Concert on March 23

Local musicians are wrapping up rehearsals for their performance of “The Seven Last Words of Christ” by Theodore Dubois at Assumption Parish. The concert will take place on Sunday, March 23, at 3:00 p.m. and is open to the community. There is no charge for admission; free will offerings are welcome.

Dubois’ oratorio for orchestra, choir, and soloists recounts the Biblical narrative of Jesus’ passion and death on the cross.

This is the fourth concert in Assumption Parish’s ongoing series, which aims to bring professional-grade performances of great sacred works of music into church settings for the community to experience. The performance brings together both professional and amateur musicians from the Midland area, including several who participated in Handel’s Messiah at Assumption Parish in December.

“Detroit and Ann Arbor get most of the spotlight when it comes to performances of classical music, but Midland’s thriving and actively growing artistic community deserves to be mentioned in the same breath,” said Jim Renfer, Concert Director and Director of Music Ministry at Assumption Parish.

Renfer describes Dubois’ oratorio as an “unstaged opera” with the story told both vocally and instrumentally: “The orchestra and organ create a soundscape around the text that sets the mood in each scene. Joy and sorrow, hatred and love, the still sky and the shaking of the earth are all wonderfully expressed by Dubois’ orchestration.”

Renfer is excited to present this poignant work to the community just in time for the season of Lent.

“Music that has stood the test of time contains a unique power to touch souls, and the more often we are exposed to this kind of art, the more deeply it moves us,” said Renfer. “We hope you will join us for a musical experience that has inspired people for decades.”

Soloists in “The Seven Last Words of Christ” include: Grace Marra (soprano), David Aukerman (tenor),
George Hageage IV (baritone), and Thomas Heidenreich (organ).