15th RMP ARIA FINAL and RUTTER’S REQUIEM

EVENT POSTPONED (NOW AN ONLINE EVENT)

The Final of the 15th RMP ARIA and

RUTTER’S REQUIEM

Event postponed

Regrettably, due to the Victorian Government’s extension of Melbourne’s ongoing lockdown, the RMP is not able to proceed with the postponed planned performances of Rutter’s Requiem, or the Final of the 2021 RMP Aria on 11 September as previously advised.
Having already lost so many weeks of rehearsal, and with contestants in Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane currently unable to rehearse or collaborate with accompanists etc due to ongoing restrictions, the RMP committee have made the difficult but necessary decision to cancel the performance of Rutter’s Requiem, and to move the RMP Aria competition to an online format this year.
RMP ARIA COMPETITION TO GO ONLINE
The competition will be postponed until mid-October to give as many of the singers selected as finalists as possible the chance to participate. The online event will be re-advertised and on sale from 24 September via the RMP website: www.rmp.org.au.
There will be several streaming options provided at different times for patrons who wish to tune in and watch.
All previously booked tickets to the event rescheduled for 11 September have been refunded via the Trybooking system. Refunds will be automatically sent to the account from which the original booking was made, and patrons should receive their refund within the next 48 working hours. Please contact us if this is not showing in your account by Tuesday 14th September.
If you wish to book for the October online event, you will need to rebook via the rmp website: www.rmp.org.au from 24 September.
DONATIONS
Should you wish to make a donation to the RMP you can do so online by visiting https://www.trybooking.com/au/donate/rmp
All donations over $2 are tax deductible. Your support is greatly appreciated during these frustrating and challenging times.
Best wishes, thank you for your understanding, and apologies to anyone who is inconvenienced or disappointed by this change.
The good news is that RMP is still planning to resume in-person performances in time for December, but like everyone else, we are waiting until restrictions are lifted on public gatherings to make this possible. We look forward to re-connecting with all our wonderful collaborators and supporters as soon as it is safe to do so.

Now firmly established as one of Australia’s most prestigious singing events, the RMP Aria is Australia’s pre-eminent competition for oratorio soloists. Previous winners now rank amongst the nation’s most successful concert artists, with many having gone on to spectacular international careers. Hear 8 of Australia’s finest oratorio soloists perform spectacular Arias and Recitatives from the world of oratorio, accompanied on piano by Peter de Jager. Together they will compete for thousands of dollars worth of cash and prizes, and a future invitation to appear as a soloist with the RMP.

Following the Final, RMP Chief Conductor Andrew Wailes will direct a full scale performance of the RMP Oratorio Festival Choir, consisting of over 150 singers from the Royal Melbourne Philharmonic Choir, Melbourne University Choral Society and Box Hill Chorale, along with a chamber ensemble of players from the Royal Melbourne Philharmonic Orchestra, in a performance of composer John Rutter’s much-loved Requiem.

The Requiem, completed in 1985, does not adhere strictly to the conventional Ordinary Mass according to Catholic liturgy, but combines texts from the Requiem Mass and the 1662 Burial Sentences from the English Book of Common Prayer. This is by no means unusual; Faure, Brahms, Durufle and Britten all followed their own individual preferences when selecting appropriate verses to set. Rutter structured the work in seven movements, similar to the famous Requiem setting of Gabriel Fauré.

A very personal and emotionally-charged piece, it bears the dedication “in memoriam L. F. R.”,  and is dedicated to John Rutter’s father, who had died the previous year. It is scored for soprano, mixed choir and chamber ensemble or orchestra.

As with the Requiems of both Fauré and Duruflé, the work includes a setting of the “Pie Jesu”, and focuses on the soprano soloist. The work also includes Rutter’s superb setting of the 23rd Psalm, “The Lord is My Shepherd”, notable for its plaintive oboe solo, delicate orchestration and sensitivity to the text. This exquisite and moving piece, though composed some seven years earlier in the USA, was surely destined for this context, encapsulating as it does the work’s message of reassurance.

Since the work’s first performance on 13 October 1985 at the United Methodist Church, Dallas, Texas,  it has become a firm favourite with choirs and audiences the world over. Though it necessarily has its dark moments, Rutter’s Requiem is unmistakably optimistic in its message of hope and comfort, expressed through the beauty of the chosen texts and Rutter’s uplifting music. Though very much written in the English Cathedral tradition, Rutter’s music has well and truly transcended international boundaries.

TWO PERFORMANCES:

3pm Afternoon Matinée performance (Concert only) CANCELLED

7pm Evening Gala performance CANCELLED

Final of the RMP Aria Competition will now be streamed online in mid October

Tickets on Sale for online event available from 24 September, via trybooking or www.rmp.org.au

Please note, that there will be a comprehensive Covid-19 safety plan in place for this event. All attendees will be expected to check in using the Victorian Government QR Code, and depending on Health Department regulations, masks may need to be worn, or social distancing observed. In the event of cancelation or no live audience being permitted, all tickets will be fully refunded.