Love and Death

Lilting melodies, timeless romance and moving reflections on life's last moments come together in this beautiful program from Sacramento Philharmonic and Opera. The overture from Tchaikovsky's take on Shakespeare's classic tale of starcrossed lovers, Romeo and Juliet comes to the concert hall, alongside Faure's serenely moving Requiem, both expertly led by conductor Melisse Brunet.

First premiered in 1870, Tchaikovsky's Romeo & Juliet was initially not well received, even receiving hisses from the audience at an 1876 performance in Vienna. But after numerous revisions it was completed for a second time in 1880, receiving a second premiere in 1886 in Tbilisi. The result was an exceptional musical realisation of the bard's poetry, taking its place among the greats while previous versions also now have their place as hidden curiosities of music history. Faure's Requiem, meanwhile, composed during one of his summer retreats, is a calm and peaceful piece that reflects Faure's own questioning relationship with religion, rather than the more sombre sounds heard in other classical works from the time.