Indiana State University Newsroom

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. -- The Indiana State University Masterworks Chorale, under the direction of Mark Carlisle, will present the Requiem Mass in D minor by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart on Sunday, April 18 at 3pm in Tilson Auditorium.

The performance will include the choir, four soloists, and a supporting classical orchestra consisting of a mixture of Indiana State University music faculty and students as well as local instrumentalists.

Soloists for this performance include three ISU music faculty members - Colleen Davis, soprano; Peggy Balensuela, alto; and David Mannell, tenor. Indiana State music alumnus Damien Geter will perform as bass soloist.

The Requiem Mass in D minor was composed in Vienna in 1791, during the last year of Mozart's life. It was his last composition, although he was unable to complete the work before his death. The work was commissioned by Count Franz von Walsegg, who wanted a requiem mass to memorialize the recent passing of his wife. It was performed in an unfinished version in December 1791 as a memorial for Mozart by the staff of the Theater auf der Wieden. The first performance of the completed work was in January 1793, arranged by Gottfried van Swieten for the benefit of Mozart's widow, Constanze.

It remains one of his most popular and respected works, but the question of how much of the music Mozart managed to complete before his death and how much was later composed by Franz Xaver Süssmayr or others is still debated.

The Requiem Mass was originally meant to be performed during liturgical services. Eventually, however, the dramatic character of the text appealed to composers to the extent that they made the requiem a genre of its own, and the requiems of such composers as Mozart, Fauré, and Verdi became essentially concert pieces rather than liturgical works. The Mozart Requiem is divided into fourteen movements, with a choir only, solo quartet only, and choir with solo quartet mixture and structure.

Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for students grades K-12. ISU students will be admitted free with a valid student ID. For more information, call the ISU choral music office at 812-237-4590.

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Contact: Mark Carlisle, Choral Office, (812) 237-4590
Writer: Paula Meyer, ISU Communications & Marketing, (812) 237-3783 or
Paula.Meyer@indstate.edu