A concert featuring choruses from operas and operettas, as well as several overtures, will be a great introduction to the singular atmosphere of the New Year. It is the choir, which always participates very actively in panoramic group scenes or balletic interludes with stunning choreography, that is responsible for creating the unique colour of each work. It usually appears on the stage immediately after the overture, already in the so-called introductions, but it also makes its presence felt in the finales of individual acts. Whether dressed in Turkish costumes (as in Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Die Entführung aus dem Serail), or in Gypsy or Spanish costumes (as in Giuseppe Verdi’s La traviata), it will carry us ‘on the wings of song’ to the most exotic lands and unusual events. The Israeli people in Babylonian captivity in Verdi’s Nabucco, huntsmen in Carl Maria von Weber’s Der Freischütz, Czech peasants in Bedřich Smetana’s The Bartered Bride, soldiers in Charles Gounod’s Faust, sailors in Richard Wagner’s Der fliegende Holländer, mountain spirits and vampires in Heinrich Marschner’s operas, heavenly choirs in Arrigo Boito’s Mefistofele and thousands of other ‘incarnations’ – these are the everyday acting and vocal challenges taken on by every professional choir. Time and space pose no limitations for artists! Everything will be accompanied by the excellent Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra, which will sweep us into a dancing procession, moving to the captivating rhythms of the waltz, polonaise and mazurka.
 

Grzegorz Zieziula