Dedication concert celebrates All Saints Day
NEWTON — The Christ Church Senior Choir will present a special concert in celebration of All Saints Day on Sunday, Nov. 2, at 4 p.m.
The concert will also serve as a dedication for the recently-purchased 1924 Steinway Model “B” concert grand piano, which was donated as a memorial for Eugenia Bethea Dunstan by her family. The piano will be formally dedicated by Reverend Robert Griner, Rector of Christ Church.
A German Requiem by Johannes Brahms will be performed by the Christ Church Senior Choir immediately following the dedication. The performance will feature the “London Version” which is accompanied by 4-hand piano and which was written by Brahms himself for the premiere of this work in England. The requiem is scored for four-part choir and soprano and baritone soloists.
Featured soloists will include Shannah Timms Yerofeyeva along with Reverend David Young, Pastor of the First Presbyterian Church of Newton. Piano accompaniment will be provided by S. Gregory Shaffer and Diana Greene. A free will offering will be taken. The performance will be followed by a reception.
Joseph Mello, Director of Music at Christ Church, comments that the work was selected based on its content as well as the time of year.
“We are doing the Requiem, because the concert follows All Saints Day and All Souls Day," Mello said. "Several movements also feature the piano as a solo instrument, so it allows us to highlight the extraordinarily beautiful capabilities of this generous gift.”
A German Requiem was composed by Johannes Brahms between 1865 and 1868. The piece contains seven movements, lasting over an hour, making it Brahms’ longest work. Unlike the traditional Roman Catholic liturgical requiem which begins with prayer for the dead, A German Requiem focuses on the living, incorporating the Beatitudes and moving the audience from a state of anxiety or suffering to one of comfort and consolation.
Christ Church is located at 62 Main Street in Newton. Doors will open at 3:30 p.m. for the 4 p.m. concert. Questions about the concert can be directed to Joe Mello at 862-268-4720.