Ancient Liturgies

This unique concert will explore how music and ritualism unite as a common expression towards a spiritual transcendence. Our exploration begins with a performance of Ancient Liturgy by Joseph Castaldo, a prominent musical personality in Philadelphia in the late 20th century. Commissioned by The Music Group of Philadelphia in 1989, the work was inspired by Mithraism, a religion popular at the time of the Roman Empire, whose followers believed that after death the soul went to the sphere of the fixed stars and on to Paradise. Preceeding the concert will be a special lecture on the Cult of Mithraism in the Ancient World by Haverford College’s Dr. Anne McGuire. Also included in this program is Te Deum by Estonian composer Arvo Pärt, and Eric Whitacre’s Cloudburst, an evocative piece popular with Choral Arts’ chorus and audiences.

Saturday, March 13, 2010 at 8 PM
Daylesford Abbey, 220 S. Valley Rd., Paoli, PA
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Sunday, March 14, 2010 at 6 PM
Philadelphia Cathedral, 3723 Chestnut St., Philadelphia, PA
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