Basingstoke Choral Society

NELSON MASS: Joseph Haydn REQUIEM: Michael Haydn Basingstoke Choral Society Conductor Jordan Theis

Composed in 1798 at a time of personal triumph, Joseph Haydn’s Missa in Angustiis, better known as the Nelson Mass, stands as one of the most thrilling and powerful achievements of the choral repertoire. Written during a period of uncertainty as Napoleon Bonaparte’s armies swept across Europe, the work’s Latin title translates as “Mass for Troubled Times,” reflecting both the anxieties of the age and the enduring hope of faith. Soon after its première, news arrived of Horatio Nelson’s decisive victory over Napoleon at the Battle of the Nile. The association was irresistible, and the mass became forever linked with the admiral’s name. From its dramatic opening to the glorious finale, the Nelson Mass is music of extraordinary intensity and grandeur.

Michael Haydn was not only the younger brother of Joseph Haydn, but was also a composer deeply admired by Mozart. Written in 1771 Michael’s Requiem in C minor, stands entirely on its own as a work of compelling beauty and spiritual intensity. Rarely performed, this musical treasure combines profound sorrow with luminous hope.

Join us for an unforgettable evening as voices and instruments combine to bring you music offering both dramatic power as well as radiant optimism, which is as important today as it was more than 250 years ago.