From J.S. Bach’s intimate portrayal of a man’s sublime resignation and yearning to Messiaen’s achingly beautiful movement from his Quartet For the End of Time, Songs of Heaven and Earth offers the distinctively unique ideas of three brilliant composers’ perceptions of heavenly voices. The program closes with soprano Susanna Phillips, whose voice The New York Times describes as “warm and shimmering,” singing “Das himmlische Leben” in Mahler’s sunniest and most intimate symphony presenting a child’s vision of the heavens.
