Geistliche Lieder — Spiritual Songs

Following the enormous success of "A Christmas with Bach - a drawer and a journey", the Coro Amigos do Conservatório Nacional wants to bring you a new program this Easter, in three concerts for choir and organ.

Geistliche Lieder (Spiritual Songs) is the musical offering of the Coro Amigos do Conservatório Nacional (CACN) for the end of Lent 2026, in concerts to be held on March 27th, 28th, and 29th, in three churches in the city of Lisbon, equipped with extraordinary organs: the Church of São Tomás de Aquino , in Laranjeiras; the Church of São Francisco de Assis , in Penha de França; and the Church of Nossa Senhora do Rosário de Fátima , on Avenida de Berna. We will present works for choir and organ by three great composers of German Romanticism: Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847), Johannes Brahms (1833-1897) and Josef Rheinberger (1839-1901).

Both terms in the expression Geistliche Lieder are used in a broad sense: Lieder are not songs in the strict sense—short pieces for solo voice and piano—but works adapted to the possibilities of the choir; and the spirituality evoked by Geistliche encompasses diverse modalities—although the texts come from the Judeo-Christian tradition, they maintain an openness of meaning that welcomes other spiritual expressions, in line with the Romantic interest in non-European cultures, which is still relevant today.

The program includes the following pieces:

– Verleih uns Frieden gnädiglich (MWV A 11) and Drei geistliche Lieder (MWV B 33), by Mendelssohn;
– Geistliches Lied (op. 30) and Begräbnisgesang (op. 13), by Brahms;
– Stabat Mater (op. 138), by Rheinberger.

Your help is essential.

The Coro Amigos do Conservatório Nacional (CACN) needs partial funding to offer these works to the city of Lisbon. Although the Easter concerts have lower costs than our Christmas choral-symphonic programs, the pieces still require the participation of professional musicians. As the choir is primarily supported by the monthly fees of its members, without this support, it will not be possible to hold the three planned concerts.

What unites amateur singers in this project is the desire to perform repertoire that they could hardly sing individually and to share it with the public. We seek to provide close, free, and accessible contact with works that normally can only be heard in paid concert halls.

The goal of CACN and conductor Luís Lopes Cardoso is to present to the public the result of many months of work by approximately 65 choristers, enriched by collaboration with musicians and soloists. These concerts, offered to the city, contribute to strengthening the spirit of community and conviviality during a particularly significant time of year.

To make this program a reality, it is essential to hire a solo singer and an organist. Their contribution is crucial for these concerts to take place and for us to be able to open our doors, free of charge, to all who wish to hear us.

A special reward

This time, in addition to the rewards we have always given in exchange for your contributions — reserved seats or participation in a choir rehearsal — we have a special reward for those who contribute at the highest level: the first ten will receive a work of art by Pedro Calapez, a renowned Portuguese visual artist.

Spiritual Counterpoints

Counterpoint is not ornamentation; it is a structural mechanism. Just as independent lines sustain form and harmony in music, in the visual arts we can find one color affected by another, or a line crossing a plane in an unusual but balanced way. Unexpected situations between backgrounds, lines, colors, or textures react in harmony but also in counterpoint, achieving the balance of the plastic surface in a dialogue between distinct elements. It is from within, from the background plane, that different elements emerge, overlapping or mixing. The apparent disorder of planes in visual space expresses the dissonant or convergent spiritual. It is from within that spirituality is revealed.

Calapez, January 2026

The works Spiritual Counterpoints #1, #2, #3, #4, and #5 are available in a total of ten copies, two of each. As contributions arrive, we will contact each person to choose their preferred work from those still available.

About the author

Since 2014, the Coro Amigos do Conservatório Nacional (CACN), directed by conductor Luís Lopes Cardoso, has presented choral and symphonic repertoire to the city of Lisbon, performing mainly during festive periods in various churches that host us, including the Church of Nossa Senhora da Conceição ao Rato, the Basilica of Estrela, Santo Condestável, and the Church of São Domingos. The concerts are free of charge and regularly have full houses, whose audience rewards us with their presence and applause.

Over the years, the choir has performed works by Bach, Byrd, Buxtehude, Schütz, Haydn, Rheinberger, Vivaldi, Brahms, Handel, Mozart, and Mendelssohn, among others. CACN brings together choristers of various nationalities and cultivates an eclectic repertoire encompassing classical, religious, traditional, popular, and modern music.

Last Christmas, we held four concerts for over 2,500 people, offering the city a program featuring works by Bach, Caldara, and Zelenka. This Easter, we want to present Mendelssohn, Brahms, and Rheinberger in three concerts, the realization of which depends on your contribution.

The approximately sixty-five choir members, distributed across four sections, contribute monthly dues to ensure the choir's regular activity. However, hiring professional musicians—namely, an organist and soloist—involves additional costs that we can only cover with external support. Help us bring music to you and make Easter more beautiful and compassionate.

Our conductor: Luís Lopes Cardoso holds a degree in Composition and a master's degree in Choral Conducting from the Lisbon Higher School of Music, where he studied with Luís Tinoco, Christopher Bochmann, António Pinho Vargas, and Paulo Vassalo Lourenço. He attended choral conducting courses in Aveiro and Évora and previously conducted the re:canto group. Since 2014, he has been the musical director and principal conductor of CACN, regularly performing a cappella repertoire in concert, with instrumental ensembles, and with orchestras. Since the end of 2025, he has also conducted the Xuventude Coral, from the Galician Centre of Lisbon, and the Atlantic Vocal Ensemble.

André Ferreira, a Portuguese organist, graduated from the Amsterdam Conservatory and completed his master's degree at the Lisbon Higher School of Music. He has performed as a soloist and in ensembles in several European countries, regularly collaborates as a liturgical organist in Lisbon, and is also dedicated to teaching and promoting the organ.

Susana Moody is a singer specializing in early music, with regular activity in choral and solo repertoire. Since 1991 she has been a member of the Choir of the São Carlos National Theatre, has participated in numerous operatic and symphonic-choral productions, and frequently collaborates with groups dedicated to early music, also developing pedagogical activity in the area of singing.

Budget and due dates

The concerts will be free of charge, as are all CACN concerts, since our goal is to promote classical music to a wider audience.

The concerts will take place on March 27th, 28th, and 29th in three churches in Lisbon.

We need €1250 in partial funding, which will cover the participation of professional musicians, an organist, and a contralto soloist in concerts and rehearsals.

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