The Pacific Symphony, Pacific Chorale and world-class soloists come to Meng Concert Hall “a glamorous, inspiring setting,” with its “fine-tuned flexibility” (Los Angeles Times) for Mozart’s most recognized and powerful choral works — the “Requiem”— along with other works on Nov. 11, at 4 p.m.

Pacific Symphony’s Music Director Carl St.Clair looks forward to returning to Meng Concert Hall, stating, “We cherish our long-standing relationship with Cal State Fullerton and are grateful to be central to their celebrations.  Given that the Pacific Symphony was founded by leadership from the university, it is all the more fitting that we continue to present concerts on campus.

“The program that we are bringing traverses two great religious traditions: Jewish and Catholic. The first half features extraordinary music of Leonard Bernstein, his Benediction for Cantor and Orchestra, and a work by the brilliant young composer Osvaldo Golijov, who writes for Klezmer style clarinet and string orchestra. His new work, the Prayers and Dreams of Isaac the Blind, is a profoundly moving composition. To close the concert, we are pleased to offer one of the great masterworks of the literature, the Mozart Requiem, as we collaborate with our artistic partner, the Pacific Chorale. ”

The Requiem is a work that Mozart, who fell ill during the composition of it, may have felt he was writing for his own funeral — since he died just weeks before his 36th birthday, leaving it incomplete. The Requiem’s relevance continues today finding its way into popular culture through such films as “Intolerable Cruelty,” “Eyes Wide Shut” and “Primal Fear.”

Isaac the Blind reflects back eight centuries to the great kabbalist rabbi of Provence (Isaac the Blind), who dictated a manuscript in which he asserted that all things and events in the universe are products of combinations of the Hebrew alphabet’s letters: “Their root is in a name, for the letters are like branches, which appear in the manner of flickering flames, mobile, and nevertheless linked to the coal.” This unique work features Klezmer clarinetist David Krakauer.

The other work on the program, Bernstein’s Benediction from Concerto for Orchestra from “Jubilee Games,” is a moving benediction from the last years of the composer’s life, first performed under the title “Opening Prayer.” The text is the threefold priestly blessing from the Bible that is recited by Kohanim (descendant of Aaron) during the Jewish High Holidays.

Internationally acclaimed clarinetist David Krakauer, whom St.Clair says “has a wonderful reputation as one who transfixes audiences with his artistry,” is known for his mastery of myriad styles, including classical music and Eastern European Jewish Klezmer music and avant-garde improvisations. Krakauer is in demand worldwide as a guest soloist with the finest ensembles. Recent collaborations have included the Tokyo String Quartet, Kronos Quartet, Lark Quartet, Eiko and Koma, Orquesta Sinfonica de Barcelona and Brooklyn Philharmonic Orchestra. He also had an eight-year tenure with the Naumburg Award-winning Aspen Wind Quintet, and also has enjoyed enduring relationships with numerous summer festivals. Plus, as one of the foremost musicians of the new wave of Klezmer, Krakauer tours the world with his Klezmer Madness! Ensemble. He has had major profiles in The New York Times, The New Yorker, The International Herald Tribune and Downbeat, Jazz Times, Jazziz and Chamber Music magazines.