I’m so looking forward to joining the Karen Schussler Singers again this season for their Grant Us Peace concert where I’ll be joining the London Symphonia, soprano Chelsea van Pelt, and the choir to sing Vaughan William’s Dona Nobis Pacem.

Also on the concert is Randall Thompson’s The Last Words of David, Francesco Durante’s Magnificat, Henryk Gorecki’s Symphony No. 3 “Symphony of Sorrowful Songs,” Op. 36, Mvt. 2, and Ola Gjeilo’s Sacred Heart (Uni Caritas III).

It’s going to be a really meaningful evening of choral music as we are mindful about Remembrance Day.

The following is for the choir’s webpage:

Dona Nobis Pacem is an impassioned plea for peace, tolerance and understanding on a global scale. Written in 1936, Vaughan Williams was motivated by the growing unrest in Europe at the time that seemed primed to explode into war. He compiled his English text from the writings of poet, Walt Whitman, and the Bible. The humanitarian warmth and splendour of his vision are an inspiration for all time.

Setting the stage for this magnificent work will be Randall Thompson’s dramatic work, “The Last Words of David” and Durante’s uplifting 18th century Magnificat, which strongly proclaim the values and goals necessary for a world of peace. The Symphony No. 3 “Symphony of Sorrowful Songs”, mvt. 2, by Henryk Górecki takes the prayer of a young girl and turns it into a stunningly expressive testament to love and faith in a time of trial. Ola Gjeilo’s shimmering “Sacred Heart (Ubi Caritas III)” (his setting of the second verse of the chant “Ubi Caritas”) puts everything into context and leads us clear-eyed into the Dona Nobis Pacem—Grant us peace.