The Chicago Symphony Chorus is showcased on this program, performing Barber’s Prayers of Kierkegaard, Poulenc’s Gloria, Bruckner’s Helgoland, and—with the Lyric Opera of Chicago Chorus Górecki’s a cappella Euentes ibant et flebant. The broadcast concludes with the Chorus’s first release, Prokofiev’s Alexander Nevsky, recorded in March 1959 under the baton of Fritz Reiner.
A Choral Celebration
Margaret Hills chorus director, Fritz Reiner music director, and Walter Hendl associate conductor onstage with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chorus in March 1959 (Oscar Chicago photo)
Playlist
Prayers of Kierkegaard, by Samuel Barber
Chicago Symphony Orchestra; Andrew Schenck, conductor; Sarah Reese, soprano; Chicago Symphony Chorus; Margaret Hillis, director
Helgoland, by Anton Bruckner
Chicago Symphony Orchestra; Daniel Barenboim, conductor; Chicago Symphony Chorus; Margaret Hillis, director
Euntes ibant et flebant, Op. 32, by Henryk Górecki
Chicago Symphony Orchestra; John Nelson, conductor; Chicago Symphony Chorus; Lyric Opera of Chicago Chorus
Alexander Nevsky, by Sergei Prokofiev
Chicago Symphony Orchestra; Fritz Reiner, conductor; Rosalind Elias, mezzo-soprano; Chicago Symphony Chorus; Margaret Hillis, director