Presenting Series
Magnificat: Lifting Up the Lowly, by the Program in Sacred Music Notre Dame in collaboration with the South Bend Symphony Orchestra, is a concert program weaving together the sacred and secular in response to human suffering and oppression. Framed by the canticle, the Song of Mary, it speaks of God who has scattered the proud, brought down the powerful, lifted up the lowly, and filled the hungry with good things. The concert features the glorious Magnificat by J. S. Bach, featuring Concordia Vocal Ensemble, and students and faculty from the Program in Sacred Music at Notre Dame.
From the secular realm, Dmitri Shostakovich's intensely personal Chamber Symphony (from his Eighth String Quartet) bears witness to 20th-century suffering. Dedicated to victims of war and fascism everywhere, the work is said to be autobiographical even as it references pogroms against Jews and a patriotic song set as a lament.
The program also includes Joaquin Rodrigo's exquisite Fantasía para un gentilhombre ("Fantasia for a Gentleman"), performed by the acclaimed Italian guitarist Nicolò Spera. Rodrigo, who was blind, crafted this lovely work on 17th-century Spanish Baroque dances, creating a beautiful musical connection to Bach's era.
Concordia Vocal Ensemble is the student recital choir of the Sacred Music Program at Notre Dame. It is Notre Dame's only semi-professional choral ensemble dedicated to sacred music. It comprises graduate and undergraduate vocalists from Sacred Music at Notre Dame, the Department of Music, and the entire University and community.
The South Bend Symphony Orchestra inspires the community with the transformative power of orchestral music in all its forms by producing 20 mainstage programs, serving more than 23,000 attendees annually. As the region's only professional orchestra, the Symphony is committed to diverse sound and a robust arts community in Michiana that entertains and connects people to music.
In addition to being recognized by the National Endowment for the Arts and other state and local arts funding organizations, the South Bend Symphony Orchestra is the Community Foundation of St. Joseph County's Leighton Award for Nonprofit Excellence recipient. This award recognizes the best-run nonprofit organization in St. Joseph County, Indiana
Discover + Engage
Join us for a pre-concert talk exploring the Magnificat program's spiritual and musical richness.
Artists
Concordia Vocal Ensemble
Magnificat Soloists
Jeni Houser, soprano
Stephen Lancaster, bass
SMND Students
Nicolò Spera, guitarist
South Bend Symphony Orchestra
Cynthia Katsarelis, conductor
Made possible by the Marjorie O'Malley Sacred Music Series. Co-presented by Sacred Music at Notre Dame.
Event Dates
Sunday, November 16, 2025 - 4:00 PM
