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Quartet For The End Of Time
2018-10-25

Quartet For The End Of Time

By Olivier Messiaen (1908 – 1992)

25 October 2018

Odeion

19:30

“THE IDEA OF THE END OF TIME AS THE END OF PAST AND FUTURE AND THE BEGINNING OF ETERNITY”

Anmari van der Westhuizen and Samson Diamond (members of the renowned Odeion String Quartet), will join with the award-winning soloists Grethe Nöthling and Danrè Strydom to perform one of the 20th century’s most compelling chamber music works, Olivier Messiaen’s Quartet for the End of Time. These musicians need no introduction to Bloemfontein audiences.

Composed while he was a prisoner of war, Messiaen's Quartet has continually wowed audiences since its creation. The oppressive conditions within which the work was conceived - set against the backdrop of wartime conditions in Nazi Germany - contribute to the work’s inner narrative. In this unsettling time of global political and social uncertainty, we aim to reframe this work from the past in order to contemplate the present. Music woven together with other art forms elicit and explain a range of emotions where words often fail.

A selection of striking WWII photos will be projected behind the musicians - reflecting the theme and history of the composition.

About the composition
Olivier Messiaen (1908 - 92)
Quatour pour le fin du temps (1940 - 41)

Olivier Messiaen’s Quartet for the End of Time was written in perhaps the most incongruous spot any great score has been composed in: an unheated barrack in Stalag VIII-A, a German prisoner-of-war camp, during the second winter of World War 2. Messiaen wrote this mystical quartet for the instruments available in the camp (clarinet, violin, cello, and piano) in a setting that is arguably among the least conducive for creative work.

The quartet is Messiaen's musical depiction of and rumination on Revelation 10:1-7, which the composer included as a heading to the score:

“I saw a mighty angel descending from heaven, clad in mist, having around his head a rainbow. His face was like the sun, his feet like pillars of fire. He placed his right foot on the sea, his left on the earth, and standing thus on the sea and the earth, he lifted his hand toward heaven and swore by Him who liveth forever and ever, saying: "There shall be time no longer, but at the day of the trumpet of the seventh angel the mystery of God shall be consummated."

ADMISSION

  • R120 (adults)
  • *R80 (pensioners)
  • *R70 (UFS staff)
  • *R50 (students, learners and block bookings of 10+)

Tickets available at Computicket or online at http://online.computicket.com/web/

*Please note that tickets for pensioners, students, learners and UFS staff can only be purchased at a Computicket outlet (Shoprite Checkers) or at the doors since a valid card or ID has to be presented to qualify for the above-mentioned discount.

ENQUIRIES
Ninette Pretorius (tel. 051 401 2504)


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The King's Singers

Dutch Reformed Church Universitas – Bloemfontein

19:30

 

The King’s Singers: “a class act with a delightfully British wit.”

 

Description: King Singers Tags: King SingersAcclaimed  worldwide  for  their  virtuosity,  life-affirming energy and charm, The King’s Singers are in global demand. The group was formed in 1965 and for the past 48 years, their work - synonymous with the very best in vocal ensemble performance, appeals to a vast international audience. Performing to hundreds of thousands of people each season, the group tours regularly  to  Europe,  North  and  South  America,  Asia  and  Australasia.  Instantly  recognisable  for  their immaculate intonation, vocal blend, diction and incisive timing, The King’s Singers are consummate entertainers.  Concert goers from Bloemfontein and surrounding areas have the opportunity to experience this extra-ordinary vocal ensemble in the Dutch Reformed Church Universitas.

 

The group’s repertoire has evolved to become one of the most diverse and compelling imaginable. The King’s Singers have commissioned over 200 works, including landmark pieces from leading contemporary composers  including  Luciano  Berio,  György  Ligeti,  Sir  James  MacMillan,  Krzysztof  Penderecki,  Toru Takemitsu,  Sir  John  Tavener,  Gabriela  Lena  Frank  and  Eric  Whitacre.  They  have  also  commissioned arrangements  of  everything  from  jazz  standards  to  pop  chart  hits,  explored  medieval  motets  and Renaissance madrigals, and encouraged young composers to write new scores.

 

In addition to performing to capacity audiences and creating highly regarded and much-loved recordings, The King’s Singers share their artistry through numerous workshops and masterclasses around the world. 

 

Double Grammy® award-winning artists, the group were honoured in 2009 for their Signum Classics release, Simple Gifts, and again in 2012 for their contribution to Eric Whitacre’s Light and Gold album on Universal/Decca.  Recently voted into Gramophone Hall of Fame, rave reviews and repeated sell-out concerts confirm that The King’s Singers remain one of the world’s finest vocal ensembles.

 

ADMISSION

R295 per person

Tickets for the concert are available at Computicket outlets (Checkers, Shoprite shops), at the door, or online at www.computicket.com. 

Follow the link http://online.computicket.com/web/event/the_king_s_singers/1083518616/0/76713258 to book online.

 

ENQUIRIES     

Ninette Pretorius (tel. 051 401 2504)

 

This concert will be sponsored by the Arts Trust.

 

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