The Creation by Haydn

Saturday, May 2, 2026 at 7:00 PM, The Park Church, Elmira

Experience the awe and majesty of Haydn’s The Creation, a musical journey from chaos to light, brought to life by full orchestra, the Chorus of the Southern Finger Lakes, and soloists. Inspired by the Book of Genesis and Milton’s Paradise Lost, this timeless masterpiece bursts with vivid imagery, heavenly harmonies, and dramatic storytelling.

Whether you're a classical music lover or simply curious to hear the power of over a hundred voices and instruments in delightful harmony, The Creation is a feast for the senses—and a triumphant celebration of life, nature, and the divine.

Come as you are, bring a friend, and enjoy an evening of music that’s both powerful and unforgettable.
*No experience needed—just a sense of wonder.

Fun for the whole family, kids under 18 are free with an adult ticket purchase.

Join us throughout May as we celebrate From Genesis to Now.

The Cantata Singers, and the Orchestra and Chorus of the Southern Finger Lakes join forces to present the classical grandeur Joseph Haydn’s 1798 masterpiece The Creation on Saturday, May 2, and Dan Forrest’s cinematic, exuberant telling of the story of Creation on Saturday, May 23.

2025-2026 ORCHESTRA SERIES

Saturday, May 2
7:00 PM
The Park Church

208 W Gray St, Elmira, NY 14901
(Main entrance on Church Street)

Adults: $29-$59*
Students: $15* (ID required)
Under 18: FREE (with adult ticket purchase)

Buy Tickets

*Additional fees apply.
Program subject to change.

Program Update: Change in Soloist

Due to unforeseen circumstances, the originally scheduled soloist, Marc Webster, is no longer able to perform in this Saturday’s concert. We are grateful to welcome acclaimed soloist, Todd Thomas. Recognized by opera companies and critics alike as one of the true Verdi baritones gracing stages today, Todd Thomas is one of America’s most sought-after artists.

We look forward to an inspiring evening of music and are excited to share this program with you.

Meet the Soloists

Rachel Schutz, soprano
Welsh-American soprano Rachel Schutz is known for her sensitive and evocative performances and wide range of repertoire. She enjoys a multi-faceted career which includes opera, concert, and recital performances, and in in recent seasons won first place in both the 44th NATS Artist Award Competition and the Pro Musicis Competition.

A seasoned recitalist, Ms. Schutz has been invited to perform at prestigious venues around the world including Carnegie Hall's Stern, Zankel and Weill Halls; the Ravinia, Ojai, and Yellow Barn Festivals; the Tanglewood Music Center; the Dame Myra Hess Memorial Concert Series; the Honolulu Chamber Music Series; the Hawaiʻi Concert Society; the Maui Arts and Cultural Center; and in venues around China, Taiwan, Korea, Thailand and Germany. Equally at home in concert repertoire, she has performed numerous times with the Hawaiʻi Symphony Orchestra, with the Boston Pops Orchestra, and with the Riverside and Stony Brook Symphonies, and recently gave the premier of Zhou Long’s Men of Iron and the Golden Spike with the Orchestra NOW. Ms. Schutz’s recent opera roles have included Lise in Glass's Les enfants terribles, Thérèse in Les mamelles de Tirésias and Jessie in Mahagonny Songspiel with Opera Parallèle; Papagena in Die Zauberflöte, Johanna in Sweeney Todd and Diana in Dove's Siren Song with Hawaiʻi Opera Theatre; Gretel in Hansel und Gretel, Adele in Die Fledermaus and Susanna in Le nozze di Figaro with Stockton Opera, and Maguelonne in Cendrillon (Viardot) and Ginsburg in Scalia/Ginsburg with Opera Ithaca.

In addition to her performance career, Ms. Schutz is a dedicated teacher and active scholar. In the fall of 2018 she joined the faculty of Ithaca College and is currently writing a book on Welsh vocal repertoire and diction for Routledge Press. Ms. Schutz holds degrees from Stony Brook University, Bard College, and the University of Hawai’i at Manoa.

Jonathan Boyd, tenor
Jonathan Boyd a native of Corning, New York consistently performs to great acclaim in Europe, North America, and South America. Mr. Boyd’s career highlights include Idomeneo with Opera Grand Avignon (France) Lensky in Eugene Onegin with Opéra-Théâtre de Metz Métropole (France) with a repise in the role while making his company debut with L’Opéra de Reims (France). Mr. Boyd performed the title role in Werther in a live HD broadcast with Teatro Colón (Argentina) and reprised the role with Scottish National Opera. The roles of Faust, Candide, and Sam in Street Scene were all debuted with Portland Opera (Oregon) and with Opera di Firenze Maggio Musicale (Italy) in the role of Le Prince in L’Amour des Trois Oranges. Mr. Boyd’s San Diego Opera debut was in the role of Green Horn in Jake Heggie’s Moby Dick.

Mr. Boyd’s signature roles include Alfredo with over 8 productions of La Traviata including Deutsche Oper am Rhein (Germany) and The Icelandic Opera (Iceland), Don Ottavio with over 9 productions including Opera Royal de Wallonie (Belgium), Dallas Opera, Opera Colorado, and Live HD Streaming broadcast from Teatro Colón (Argentina); Tamino with over 5 productions of Die Zauberflöte including Seattle Opera (Washington) and Teatru Manoel (Malta); Roméo with over 9 productions in Roméo et Juliette including Michigan Opera Theater (Detroit) and Opéra de Toulon (France); and Tom Rakewell with 6 productions including the Hockney production with Portland Opera (Oregon) and a new production with Teatro Municipal de Santiago (Chile).

Mr. Boyd’s concert appearances have included the New York Philharmonic in Bach’s St. Matthew Passion. The Philadelphia Orchestra in a recording of Leoncavallo’s Pagliacci. Additionally, Mr. Boyd has performed Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 with Opéra de Rouen Haute Normandie (France), Britten’s War Requiem for Orquesta Filarmónica de Bogotá (Columbia), Mendelssohn’s Elijah with Forth Worth Symphony, Haydn’s Creation with the Choral Arts Society at the Kennedy Center, Mozart’s Requiem at Carnegie Hall, Dvořák’s Stabat Mater with Orchestre Métropolitain du Grand Montréal, Rachmaninoff’s Vespers with the Choral Arts Society in Washington D.C., Mozart’s Solemn Vespers at Carnegie Hall and with Maestro Nicholas McGegan and the Philharmonia Baroque, Handel’s Messiah. With I Musici de Montréal Mr. Boyd was heard in Finzi’s Dies Natalis and Britten’s Les Illuminations, and with Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra and in a live TV broadcast with Virginia Symphony the role of Mozart in Rimsky-Korsakov’s Mozart and Salieri. Most recently Mr. Boyd was the tenor soloist in Rossini’s Stabat Mater with Winter Park Bach Festival.

Todd Thomas, bass
Recognized as one of the true Verdi baritones gracing stages today, Todd Thomas continues to be one of America’s most sought-after artists. This season, Mr. Thomas performed the role of Michele/Schicchi in Il Trittico with Pacific Opera Victoria, the title role in Rigoletto with Florida Grand Opera, reprised his performance as Melchoir in Amahl and the Night Visitors with Steamboat Springs Symphony, and returns to Theater Erfurt as the title role in Nabucco. Additional recent engagements include his Opera Shanghai début as the title role in Wagner’s Der fliegende Holländer, which he also performed with Theater Erfurt and Baltimore Concert Opera, a return to Opera Omaha as Tonio/Alfio in I Pagliacci/Cavalleria Rusticana, and Scarpia in Tosca with New Jersey Festival Orchestra. He also performed the title role of Falstaff with the Crested Butte Festival.

Concert Repertoire

View Concert Program Insert

Welcome

The Creation, an Oratorio Joseph Haydn (1732-1809)
- Parts I and II

Intermission

The Creation, an Oratorio Joseph Haydn (1732-1809)
- Part III

Performed by:

Orchestra and Chorus of the Southern Finger Lakes

Cantata Singers

Rachel Schutz, soprano

Jonathan Boyd, tenor

Todd Thomas, bass

Composed in 1798, The Creation stands as one of Joseph Haydn’s crowning achievements and one of the great choral masterworks of the Classical era. Inspired by Handel’s English oratorios, which Haydn heard during his visits to London, The Creation is based on the Book of Genesis, the Psalms, and Milton’s Paradise Lost. The libretto was written by Baron Gottfried van Swieten, a Viennese patron of Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven. Like Milton, Van Swieten uses three archangels, Gabriel, Uriel, and Raphael, as narrators.

Haydn wrote the work in both German and English at the same time. The oratorio unfolds in three parts. The first two depict the biblical creation of the world in six days, from the mysterious “Representation of Chaos” to the radiant chorus “The heavens are telling,” celebrating the completion of God’s work. The third part turns to Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, offering music of pastoral warmth and lyrical intimacy. For concision, our performance omits five numbers (5, 6, 23, 28 and 29).

Know Before You Go

The Park Church
208 W Gray St, Elmira, NY 14901
(Main entrance on Church Street)

For specific information on parking and how to get there, visit The Park Church's website.

You'll receive an email before the performance with everything you need to know, and any special announcements about the show. Here are some of the most frequently asked questions:

No, tickets are not refundable. However, they are transferrable! Pass your tickets along to a friend if you can't make it to the show.
Yes, tickets are transferrable. Pass your tickets along to a friend if you can't make it to the show.
Definitely not! While some of our patrons enjoy dressing up for a night out at the orchestra, it's certainly not a requirement and there is no dress code for any of our performances.
Run time for the concert is approximately 110 minutes and includes a 15 minute intermission.