Maria Scherer Wilson

Following in the footsteps of his French forefather Gabriel Fauré, Maurice Duruflé composed a Requiem of immense warmth and comfort, rather than a reminder of the day of wrath. We perform this iconic work inspired by, and elaborating on, Gregorian chant in its chamber orchestration, joined on the program by Caroline Shaw’s refugee cantata, To the Hands. Her work is in turn inspired by, and elaborates on, Dietrich Buxtehude’s cantata of the same name, Ad manus. Two works, at once modern and ancient, that remind us of the importance of comforting and welcoming one another in times of need and strife.