Requiem A – the ‘A’ in the title stands for ‘Beginning’ (German ‚Anfang’), ‘setting off’ (Aufbruch), ‘ash’ (Asche), and ‘breathing’ (atmen). Words that describe the mourning, reconciliation and new beginnings after a time of conflict. Composer Sven Helbig wrote his Requiem A in commemoration of the 80th anniversary of Dresden’s destruction and the end of the Second World War. However, war is not at the centre of his piece; he wants to thematise the subsequent reconciliation and forgiveness. Helbig, a self-taught composer of music for choir, orchestra, and chamber ensembles and a multi-instrumentalist, has collaborated with artists such as Snoop Dog, Rammstein, and the Pet Shop Boys. The performance of Requiem A features visuals by the Icelandic film artist Máni M. Sigfusson, underscoring the Staatskapelle Dresden, the Kreuzchor Dresden, soloist René Pape, and the live electronics of Sven Helbig himself.
Wainwright does Weill
Rufus Wainwright’s fascination with Kurt Weill’s music goes back for decades — in his early twenties he wore out the vinyl grooves of Teresa Stratas’ famous Weill album. Never has he dedicated an entire evening to singing the German musician’s songs. With the Paci?c Jazz Orchestra under the baton of Chris Walden he is now expanding the orchestral palette for his approach to Kurt Weill. Wainwright interjects some of his own compositions, old and utterly new ones that have been in?uenced by the German composer who had a long career in the US after migrating here from Nazi Germany. Furthermore, the Theatre at Ace Hotel in Los Angeles now o?ers a stage that provides the perfect visual setting for the period in which Weill’s songs were written.