FAR BEYOND THE SKIES

Throughout history, music has provided comfort in countless and diverse ways during times of grief and loss. Far Beyond the Skies brings together two venerable traditions, on the one hand two extraordinary works from the German Lutheran tradition which meditate on the release of death and the joys that await, and on the other hand funeral music from the Gospel tradition and where and how these two worlds intersect.

PROGRAM

Georg Philipp Telemann  
Du aber, Daniel, gehe hin, TVWV 4:17  

J.S. Bach  
Gottes Zeit ist die allerbeste Zeit ‘Actus Tragicus’
BWV 106  

Including music from the Gospel tradition rooted in a triumphant send-off celebrating the end of earthly struggles with the Martin Luther King Community Choir.  

SOLOISTS
Margaret Carpenter Haigh, soprano  
Reginald Mobley, countertenor  
James Reese, tenor  
David Tinervia, bass

DATES & VENUES

Saturday, May 2, 2026, 7:00 p.m.
The Conrad Performing Arts Center
7600 Fay Ave, La Jolla, CA 92037

Sunday, May 3, 2026, 4:00 p.m.
All Souls’ Episcopal Church
1475 Catalina Blvd, San Diego, CA 92107

EVENT DURATION
1 hour 35 minutes with intermission

INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT THIS CONCERT

• Both cantatas are likely to have been written for funerals around 1707-8, though the specific identity of the deceased is unknown.  

• A unique “quiet” instrumentation is featured in both cantatas which highlights violas da gamba, recorders, and omits the customary instruments of the violin family. This instrumentation was often linked to funeral cantatas.  

• Rooted in the deep traditions of gospel music, Black funerals transform grief into joy, mourning into praise. Death is seen not just as the end of suffering, hardship, or injustice, but as a victory, a return to a promise fulfilled.