The Great Mass: A Ballet by Uwe Scholz

Operating on the premise that music, stripped of conventional forms of worship, can still move us spiritually, choreographer Uwe Scholz conceived this program combining Mozart's Great Mass in C minor (with Gregorian chant), the music of modern composers György Kurtág and Thomas Jahn, and the words of poet Paul Celan, to present “a ballet that dispenses with the gestures associated with the act of worship and yet repeatedly storms the gates of heaven itself.” Filmed live at the Leipzig Opera in June 2005 in memoriam to Scholz (1958-2004), this performance features members of the Leipzig Ballet, the chorus of the Leipzig Opera (with soprano, tenor, and bass soloists), and the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig under the baton of Balázs Kocsár. The Great Mass offers a study in contrasts: dancers in the more ethereal movements are clad in white against a dark background, while those in the starkly modern movements wear black, with the lighting itself playing a role—forming symbolic patterns to great effect. The program concludes with a moving tribute to Scholz, in which the dancers return dressed in casual attire to express their sorrow and listen to a poetic tribute to the late choreographer. Presented in PCM stereo, this is recommended. Aud: C, P. (J. Reed)