ISABELLE HUPPERT / MANDY FREDRICH / SYMPHONIKER HAMBURG / CARL-PHILIPP- EMANUEL-BACH-CHOR HAMBURG / KNABENCHOR HANNOVER Rufus Wainwright’s Dream Requiem

"Dream Requiem" is the most monumental work to date by Rufus Wainwright, who is one of the most versatile composers and musicians of our time with compositions in pop and classical music. Inspired by isolation and loss during the pandemic, this deeply moving piece brings together two choirs, large orchestra, soprano solos and a narrative voice to reflect on grief, resilience and ecological disasters. Dark orchestral passages and haunting vocal lines reflect Wainwright's admiration for the great requiems of Verdi, Berlioz and Britten. He combines the timeless liturgy of the Latin Requiem with Lord Byron's poem "Darkness", which describes the global upheaval following the eruption of the Tambora volcano in 1815, and ends with a breathtaking finale in which voices and instruments seem to float away into the universe. "Dream Requiem", which was recorded by Arte and released as an album by Warner Classical, is now being performed in Hamburg as a collaboration between the Elbphilharmonie, Kampnagel and the Hamburg Symphony Orchestra, with more than 150 participants under the direction of Lucy Leguay - and star actress Isabelle Huppert as narrator. With this overwhelming classical work of art as part of the Kampnagel Summer Festival (with a total of four Elbphilharmonie cooperation concerts), both institutions are also continuing their long-standing collaboration with Rufus Wainwright.

EN

A stunning classical masterpiece for full orchestra, two choirs, solo voice, and featuring Isabelle Huppert as narrator!

"Dream Requiem" is the most monumental work to date of Rufus Wainwright, one of the most versatile composers and musicians of our time, whose oeuvre includes pop, symphonic works, and musicals. Inspired by the isolation and loss of the pandemic, this deeply moving work blends grand choral arrangements, haunting soprano solos, a narrator, and orchestral depth to explore themes of grief, resilience, and ecological disaster. Dark orchestral passages and soaring vocal lines depict Wainwright's admiration for the great Requiems of Verdi, Berlioz, and Britten. The timeless liturgy of the Latin Requiem and Lord Byron's poem "Darkness", depicting global upheaval after the 1815 Mount Tambora eruption, culminate in a breathtaking finale where voices and instruments seem to dissolve into the universe. "Dream Requiem", which has been recorded by Arte and released by Warner Classical as an album, will now be performed in Hamburg in a joint effort of Elbphilharmonie, Kampnagel, and Symphoniker Hamburg. It features an outstanding cast that includes over 150 musicians and singers under the baton of Lucy Leguay. The iconic Isabelle Huppert will take on the role of narrator in a work characterized by melodic brilliance and dramatic depth, with which Elbphilharmonie and Kampnagel Summer Festival continue their series of collaborative summer concerts - and their longtime relationship with Rufus Wainwright.