Pergolesi: Stabat Mater

The Long Story
The Stabat Mater is a medieval poem that describes the suffering of Jesus’s mother Mary as she stands at the foot of the cross. Pergolesi’s setting of the text is among the most haunting and gut wrenching compositions ever put to paper. At one point, the piece asks us if it’s possible to watch someone else suffer so deeply, and not somehow share in their sorrow. It stands as one of the purest musical depictions of empathy, and a powerful reminder that – no matter what pain we may feel in the moment – we’re never truly alone in our sadness. Performed by the String Orchestra of Brooklyn, the program will also feature Barber’s wrenching Adagio for Strings, and Arvo Pärt’s slow-burning Fratres, and if that all wasn’t enough – the entire performance will feature wall-to-ceiling film projections up and down the catacombs.

The Short Story
This is profound, cathartic music, and we can think of no more powerful way to close Season 2 of The Angel’s Share than by offering an audio-visual experience unlike any other.

$80 for members of Green-Wood and BHS / $85 for non-members

The Angel’s Share, a new series of opera and chamber music concerts, takes place in Green-Wood’s Catacombs. One of the oldest structures in the 478-acre National Historic Landmark Cemetery, the Catacombs were built in the 1850s and are normally closed to the public. The series takes its name from the distiller’s term for whiskey that evaporates while maturing in the barrel, thus going to the angels.

Each performance includes a pre-concert reception at sunset overlooking New York harbor and the Manhattan skyline.

PLEASE NOTE: Ticketholders must be 21 years or older.

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