Ravinia 2026 Issue 2

In 2021, the Los Angeles Philharmonic approached the composer about a possible commission. “It was basically carte blanche,” he said. “What do you want to write?” He didn’t have a have an answer right away, but he knew he wanted a film component because of Los Angeles’s important ties to the movie industry, as well as a choral element. Many of his most significant creations in recent years have been choral works in part because of his love of writing for the voice. He also has an extensive history with choirs, from his church growing up and as a singer and accompanist for the glee club during all of four of his years at Morehouse College. “I know a lot about writing for choir,” he said. “It’s my experience.” After some reflection, Simon told the leaders at the LA Phil that he wanted to write a Mass that was in line with his musical heritage, combining gospel music with spirituality and faith. “They were all ears and gave me a lot of support for that,” he said. The resulting 50-minute work combines a jazz combo, a narrator, gospel soloists, and a gospel choir. “I wanted to make sure that everyone has their own equal weight in the piece,” Si- mon said. “So, everybody has equal time, including the soloists.” Structured as 16 movements in three acts, Good News Mass draws on elements of the traditional Catholic Mass, but it updates and adapts that form with a libretto by Courtney Ware and poetry by spoken word artist Marc Bamuthi Joseph, who will take part in Ravinia’s performance. Adrian Dunn, the founder and music director of his namesake touring choir, likes the stylistic variety in the piece, from sections that have a traditional choral sensibility to others that have what he called a “quartet gospel, down-home, Southern feeling” and still others that sound like the liturgical music heard in African American churches today. According to Alisha Lola Jones’s program notes for the work, it “navigates the deep waters of human experience—loss, thanksgiving, joy, and hope—asking us to reflect on the divine presence in life’s struggles and triumphs.” Accompanying the music is a series of five video vignettes by Melina Matsoukas that explore what the composer described as the sacred outside the walls of the church. She has directed videos for artists like Beyoncé, Jennifer Lopez, Lady Gaga, and Rihanna. The LA Phil premiered the piece in April 2025 with a performance that music critic Mark Swed described in the Los Angeles Times as creating a “near frenzy” in Walt Disney Concert Hall. “Stylistically, Simon smoothly moves from char- ismatic symphonic writing through a wide range of African American musical styles, leaving improvisational room for the vocal soloists,” the critic wrote. Featured as soloists in the Ravinia performance will be soprano Kymberli Joye and tenors Zebulon Ellis (who also took part in the Los Angeles premiere) and Bernard Holcomb. The Adrian Dunn Singers have appeared twice previously at Ravinia in performances also led by Alsop. “You can just tell that she loves collaborating with folks, and she is always present and wanting to bring the best out of everyone involved,” Dunn said, “and I think that’s always a major plus when you are premiering works.” The usually 12-member choir has been aug- mented to some 80 singers for this performance, and they have been rehearsing since May. “It will be exciting,” Dunn said. Part of the instrumentation for the Good News Mass is the Hammond B3, an electric organ that was produced in 1954–75 and became a staple of church music. (It has since been rep- licated by other companies, and those models are sometimes used in place of a genuine B3.) It has also been the instrument of choice of such jazz musicians as Joey DeFrancesco, Shirley Scott, and Jimmy Smith, who like the tremolo and vibrato effects produced by its Leslie speakers. Simon will serve as the B3 soloist for the Ravinia concert. “I grew up playing the Ham- mond organ in my father’s church, so I feel very comfortable [on it],” he said. While further premier performances of Good News Mass are still to come, including a set at the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra in April 2027, the ever-in-demand composer has other projects underway as well. The Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra is premiering Simon’s The After Party! in September and taking it on a subsequent European tour. The new work was written for countertenor John Holiday and celebrates the birth of the Harlem Renaissance. “I’m very happy,” Simon said. “I wake up everyday grateful for the things that I’ve been able to do and the things that are still coming. It’s been a wild ride but it has been very much enjoyable.” Kyle MacMillan served as classical music critic for the Denver Post from 2000 through 2011. He currently freelances in Chicago, writing for such publications as the Chicago Sun-Times , Early Music America , Opera News , and Classical Voice of North America . RAVINIAMAGAZINE • JULY 20 – AUGUST 2 , 2026 22 KENDALLBESSENT