A very special chorale concert experience will happen in Montreal on November 10, as the 50-member Axios Men’s Ensemble will perform their widely acclaimed Ukrainian War Requiem at the Ukrainian Cathedral of St. Sophie, located at 6255 St. Michel Boulevard, as part of their nine-city cross-Canada tour that runs from November 6-15; the tour will conclude with a performance at St. Paul’s Basilica, located at 83 Power Street in Toronto, on November 15. Joining the ensemble during this tour are two Canadian soloists: Andriana Chuchman (soprano) and John Tessier (tenor) as well as the tenors and basses of Pro Coro Canada.
The requiem was commissioned by Axios in 2022, in the wake of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, as a response to this act of aggression. It was composed by three-time Grammy Award nominee Benedict Sheehan.
“Many of the members of the Axios ensemble have family still living in Ukraine, and they wondered what they could do to support their family members in particular, and the Ukrainian people in general, through this very difficult time. And our way was to sing and make music,” said Michael Zaugg, the ensemble’s conductor, during a recent phone interview from Edmonton. Born in Switzerland, Mr. Zaugg has worked with a number of chorale ensembles throughout Canada, the United States and Europe, including Montreal’s St. Lawrence Choir and the Montreal Symphony Orchestra, where he served as chorus master.
The Ukrainian War Requiem is based on the traditional funeral rite that is recited by the Orthodox Church which, according to Mr. Zaugg, represents the eternal light and a sense of closure during a time of sadness. “The requiem has so many emotions attached to it. It’s like a prayer for someone who has died, and many of the members knew someone who passed away during the course of the war. They are deeply invested emotionally with the requiem, because they know who they are singing for,” he said.
Mr. Zaugg also noted that there are elements of the funeral rites that are practiced by the Roman Catholic and Jewish religions, which are incorporated into the requiem. “These elements help to make the requiem a more global, accessible listening experience,” he added. “It’s also important to establish a sense of hope, pride and solidarity with the audience, but we leave it with them to see what kind of feeling they leave with.”
Another landmark accomplishment for the Ukrainian War Requiem was the recording winning a Juno Award for Classical Album of the Year (Large Ensemble), which filled Mr. Zaugg with a great deal of pride. “This Juno Award is for everybody. Not just the creative team and the members of the ensemble, but also the people who bought the album and attended our concerts,” he said. “It’s the first time an a cappella ensemble won that award, as well as the first time it was won by a male choir, and a choir that is situated west of Ontario. Who would have thought that the Axios Men’s Ensemble would beat out such stiff competition that we faced from the Toronto Symphony Orchestra and the I Musici de Montreal group?”
For more information, or to purchase tickets to the Montreal or Toronto performances of the Ukrainian War Requiem, go to axiosmensensemble.com.
