Mitra's Pick: Haydn's The Creation

The Minnesota Orchestra is full of creative minds—from the musicians onstage to the behind-the-scenes administrative staff and volunteers to our passionate board members. We all come to this music from different perspectives, but we are genuinely excited to share our fantastic programming with you—for our own unique reasons.

That's why we want to share "Our Picks" with you—the programs we can't wait to see, personally. We're starting with Mitra Sadeghpour, the Orchestra's director of education and community engagement.

Before beginning her role as the leader of our Education team in 2022, Mitra enjoyed a 20-year career in the college classroom, teaching voice and opera in such schools as the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, Luther College and St. Olaf College. She continues to be a passionate educator and advocate for access to the arts for people of all ages and backgrounds. Naturally, the work she's particularly looking forward to this spring is one of the most beloved oratorios in the repertoire: Franz Joseph Haydn's The Creation.

"From the amazing vocal solos to the powerful and virtuosic choral passages and elegant orchestra, the time feels like it flies by when I sit back to listen to Haydn’s musical telling of the biblical creation story," she explains. "It is exciting how the soloists and the chorus interweave and interact at important moments as the orchestra supports and also drives the action forward. Favorite moments are the soaring phrases of the soprano soloist, the interjecting melodic lines from the winds, and the big build to the final 'Amen' section, where all the musical forces come together creating an unforgettable, heart-pounding ending."

See Mitra's pick—Haydn's The Creation—March 30-April 1!