Oratorio "Paulus" by Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy

It quickly became one of the most popular works of Romantic choral symphony—a "jewel of the present," as Robert Schumann remarked. In the wake of Mendelssohn's revival of the St. Matthew Passion (1829), Paulus clearly stands in the tradition of Johann Sebastian Bach and the great oratorios of George Frideric Handel, yet speaks its own unique musical language.


The exciting plot of this two-part work develops through a fluid interweaving of recitatives, arias, lyrical choral movements, dramatic choral fugues, and simple chorales. At its center is the inner transformation of the devout Jew Saul into the Apostle Paul, who, after the stoning of Stephen in Jerusalem, hears the voice of God on his way to Damascus. After suffering three days of blindness and gaining profound insight into the injustice he had committed, he converted to Christianity and subsequently worked as a missionary to early Christianity.


The figure of Paul was the subject of intense personal exploration for Mendelssohn. It is shaped by an Enlightenment image of God that emphasizes tolerance and reason. He developed the text for the oratorio together with his friend, the theologian Julius Schubring, based on biblical words. It ends with a message that, however, points far beyond the biblical story: the experience of transformation and hope is available to all who embark on the path of faith.

The Neue Chor Alt-Schöneberg performs this powerful oratorio together with the Cantorey Salzburg, thus continuing the highly successful collaboration that began in 2022 with Mendelssohn's "Elijah" and continued in 2023 with Verdi's "Requiem." The audience can once again expect an overwhelming choral sound that will fill every corner of the imposing St. Paul's Church.


Participants:

• 
  
• Soprano: Sarah Vautour
  
• Alto: Amelie Baier
  
• Tenor: Shimon Yoshida
  
• Bass: Elías Arranz
  
• Neuer Chor Alt-Schöneberg, Cantorey Salzburg
  
• neues konzertorchester berlin
  
• Conductor: Sebastian Brendel