Composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart began writing ‘Requiem in D Minor’ in 1791, but died at 35 before it was completed. Part of that composition, called ‘Lacrimosa,’ are thought to be the last notes he wrote.
Perhaps it is fitting, then, that the Requiem will be the swan song of Cheryl Anderson, Cabrillo College’s director of Choral and Vocal Studies before her retirement at the end of the year, capping a 35-year career.
Anderson has made the institution a cornerstone of Santa Cruz County’s musical culture, a career that in 2018 earned her the County Artist of the Year award by the Santa Cruz County Arts Commission.
In her time at Cabrillo College, Cheryl founded the Cabrillo Youth Chorus (CYC), served as the Conductor of the Cabrillo Symphonic Chorus, Chorale and Cantiamo!, and was founder and artistic director of the Cabrillo Opera and the Conductor of Cabrillo Stage.
The Cabrillo choirs have performed at Carnegie Hall in New York City three times, most recently this past April, when they performed The Notebooks of Leonardo DaVinci, by Composer Jocelyn Hagen.
She worked with Cabrillo College to commission world-renowned composers to write works for the Cabrillo Choirs and CYC, who premiered them in performances locally and twice at Carnegie Hall.
Kirke Mechem, considered the ‘Dean of American Choral Music,’ requested that Anderson premiere his latest work—the opera ‘Befana’—a Christmas Fable which premiered at Cabrillo’s Crocker Theater in 2022.
“The gratitude I feel for the job I get to do each day is boundless,” Anderson stated in a press release. “I have been able to envision and breathe life into a program encompassing all ages and spanning the fullness of music which can be sung. Few musicians are able to realize that dream; working with the Cabrillo choruses and with the entire community has left me in a state of grace, gratitude, and fulfilling abundance.”
The Cabrillo Symphonic Chorus under the direction of Cheryl Anderson will perform Mozart’s Requiem with the Santa Cruz Symphony May 3 at the Santa Cruz Civic Auditorium and May 4 at the Mello Center in Watsonville. Tickets are still available for both performances.
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Performances
• Saturday, May 3 at the Santa Cruz Civic Auditorium, 7:30pm. (Pre-concert talk at 6:30pm)
• Sunday, May 4 at the Mello Center, Watsonville at 2pm. (pre-concert talk at 1pm)
For information, visit santacruzsymphony.org. For tickets, call 831.420.5260 or visit Santa Cruz Tickets
