickets

Classical music fans in the National Capital can rejoice in the news that the Ottawa Bach Choir (OBC) is returning for the second concert of its 21st season, performing at Saint Matthew’s Anglican Church in the Glebe.

Founded by Dr. Lisette Canton, the group has been active since 2002. With their album, Handel: Dixit Dominus; Bach & Schutz: Motets, the group has garnered critical acclaim in Canada and around the globe. In 2020 they won a Juno Award for best classical album of the year. They also have a new album of Bach’s Six Motets coming out in April .

OBC performs music from all eras and styles. The choir combines a scholarly and emotional approach that provides an unforgettable experience. OBC’s shows are nothing short of incredible when it comes to a live choral performance!

Over the past few years, the group has toured extensively through Europe, the United States, China, and Canada. They performed at Bachfest 2022 in Leipzig, where back in 2014, they made history as the first Canadian choir to perform at the prestigious German festival.

Ottawa audiences can look forward to a performance of Brahms’ Ein deutsches Requiem, or A German Requiem, which founder Dr. Canton describes as “one of the greatest choral works ever written.”

The piece is historically notable for being written in the style of a Requiem Mass, but not in the Catholic Latin tradition; instead, it is in German and combines various texts from the Lutheran Bible and focuses on consolation for the living. It is Brahms’s longest composition and is widely considered a masterpiece. It will be performed in the version for piano duet, which Brahms arranged, with pianists Matthew Larkin and Frédéric Lacroix. Larkin is currently the organist and director of music at Saint Andrew’s Church, and Lacroix teaches piano and composition at the University of Ottawa.

The choir will be joined by baritone Geoffrey Sirett, described as one of Canada’s finest singers. Also performing will be soprano Jonelle Sills, who, in 2020, CBC Music called one of Canada’s top 30 hot classical musicians under 30. Both singers will also showcase selected solo songs by Brahms.

In addition to Ein deutsches Requiem, the OBC will performing motets by Bach and Telemann, two important German Baroque composers whose music predates Brahms by over a century. Dr. Canton describes the upcoming evening as one that “promises to inspire us all.”

Don’t miss this opportunity to hear live in-person choral music at its best!

Tickets for this incredible show are $50 for reserved seats, $40 for adults, $35 for seniors, and $20 for students. Children under 12 are free.

If you are unable to attend the show, you can still enjoy the Ottawa Bach Choir and its award-winning music; the choir has recordings available for sale on its website.

Tickets for the March 11th concert are available on the OBC’s website at ottawabachchoir.ca or by phone at 613-270-1015.