ARTISTIC DIRECTOR
PHILIPPE HERREWEGHE
A War Requiem (World première)
Gustav MAHLER [1860-1911]
Symphony No.5
Sophie Karthäuser soprano
Thomas Bauer baritone
Collegium Vocale Gent
Belgian National Orchestra
Hugh Wolff conductor
“I want to show the pain, senselessness and despair of what people do to each other, but also the opportunities, the hope and the strength of people to bring about more humanity.”
One hundred years after the Great War, Collegium Vocale Gent and the Belgian National Orchestra are presenting the War Requiem of the Flemish composer Annelies Van Parys for world premiere. The war rhetoric of the aggressor is echoed in the German-language libretto playwright Dea Loher. The Belgian soprano Sophie Karthäuser and the German baritone Thomas Bauer, together with the choir, give a voice to the fear and (mis)hope of the lost generation of 14-18. The concert will take place within the framework of the national memorial ceremonies of the First World War in Belgium.