"Lest We Forget: Sacrifice, Sorrow and Sanctuary"
The Handel Society Chorus and Baroque Orchestra
Our programme exemplifies Remembrance Day’s core ideas of honouring the fallen, mourning their loss, affirming duty and patriotism, and finding solace in faith and the sacred.
- "In Flanders Fields" anchors the Canadian and WWI context—poppies, the dead, and the call to keep faith with those who gave their lives.
- "I Vow to Thee, My Country" speaks of earthly duty and sacrifice alongside the “other country” of the spirit, bridging patriotism and transcendence.
- "Introitus" and "Lacrimosa" from Mozart's Requiem, supplies the voice of collective weeping and the plea for mercy at the hour of judgment.
- Bach’s chorales and final chorus from the St Matthew Passion “Wir setzen uns mit Tränen nieder” deepens the meditation on redemptive suffering, tears, and quiet acceptance.
- Gounod’s beautiful and melodic "Messe solennelle" (Kyrie, Sanctus, Benedictus) frames the whole in liturgical language: a cry for mercy, the holiness of God, and the blessing that follows sacrifice.
- "The Last Post" This trumpet solo is the traditional military signal of the day’s end and of final rest;
- PLUS: Orchestral performance by the Handel Society Baroque Orchestra
- Handel's Beautiiful Concerto Grosso, B Flat Major, Op.3 No 2.
"This brilliant instrumental showcase has roots deeply intertwined with themes of sacrifice and reflection. Its intense third-movement fugue was borrowed by Handel directly from his sacred Brockes Passion, a work explicitly focused on suffering and grief. As we honor Remembrance Day, this concerto serves as a metaphor for the journey of remembrance. The heart of the piece—the tragic G-minor Largo—provides a somber space for us to mourn and remember the fallen. Yet, it is framed by movements of vibrant dance and community, reminding us that the ultimate goal of sacrifice is the preservation of life, light, and the enduring peace we enjoy today."
As a way to thank our Veterans on our 60th Anniversary , we are offering a limited number for FREE admissions (50) to Veterans, on a "first-come" basis.
A sincere thank you to our loyal patrons. Your ongoing, generous support ensures that we are able to continue to provide the South Fraser region with the finest in classical music performances.
TICKET PRICES
Regular – $30
Seniors & Students – $20
Veterans (Max 50) - FREE
16yrs and under, FREE
(Sorry, no infants or toddlers)
Tickets now available
About "Hidden Gems" (performed May, 2023)
The Ascention Oratorio, (Cantata BWV 11)
This beautiful oratorio inexplicably is not often performed or recorded. This is likely due to its relatively short length (about 30 minutes) relative to Bach’s great Masterpieces such as the Easter Passions and Christmas oratorio. But it is also easily lost among the 240 Cantatas Bach created. We might call it a partially hidden gem.
This story of Jesus’ ascension into Heaven begins in a grand fashion with trumpets and drums leading the Alto aria Ach bleibe doch . We then hear more recitative by the Evangelist, leading to another aria, this time by the Soprano. And the work incorporates two beautiful chorals, finishing off with the grand style with which it opened.
We thank Thee, Lord (Cantata BWV 29)
Bach composed this sacred oratoria in Leipzig in 1731 for a festive church service marking the annual inauguration of a new town council. Bach scored the work in eight movements for four vocal parts and a festive Baroque orchestra. The organ dominates the first movement Sinfonia which Bach derived from a Partita for violin. The full orchestra accompanies the first choral movement and plays with the voices in the closing chorale, while a sequence of three arias alternating with two recitatives is scored intimately.Bach used the music from the choral movement for both the Gratias agimus tibi and Dona nobis pacem of his Mass in B minor.
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