Kalamazoo Philharmonia conductor Andrew Koehler unites two Parisian masterpieces, 100 years apart, in a concert called 'Of Gods and Men' in Chenery Auditorium this Saturday. Both works feature the Kalamazoo Bach Festival Chorus.
Mr. Koehler characterizes the Requiem in C minor of Luigi Cherubini as a work bridging the Classical and Romantic eras. Written in 1816 as a memorial to Louis XIV after the French revolution, it was praised by Beethoven and its innovations were later used by Brahms and Verdi.
Maurice Ravel's 1912 Daphnis et Chloe was premiered by the Ballet Russes and was a commission by Serge Diaghilev, who famously staged Stravinsky's The Rite of Spring the following year. A complex, challenging score for any orchestra, Mr. Koehler says it still allows musicians to enjoy exhilarating highs at peak moments.