SPECIAL CONCERT
26 March – Cathedral of Santa Maria Annunziata, Udine – 8.00 p.m.
27 March – Cathedral of San Giusto Martire, Trieste – 8.00 p.m.
Johann Sebastian Bach
St John Passion for Soloists, Choir and Orchestra BWV 245
Evangelist (tenor), Robin Tritschler
Jesus (bass), Christian Senn
Pilate (bass) Manuel Sedmak
Soprano, Vittoriana De Amicis
Mezzo-soprano, Marta Fumagalli
Tenor, Manuel Amati
Bass, Christian Senn
Conductor: GIULIO PRANDI
Orchestra by Fondazione Teatro Lirico Giuseppe Verdi di Trieste
Coro del Friuli-Venezia Giulia
Chorus Master: CRISTIANO DELL’OSTE
To mark the Lenten season, the cathedrals of Udine and Trieste come together in symbolic harmony through the performance of Johann Sebastian Bach’s St John Passion, brought to life by the Orchestra of the Fondazione Teatro Lirico Giuseppe Verdi di Trieste in collaboration with the Coro del Friuli-Venezia Giulia, under the auspices of the Friuli Venezia Giulia Region.
At the podium, Giulio Prandi – a conductor celebrated for his profound mastery of the early and baroque repertoire – leads this Bachian masterpiece.
Comprising forty movements, the Johannes-Passion, a cornerstone of Bach’s mature work, weaves together texts from various sources. These include excerpts from Barthold Heinrich Brockes’ Passion – a work widely known in early 18th-century Germany – as well as madrigalesque texts of diverse and, in some cases, unknown origins. The work nonetheless retains a coherent liturgical structure, suggestive of a musical testament. First performed in Leipzig on 7 April 1724, the St John Passion exists in at least four distinct versions, with the 1739 revision generally accepted as the definitive one. From the 1830s onwards, the work became part of the operatic repertoire, with notable performances at venues such as the Berlin State Opera (Unter den Linden, 1833) and Milan’s La Scala (1913). In 1984, Pier Luigi Pizzi presented a staged version at La Fenice in Venice. Its poignant emotional impact has also attracted filmmakers including Andrei Tarkovsky and Yorgos Lanthimos. This rich tradition renders the St John Passion a profoundly appropriate choice to unite the ecclesiastical and artistic communities of Udine and Trieste. The Orchestra of the Verdi and the Coro del Friuli-Venezia Giulia are joined by a cast of distinguished soloists: the young Irish tenor Robin Tritschler, highly esteemed for his interpretations of Bach, as the narrative voice of the Evangelist; Chilean baritone Christian Senn – chosen by Sir Antonio Pappano for the Bach repertoire – as Jesus; Vittoriana De Amicis, a young soprano from L’Aquila with Viennese training; Marta Fumagalli, a mezzo-soprano with a repertoire focused on the baroque; and Manuel Amati, a tenor in high demand from Rossinian to earlier works. The role of Pilate will be entrusted to the young bass Manuel Sedmak, a promising talent who has developed within the region’s musical institutions—from Trieste across Friuli Venezia Giulia and into Slovenia, where he has performed under the baton of Valery Gergiev—and in neighbouring Croatia.
On the podium, the renowned Giulio Prandi – Artistic Director of the Ghislieri Foundation’s Centre for Early Music in Pavia, winner of the 2019 Abbiati Prize, and a frequent guest at Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw – brings his scholarly and expressive depth to this sacred score. The Coro del Friuli-Venezia Giulia, founded in 2001, boasts over 600 concerts at prestigious venues across Italy and Europe. Its artistic director, Cristiano dell’Oste, trained at the Mozarteum in Salzburg and has since enjoyed a prolific career encompassing both sacred and operatic repertoire.
Superintendent Giuliano Polo: “”These two exceptional concerts, a special addition to our orchestra’s season, stands as a clear expression of the Verdi Theatre’s ongoing commitment to fostering synergy throughout the Friuli Venezia Giulia region—bringing together its leading figures in the arts, with music at the very heart. I would also like to extend my sincere thanks to the Dioceses of Udine and Trieste for allowing us to return this Bach masterpiece to its sacred dimension, within the natural context of the Lenten season. This once again highlights the central role the Church has played over the centuries as a patron, promoter, and supporter of the arts, contributing profoundly to the development of secular Western civilisation. The theatre also extends its heartfelt thanks to the Friuli Venezia Giulia Region, which consistently embraces culture as a powerful instrument of social cohesion for the benefit of the entire territory; to Fondazione CRTrieste, our long-standing partner; to Danieli & C.; and to Trieste Trasporti, who promptly embraced this project and continue to support our theatre and its initiatives with admirable and unwavering enthusiasm”.