LOS ANGELES, March 18, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Fresh off the Oscars® broadcast before a global audience, the Los Angeles Master Chorale returns to Walt Disney Concert Hall for a monumental program pairing Mozart’s enduring Requiem with the West Coast premiere of Fanny Mendelssohn’s rarely performed Oratorio on Scenes from the Bible.
The performance takes place on one night only, Sunday, April 19, at 7 p.m., led by conductor Grant Gershon, the Chorale’s Kiki and David Gindler Artistic Director, with 62 of the Master Chorale’s professional singers, four vocal soloists, and a full orchestra.
Mozart’s Requiem, written in 1791 in the final months of the composer’s life, remains one of the most powerful works in the choral canon – a dramatic meditation on mortality that continues to resonate more than two centuries later. Unfinished at the time of Mozart’s death at age 35, the work was later completed by his student Franz Xaver Süssmayr and has since become a cornerstone of the choral repertoire. The piece has also become deeply embedded in popular culture, appearing in many films including X-Men, Captain America, Watchmen, and The Incredibles.
“Only in L.A. can you find one of the world’s great choirs performing one of the greatest pieces of music ever written in one of the most spectacular concert venues in the world. Especially if you’ve never heard us before, Mozart’s Requiem is the perfect introduction to the magic of the Master Chorale in the Walt Disney Concert Hall,” says Gershon.
Last year, the Los Angeles Master Chorale brought the Requiem’s emotional power to millions of viewers during the In Memoriam segment of the 97th Oscars®, an impressive appearance that led to the ensemble’s return for the 98th Oscars® broadcast this month. As the largest and most celebrated professional choir in the United States, and with a second Grammy® Award win for Best Choral Performance this year, the Master Chorale is one of the country’s leading interpreters of major choral repertoire.
Legendary composer John Williams has praised the choir’s skill, saying, “I have always admired the brilliant artistry of the Los Angeles Master Chorale. Los Angeles – indeed, the entire country – can be justifiably proud of this outstanding ensemble.”
West Coast premiere of rediscovered Fanny Mendelssohn work
If Mozart’s Requiem represents the most celebrated tradition of sacred music, the first half of the program offers something far rarer. In a striking historical pairing, Fanny Mendelssohn’s Oratorio on Scenes from the Bible premieres on the West Coast, a major work composed during Berlin’s devastating cholera epidemic of 1831-32.
Written when the composer was 26, the dramatic oratorio reflects the fear, grief, and spiritual reckoning that gripped the city during the outbreak. Mendelssohn herself survived the epidemic, while many in her circle did not. Despite its scale and ambition, the work remained unpublished during her lifetime – a reflection of the limited opportunities available to women composers in the 19th century and the overshadowing fame of her brother, Felix Mendelssohn. Some of her works were even published under his name.
“It’s been incredibly rewarding to prepare this major work of Fanny Mendelssohn for this performance,” says Gershon. “Her writing for chorus, orchestra, and soloists is brilliant and inspiring. Frankly, it’s an egregious slight to her place in music history that we are only now beginning to fully celebrate her genius. I cannot wait to share this beautiful score with our audiences.”
The oratorio has only recently begun to re-enter the repertoire, making the Los Angeles performance a rare opportunity to hear the piece live.
Soloists
The performance features four acclaimed vocal soloists:
Addy Sterrett, soprano
Jessie Shulman, mezzo-soprano
Kyuyoung Lee, tenor
Steve Pence, bass
Pre-concert conversation
Audience members are invited to attend the Listen Up! pre-concert conversation, featuring KUSC host Alan Chapman with Grant Gershon, exploring the history and musical significance of both works.
The talk begins at 6 p.m., one hour before the performance, in BP Hall.
Event details
What: Mozart’s Requiem and Fanny Mendelssohn’s Oratorio on Scenes from the Bible
Who: Los Angeles Master Chorale; Grant Gershon, conductor
When: Sunday, April 19, 7 p.m.
Where: Walt Disney Concert Hall
Tickets: lamasterchorale.org
- Media are invited to attend rehearsals beginning April 16, with prior arrangements
- Television crews may request B-roll for credits rolls and other purposes
About the Los Angeles Master Chorale
For more than 60 years, the GRAMMY® Award-winning and revered Master Chorale has been a standard-bearer for choruses across America. Hailed for its powerful performances, technical precision, and artistic daring, the Master Chorale reaches more than 175,000 people a year through its concert series at the iconic Walt Disney Concert Hall, its international touring of innovative works, and its performances with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and others. The choir is the nation’s largest professional chorus led by Artistic Director Grant Gershon. The Chorale continues to set the gold standard for choral music, bridging historical masterpieces with contemporary relevance, and singing any genre in any language. Its singers performed at the 97th and 98th Oscars®, and are desired by legendary composers for their movie soundtracks. Their voices are currently heard in numerous films, including “Avatar: Fire and Ash,” “Superman,” “Wicked,” and “Wicked: For Good.” Its innovative and extraordinary learning programs include the renowned High School Choir Festival, the Oratorio Project, Voices Within, and Youth Chorus LA, all of which prepare future generations of choral singers and uplift communities through the transformative power of choral music. The Master Chorale is registered as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit.
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Media Contact:
Claudia Bill-de la Peña, press@lamasterchorale.org
