Sacred, soulful sounds at Emmanuel Cathedral

Enjoy the unique experience of Monteverdi’s ‘Mass for Four Voices’ sung by the Durban Chamber Choir in a sacred mass by his Eminence Cardinal Wilfrid Fox Napier OFM at the Emmanuel Cathedral, Durban on Saturday.

All are welcome to the special mass which will start at 5.30pm on April 14.

The Denis Hurley Centre’s Raymond Perrier said seeing Monteverdi’s Mass for Four Voices performed in a cathedral will be a historic moment.

“Much of the mainstream repertoire of Western classical music for at least 200 years was commissioned by the church and written to be performed as part of a religious service.

“To see one of the high points of Renaissance music sung by the Durban Chamber Choir in a setting and context comparable to the one for which it was written almost 400 years ago is a unique artistic and religious experience,” said Perrier.

“Monteverdi’s ‘Mass for Four Voices’ was composed to be used as part of the services in St Mark’s Cathedral in Venice. Our own Emmanuel Cathedral – though not as ornate as St Mark’s – is just as imposing, also has a fine acoustic, and is similarly built on a reclaimed marsh. And we hope – unlike 1600s Venice – that Christians of all denominations and people of other faiths will feel welcome to come and experience this for themselves.”

Also read: Churches on the North Coast

Claudio Giovanni Antonio Monteverdi was an Italian composer, choirmaster and string player acknowledged as one of the pioneers of opera as an art form.

In lieu of an entry fee, guests are invited to donate generously towards the Napier Centre for Healing – a new after-care facility for post-rehab addiction patients the centre will open in the Ekukhanyeni Mission not far from Verulam in the Iqadi region. The drug rehabilitation centre will be the Cardinal’s legacy project.

Entry is free. For more info, contact the Denis Hurley Centre at 031 301 2240. Safe parking alongside the Cathedral.

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