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The Chorale presents the highly anticipated U.S. premiere of Rufus Wainwright’s Dream Requiem. Dream Requiem merges two long standing creative visions — Wainwright’s fascination with Byron's poem Darkness, depicting global upheaval after the 1815 Mount Tambora eruption, and his lifelong admiration for the great Requiems of Verdi, Berlioz and Britten. This powerful and evocative modern-day requiem, with sublime harmonies and emotive storytelling, is an opulent composition that seamlessly weaves together Wainwright’s distinctive musical voice with the timeless liturgy of the Latin Requiem Mass.

We conclude our monumental 60th Anniversary season with a spectacular celebration of harmony and innovation that honors our storied past, embraces the vibrant present, and set the stage for an exciting future. We are thrilled to present an extraordinary playlist of music ranging from Shakespeare’s England to the choral Renaissance happening in Los Angeles right now. These composers represent the creative forces that have both shaped the Chorale and solidified its place at the epicenter of the choral world.

Gustavo Dudamel kicks off his final season as the LA Phil’s Music & Artistic Director with a beloved orchestral piece that exemplifies his adventurous and exciting 17-year tenure. Follow Dudamel from dusk ‘til dawn, through deep forests, icy fields, and a tumultuous storm, as he leads the LA Phil in Richard Strauss’ exhilarating hike. The composer called his orchestral expedition An Alpine Symphony, “since it represents: moral purification through one’s own strength, liberation through work, and worship of eternal, magnificent nature.”

Mahler’s Second Symphony charts a journey from funeral to rebirth, from the terrifying to the transcendent. Its indelible power was memorably captured in the 2023 film Maestro. Gustavo Dudamel, an ardent champion of Mahler, takes on this majestic work, featuring soprano Juliana Grigoryan, mezzo-soprano Beth Taylor, and the Los Angeles Master Chorale. “The effect is so great that one cannot describe it,” Mahler reflected of the symphony. “If I were to say what I think of this great work, it would sound too arrogant in a letter. … The whole thing sounds as though it came to us from some other world. I think there is no one who can resist it. One is battered to the ground and then raised on angel’s wings to the highest heights.”

Scriabin’s vision for Prometheus lays out the mythic tale of humanity receiving the gift of fire not just through mystical music but through an all-consuming work of art that draws on the audience’s senses. The Russian composer, who described himself as synesthetic, envisioned a color organ for the piece that would project various hues of light that he associated with each musical tone or chord.

Perhaps the most, or only, conventional element of Busoni’s Piano Concerto is its title. Nearly 75-minutes in length with five movements—the last featuring a men’s chorus—and one of the largest orchestras of the entire genre, it requires nothing less than a herculean effort by the soloist not to mention the more than 100 other musicians performing.

Revolución diamantina is Gabriela Ortiz’s bold response to the 2019 feminist uprising around Mexico’s epidemic of violence against women. Named after an event where protesters threw pink glitter at Mexico City’s chief of police to denounce the rape of a woman by local officers, “Ortiz’s atmospheric, percussion-rich score fizzes with a sense of restless unease” (BBC Music Magazine).