Aug 28 2025 to Aug 28 2025 7:30 p.m.

Where

Bangalore International Centre

7 4th Main Rd, Stage 2, Domlur 560071

Event Description

About the centrepiece of the evening – Requiem in D minor K. 626

Mozart’s Requiem is a choral masterpiece whose genesis is shrouded in mystery – one that makes the piece even more fascinating and emotionally stirring. Mozart was not in the best state of mind when he received an anonymous commission to compose a Requiem Mass. His health was deteriorating, and he believed he had been cursed to write a requiem as a ‘swansong’ for himself, because he was sure he was about to die. It was in early July 1791 that an ‘unknown, gray stranger’ turned up at the composer’s door saying he represented someone who wanted a Requiem from Mozart on the understanding that he does not seek to learn the identity of his patron. Spooked by the commission, Mozart threw himself obsessively into the work. But it was all too much. He was only able to complete the Requiem and Kyrie movements and managed to sketch the voice parts and bass lines for the Dies Irae through to the Hostias. 

Mozart died aged 35 on 5 December 1791, before he could complete the work. Payment had already been received, and Mozart’s widow Constanze feared that if the work was handed over incomplete, the patron would want his money back. Mozart’s pupil Süssmayer, to whom the composer had given detailed instructions about finishing it, completed the unfinished movements. Süssmayer copied the entire completed score in his own hand – making it virtually impossible to determine who wrote what – and gave it to the stranger. So was the ‘mysterious stranger’ Mozart’s rival Antonio Salieri, much slandered villain of the film Amadeus? Almost certainly not. It was Anton Leitgeb, son of the mayor of Vienna and the valet of Count Franz von Walsegg-Stuppach, who already had acquired the reputation of palming other people’s music off as his own. The Count was hoping to use Mozart’s Requiem to commemorate his late wife, Anna. It took a full decade before Constanze was able to persuade Walsegg to acknowledge Mozart as the Requiem’s true composer. Regardless of who wrote which parts of the Requiem, it still sounds wonderful to most of us. 

And let us give Beethoven the final word on the matter: ‘If Mozart did not write the music, then the man who wrote it was a Mozart.’

Image Credit:
Thumbnail and Poster: Portrait of Mozart from the Berliner Philharmoniker Digital Concert Hall

Presented by the International Music and Arts Society

Supported by Furtados and Steinway

Performers

The Bangalore Men
Choir
India’s premier all-male voices ensemble, was launched in January of 2016, and consists of 22 singers, all with many years of previous experience singing in choirs. The group focuses on Western classical music, from eras ranging from medieval to contemporary music. Since the founding of the choir, they have done more than 90 concerts all over the country in churches and cathedrals, at NCPA Mumbai and with the Symphony Orchestra of India. The choir is regularly invited to participate in various choral festivals and choral competitions, both in India and abroad, and is the only all-male voices choir in India that has been awarded Distinction in the advanced choral examination offered by the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music, London.

Cappella Bangalore
Choir
Cappella Bangalore, founded in 2019 is an all-female voices choir, with 25 members, all with previous experience of singing in choirs. The seasons of 2020-2021 saw several virtual recitals, published on YouTube, and the choir was, together with The Bangalore Men, one of the few choirs internationally that consistently kept virtual rehearsals throughout the peak of the pandemic. Apart from performing together with The Bangalore Men, the choir has performed Fauré’s Messe Basse for female voices and organ, Gustav Holst’s intricate Ave Maria for 8-part a cappella female voices, as well as Vivaldi’s Gloria in an arrangement for female voices and organ.

In February 2023, both choirs returned to the NCPA Mumbai, for the India-premiere of Karl Jenkins’ Requiem, together with The Symphony Orchestra of India, and in March 2023, Bangalore saw two performances of the Requiem by Fauré under the baton of Maria Forsström, with Bengt Forsberg at the piano. Maria and Bengt returned in February 2024 for a house-full performance of the Mozart Requiem at Chowdiah Memorial Hall, and in May 2024, Cappella Bangalore performed Vivaldi’s Gloria as well as the Asia-premiere of Fredrik Sixten’s Alleluia at St Mark’s Cathedral, Bangalore. The 2024 season included performances of the Mozart Requiem in Bangalore and Pondicherry, as well as a return to the all-male-voices programme ‘Simply Schubert’, performed at Jagriti Theatre in June 2024 by The Bangalore Men and ‘Carols in the City’ at the BIC.

January 2025 saw a full-fledged staged opera production of Purcell’s ‘Dido and Aeneas’, performed together with musicians from Sweden and other countries, at the Bangalore International Centre. In June 2025, the choirs collaborated with the Swedish Cathedral Organist, Jan H Börjesson, and performed ‘Cathedral Windows’, a programme of cathedral music through the ages, to rave reviews.

Jonas Olsson
Conductor
The choirs are conducted, by Jonas Olsson – a resident of Bangalore for almost two decades. Jonas studied singing and musicology at the Academy of Music and Drama at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden. In India, he has done several recitals, primarily with the German Lieder repertoire, as well as with Scandinavian art songs. He is a sought after vocal coach, and is the founder and conductor of Cappella Bangalore and The Bangalore Men, as well as artistic director of the Legato School of Music.

Payal John
Soprano
Payal John is an India-born soprano and vocal coach, and her repertoire includes opera, sacred classical music and Lieder. She has studied under various vocal coaches and spent four months on scholarship in Italy for vocal studies in 2018. She has been the soprano soloist for several concerts throughout the country in pieces such as Handel’s Messiah, Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, Mozart Requiem, Fauré Requiem and Duruflé Requiem. She also performs regularly with a repertoire of opera and Lieder alongside her work as vocal coach at The Bangalore School of Music. Payal holds an Associate Diploma from Trinity College (London) and is currently pursuing her licentiate degree from the same college.

Tanisha Herbert
Mezzo Soprano
Tanisha Herbert is a professional opera singer and vocal coach residing in Bangalore. She is the co-founder of VioVoi Music Academy and a founding member of the Bangalore City Chamber Orchestra. Tanisha is a winner of the first prize at The Neemrana Voice Competition of India and holds a licentiate in Singing Performance from the London College of Music. She studied voice under Italian American Baritone Alan Cemore and has worked with several teachers from across India, Europe and Canada. She is also the first voice teacher in India certified in the Neuro-Vocal method of singing. The regular concertgoer will see Tanisha is a recurring soloist with the choirs – she sang Belinda in the performance of the opera ‘Dido and Aeneas’ in January 2025.

Benson Chacko
Tenor
Born and raised in Muscat, Oman, Benson Chacko is a singer/songwriter and music producer. He has worked with several vocal coaches from Europe and the US, and is a frequent tenor soloist in Western classical concerts in South India. In 2024, he was a semi-finalist in the Con Brio music competition, and in January 2025, he performed the role of the Sailor in Purcell’s opera ‘Dido and Aeneas’ at Bangalore International Centre with visiting musicians from Sweden.

Rahul Bharadwaj
Baritone
Rahul Bharadwaj is an Indian baritone based in Bangalore. Originally trained in Hindustani classical vocal traditions, Rahul went on to attain a degree in Vocal Performance in 2011 in Michigan and performs concert music, with a focus on art song and oratorio repertoire. Apart from a number of voice and piano recitals with pianist Nadine Crasto over the years, recent performances include the Brahms Requiem, Handel’s Messiah and the Con Brio Music Festival. In addition to performance, Rahul also trains vocal students and facilitates an 8-week voice excellence program with the Indian Music Experience, Bangalore. Rahul performed the role of Aeneas in ‘Dido and Aeneas’ at BIC in January 2025.

Natallia Kapylova
Piano
Natallia Kapylova is a Belarus-born musician who has made India her home since 2002. She began playing piano at age 7 and pursued professional music education for 17 years. Her musical background includes graduating from Belarus Conservatory, extensive concert tours, and experimenting with diverse genres. Now based in Bangalore, Natallia shares her passion through performances and teaching.

Azriela Maben
Piano
Azriela Maben is a pianist who began her musical journey at the age of five and has since won both national and international competitions. A graduate in Music, Psychology, and English, she currently serves as faculty at Natallia Piano Studio in South Bangalore. Her performance career includes collaborations with distinguished ensembles, such as the Madras Musical Association. With a deep passion for both piano and vocal music, she brings artistry and dedication to every stage and student she engages with.