San Diego Master Chorale
Sun, Apr 12
|St. James by-the-Sea Episcopal Church
Time & Location
Apr 12, 2026, 4:00 PM – 6:00 PM
St. James by-the-Sea Episcopal Church, 743 Prospect St, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
About The Event
Tickets: $15, $25, $45
The San Diego Master Chorale returns to St. James by-the-Sea in La Jolla with Lux, a luminous program centered on two of the most beloved choral masterworks of the 20th century: Leonard Bernstein’s Chichester Psalms and Morten Lauridsen’s Lux Aeterna. This radiant concert explores themes of light, peace, and spiritual reflection through soaring harmonies and timeless texts.
Leonard Bernstein composed Chichester Psalms in 1965 for the Cathedral of Chichester in England. Setting Hebrew texts from the Psalms, the piece blends the theatrical flair of Broadway with the reverence of sacred choral tradition. Its driving rhythms, lyrical solos, and unexpected harmonic turns make it both deeply expressive and unmistakably Bernstein.
Lauridsen’s Lux Aeterna, composed in 1997, offers a contrasting sense of calm and radiance. Drawing from Latin texts of the Requiem Mass, Lauridsen crafts music of luminous serenity and emotional depth. It’s a work that has quickly become a cornerstone of modern choral repertoire, beloved for its beauty and quiet power.
Music Director John K. Russell conducts the program, with Associate Music Director Martin Green at the organ.
The San Diego Master Chorale, known as the region’s premier symphonic chorus, regularly performs with the San Diego Symphony and champions a wide range of choral works, from Baroque oratorios to living composers. Their return to St. James promises an evening of transcendent music in one of San Diego’s most beautiful acoustic spaces.
