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0 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? subscribe | newsletter | deals Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » NEWS NOW Remembering her roots ... Daniel Meyer Pool reopens June 17 ... Gun Violence Awareness Day event set on Ashland Plaza ... Remembering her roots ... Daniel Meyer Pool reopens June 17 ... Gun Violence Awareness Day event set on Ashland Plaza ... MUSIC Southern Oregon Repertory presents Haydn's 'Creation' Professional soloists and period specialists will join the choir Comment By Laurie Heuston Revels DailyTidings.com By Laurie Heuston Revels Posted May. 19, 2016 at 12:01 AM By Laurie Heuston Revels Posted May. 19, 2016 at 12:01 AM » Social News Southern Oregon Repertory Singers will celebrate the 30th anniversary of the choir's founding with Joseph Haydn's "Creation." "It's a big piece," says SORS director and conductor Paul French. "It's about two-and-a-half hours long." French has studied the composer nicknamed Papa Haydn. "In 1791, the year Mozart died, Haydn visited England, where he heard two famous oratorios by George Frideric Handel, 'Messiah' and 'Israel in Egypt.' It's said that he was overcome, that he wept when he heard the 'Hallelujah Chorus.' He felt like he was a student composer again. "He must have felt like he was taken right back to ground zero," French says. "Like nothing he had done mattered before that moment. He wanted to compose a piece similar to those great ones by Handel, and that piece is 'Creation.' Next to 'Messiah,' it is probably the most popular oratorio of all time. It's dramatic, and it's way ahead of its time. The orchestral writing is superb, and the solos are full of joy and life." SORS will perform "Creation" at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, May 21, and 3 p.m. Sunday, May 22, in the Music Recital Hall on the Southern Oregon University campus, 405 S. Mountain Ave., Ashland. The concert concludes SORS' 30th season. Tickets are $32 or $38, $5 for students and SNAP card holders, and can be purchased online at repsingers.org or by calling 541-552-0900. "There's something about Haydn's music that lifts your spirit," French says. "It's possibly the most optimistic, soul-fulfilling music you'll ever hear." "Creation" is an extended musical composition, with text that is dramatic in character and written for solo voices, chorus and orchestra. Los Angeles soprano Elissa Johnston and tenor Brian Thorsett and baritone Christopher Nomura from the East Coast will join SORS for the solo performances. Winds, brass and a few string players from Rogue Valley Symphony will accompany the soloists and choir. "We've been working on this performance for about a year," French says. "We have some musicians who are period specialists — people who play early music — coming in from around the country. They'll play modern instruments, but in the style of a baroque orchestra." "Creation" is rarely done, French says. Just one other time that he can recall in Ashland. "We're doing it with much more of an early music touch," he says. "Early music was more joyful and included dance rhythms. We're going for that period. The Romantic style substitutes sonic mass for what had previously been a nuanced approach. We're going for that joyful, nuanced approach." Haydn believed most people's lives were hard, French says. He described his childhood as "more floggings than food." Yet he didn't let circumstances stand in his way. He became the archetypal composer of optimistic music. "He thought that if he could bring listeners a moment of joy, it would make his work worthwhile," French says. "He did that in a big way. There's a nice lesson there for all of us." "Creation" is a big part of Haydn's legacy. Just as he felt his work paled in comparison to Handel's, most composers who look back at "Creation" feel the same way, French says. "The show should be sparkling and full of life," he says. "It should feed the souls of audiences to hear this beautiful, dramatic, but optimistic music. We could use a little bit of rationality. We need to listen to more Haydn, a voice of enlightenment, reason and balance." By Laurie Heuston Revels DailyTidings.com By Laurie Heuston Revels Posted May. 19, 2016 at 12:01 AM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... 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