Amici & Mozart
It is always a pleasure to sing Mozart – his writing is well matched to the human voice, and while it is never easy to sing, after diligent rehearsals it is a rewarding experience.
This concert was on familiar territory in St. Mary Magdalene, Taunton, accompanied by our old friends OrchestraWest. The programme featured two items, the incomparable Requiem and an earlier work, the Solemn Vespers K339.
The latter contains one of Mozart’s best known and well-loved pieces, a beautiful setting of the ‘Laudate Dominum’ for solo soprano and chorus, often performed stand-alone. Our soloist on this occasion was the South African soprano Erica Eloff. During her studies Erica was awarded several prizes and scholarships by her university and various national institutions. She is a laureate of several national and international singing competitions, and first prizes include the London Handel Competition, the UNISA National Singing Competition, the UFAM Concours Internationaux de Chant.
This sound clip presents Erica’s lovely performance of that ‘Laudate Dominum’ with Amici as chorus.
Mozart’s unfinished Requiem is one of classical music’s great stories. The dying composer became convinced that the mysterious messenger who brought the commission to write the work was in fact the harbinger of Mozart’s own death and that he was writing the music for his own funeral. He died before he could finish, and the work performed today is a mixture of what Mozart left and extra composition by one of his pupils, Sussmayer.