When he was thinking about the Helios Ensembleโs summer concert, founder-conductor Benjamin Hansen had an idea: What if he took movements from Masses composed throughout the span of classical music โ from the Renaissance to today โ and wove them together into one glorious โMosaic Massโ?
He started with the Kyrie from 16th-century Flemish composer Orlando di Lassoโs โMissa super osculetur meโ representing the Renaissance era and ended it with the Agnus Dei from Stravinskyโs 20th-century Mass.
โI think itโs really fun. You get a lot of contrasting styles,โ said Hansen, who will lead 37 Helios vocalists and a 28-member orchestra in a concert Sunday, July 17, anchored by the โMosaic Mass.โ
The di Lasso and Stravinskyโs movements bookend the traditional Massโs other movements: the Gloria (and more) from Baroque composer Bachโs Mass in B-minor; Beethovenโs Credo from his Mass in C, representing the late Romantic/early Classical period; and the Sanctus and Benedictus from Poulencโs Mass in G major, representing the modern era.
Hansen said he chose to end the piece with Stravinsky, whose Agnus Dei calls for a larger orchestra with woodwinds, trombones and English horn, creating a โserene, cool disposition to send you off to space.โ
โItโs neoclassical and cool in the 20th-century traditional sense of the word,โ Hansen explained, calling Stravinskyโs movement a โplea for peace, filled with disillusionment and sadness and desperationโ that seemed โfitting for the times weโre living in.โ
Sundayโs concert at Catalina United Methodist Church, 2700 E. Speedway, also includes solo works by Beethoven, Liszt and Thomas Weelkes, and works for full choir by Eric Whitacre, Martin Lauridsen and Emily Drum.
โIโm really kind of excited about it,โ Hansen said.
Helios, which Hansen launched in 2014, will perform at 4 p.m. Sunday. Tickets are $20 at the door, or $18 online through heliosensemble.org. Preferred seats are $40 and students with ID are free.
