Rossini's Petite Messe Solennelle

“Have I just written sacred music, or rather, sacrilegious music?”

This is not usually what a composer thinks when they’ve just written a Latin mass. But Rossini is no ordinary composer and his Petite Messe Solennelle is no ordinary piece of music.

Hot on the heels of a special performance of Briar Prastiti's Te Matapiʻi and a whirlwind collaboration with Oregon Chorale in August, Supertonic choir of Te Whanganui-a-Tara Wellington is thrilled to present this masterwork of choral music on Saturday 10 October alongside soloists Nicola Holt, Maaike Christie-Beekman, Bayley Goldstone and Simon Christie, as well as instrumentalists Nicola Sutherland, Matthew Oliver and Rachel Malcolm-Swindells.

Rossini had hung up his opera pen some 30 years earlier when he wrote what he called “the last of my péchés de vieillesse (sins of old age)”. ‘Petite’ only in the number of musicians it originally called for, this mass is a dramatic, wildly ambitious work bursting with rich and unexpected harmonies. It careens between reverent and comic, drenched in emotion one moment and gleefully superficial the next. The dichotomy has entertained and enchanted audiences since it was written over 150 years ago, and Supertonic is excited to bring it roaring to the stage.

Led by Musical Director Isaac Stone (who describes it as his “favourite piece ever”), Supertonic wants to spark curiosity about musical traditions, and how and why Rossini contravened them. To set the scene and help the audience dig into the brilliance and contradiction of the piece, Isaac will deliver an introductory talk before the choir takes the stage. It's a night built to grab both die-hard classical devotees and anyone just discovering choral music for the first time.

Sacred or sacrilegious? Wellington audiences can decide for themselves on 10 October.

About Supertonic

Supertonic is a Wellington-based choir that strives to push the boundaries of what choral music can be. Formed in 2014, the choir has torn through the entire musical spectrum, from Vaughan Williams' Mass in G Minor, Vivaldi's Gloria and Fauré's Requiem, to pop and rock spectaculars celebrating Fleetwood Mac, David Bowie, Elton John and Queen, right through to hits from the 90s.

Supertonic has performed alongside Brett McKenzie, the NZSO and The Muppets in the 2018 Jim Henson Retrospectacle, joined Mama Kin Spender at the Coastella music festival, featured in national ANZAC and Armistice Day broadcasts, and in 2023 flew to the Armageddon Expo in Auckland to perform High Score: Legendary Soundtracks in Concert. Most recently, Supertonic joined the Royal New Zealand Air Force Band for their annual concert in 2024.