Quad City Symphony Orchestra Masterworks V: “The Fauré Requiem,” March 2 and 3

Saturday, March 2, 7:30 p.m.

Adler Theatre, 136 East Third Street, Davenport IA

Sunday, March 3, 2 p.m.

Augustana College's Centennial Hall, 3703 Seventh Avenue, Rock Island IL

With the title of the Quad City Symphony Orchestra's fifth Masterworks concerts of the 2023-24 season coming from the program's final, thrilling composition, The Fauré Requiem will be presented at Davenport's Adler Theatre and Rock Island's Augustana College on March 2 and 3, the ensemble and guest vocalists Sarah Shafer and Quad City native Nathaniel Sullivan performing beloved works by Johann Sebastian Bach and Gabriel Fauré.

Praised by the Philadelphia Inquirer for her “crystalline sound, perfectly true intonation, glowing warmth, and total presence,” and named “remarkable, artistically mature … a singer to watch” by Opera News, classical soprano Sarah Shafer actively appears on the leading operatic and concert stages of the world. The 2022-23 season saw Shafer returning to the Quad City Symphony Orchestra in the role of Krystyna Zywulska in Jake Heggie’s Two Remain, and making her debut with the Kalamazoo Symphony as the soprano soloist in Brahms’ Ein Deutches Requiem. She also appeared with the Gamut Bach Ensemble and Philadelphia Chamber Music Society, as well as with the Bellingham Symphony singing Mozart’s Requiem. Recent performances have also included a return to Opera Philadelphia, first in a program entitled “Larry Brownlee & Friends,” and then for a concert of arias hosted at the Mann Center. In addition, Shafer joined frequent collaborator Opera Lafayette as Jeanette in Philidor’s La maréchal ferrant, and presented a virtual recital for Friends of Chamber Music Portland.

Classical baritone Nathaniel Sullivan is a musician, theatre artist, and writer devoted to holding space for reflection, understanding, and creative projects that champion change. An "alert and highly musical baritone" according to Opera News, Sullivan infuses his work with "impressive strength and precision" (Schmopera), as well as “great eloquence” and "allegiance to both music and words" (ConcertoNet). With a particular devotion to the operatic repertoire of the 21st Century, the vocalist has performed the roles of the King in the North American premiere of George Benjamin's Lessons in Love & Violence, Harvey Milk in the world premiere of Stewart Wallace's Harvey Milk Reimagined (covered), Hannah-Younger in Kaminsky/Campbell/Reed's As One, and Manfred in Jake Heggie's Two Remain. Sullivan was also a Vocal Fellow at the Tanglewood Music Center in 2018 and 2019, a Gerdine Young Artist at Opera Theatre of Saint Louis in 2022, and a Vocal Fellow at the Ravinia Steans Music Institute in 2023.

In the Fauré Requiem concert event, the first half opens with the virtuosic flourishes of the first movement of Bach’s Third Brandenburg Concerto, followed by Principal Cello Hannah Holman performing the iconic Prelude from the First Cello Suite. Audiences are then invited to feel the yearning of the famous “Air on a G-String” from Bach’s Third Orchestral Suite before pianist Marian Lee performs a beloved prelude and fugue from The Well-Tempered Clavier. Next, the Augustana Oratorio Society & Choral Artists join the ensemble and soloists Shafer and Sullivan for selections from the St. Matthew Passion and B Minor Mass. Finally, patrons can experience the peaceful serenity of life after death in Fauré’s soaring Requiem, which was composed after the loss of Fauré’s parents, and balances profound sorrow and longing with light, hope, and the exultation of Heaven.

Masterworks V: The Fauré Requiem performances will be held at Davenport's Adler Theatre on March 2 at 7:30 p.m., and, in Rock Island, at Augustana College's Centennial Hall on March 3 at 2 p.m. One hour prior to each performance, concert-goers are invited to attend informational "Concert Conversations" to learn about the works on the program, and admission to the concert events starts at $12 for adults and $7 for students and children. For more information and tickets, contact the Quad City Symphony Orchestra at (563)322-0931 and visit QCSO.org.