A secular composition which describes the rituals of medieval life, the modern masterpiece has been featured everywhere from concert halls, in films, and television.

The Queensland Choir’s musical director Kevin Power said the concert in the Old Museum building at Bowen Hills will not disappoint, with its thrilling sound, three world-class soloists, two pianists, percussion and the choir combining to present the power and passion of Carmina Burana live.

“The first movement of Carmina (O Fortuna) is one of those pieces that just about everybody in the world knows because it has been used in so many commercials and films.

“And concert-goers are in for a treat with world-class Brisbane-based soloists ­­– soprano Leanne Kenneally Warnock, baritone Leon Warnock and counter-tenor Ron Morris – singing the solo parts of Carmina Burana in this performance,” said Power.

Based on a set of 254 poems written between the 11th and 13th century, Carmina Burana translates to Songs of Beuren, found in the Benedictine abbey Benediktbeuern south of Munich in Bavaria.

“Written by Bavarian music teacher and conductor Carl Orff, Carmina Burana became a worldwide hit after World War Two and is without a doubt the most successful and frequently performed work by any 20^th century composer,” said Power.

Carmina Burana has captured the imagination ever since with works that track the idiosyncrasies of medieval, and modern, life from the coming of Spring to fickleness of fortune and wealth to the perils of drinking, gluttony, and romance.

Power said that the composition has permeated the public consciousness since its creation, having traditionally been performed in classical concert halls and more recently featured throughout popular culture.

“As well as featuring in more than 20 films including Excalibur (1981), The Hunt for Red October (1990), The Doors (1991), Natural Born Killers (1994) and G-Force (2009), O Fortuna has been used in TV shows such as Glee, The X Factor and The Simpsons and to advertise everything from coffee, beer and sports drinks to cars, aftershave and pizza,” he said.

“Soprano Leanne Kenneally is a national ABC Young Performers Award winner and has performed with all of Australia’s leading opera companies and symphony orchestras, and with Germany’s Cologne Opera from 1999-2001.

“Like Leanne, her husband Leon Warnock is an award-winning Queensland Conservatorium graduate who has sung with Opera Australia, Opera Queensland and with Germany’s Theater Freiburg.

“Counter-tenor Dr Ron Morris is also a university lecturer, speech therapist and audiologist who has studied music at Trinity College, London, worked with choristers from King’s College, Cambridge and elsewhere in the UK, and is in demand nationally and internationally as a conference speaker.

“This concert is part of an exciting lead up to the Queensland Choir’s 150^th anniversary celebrations next year, and a return to the Old Museum Building – Brisbane’s main concert hall before the opening of City Hall in 1930 – where the Choir gave most of its concert performances from 1891 to 1930. We are looking forward to showcasing and enjoying Brisbane’s wealth of world-class talent.”

The Queensland Choir will present Carl Orff’s Carmina Burana conducted by Kevin Power on 21 August at the Old Museum Building, Bowen Hills. For more information, visit the Old Museum’s website.