"It's one of the most fantastic works ever," conductor Werner Andreas Albert says.
"You have such a huge number of people on stage and you can't afford to do that very often. There are six percussionists and two pianos, three soloists, a youth choir, children's choir . . . it's just huge."
More than 200 singers and musicians will be on stage for the concert, including members of the City of Dunedin Choir, St Paul Choristers and Southern Children's Youth Choir and Southern Sinfonia.
The soloists are soprano Barbara Graham, tenor John Murray and baritone Jared Holt.
Carmina Burana tells colourful and salacious medieval tales about wine, women and song.
"It's very, very popular. It's the most performed orchestra and choir work in the world," Albert says.
"Many of the stories were written by Bavarian monks about Bavarian peasant life. Some of them are a little bit naughty and dangerous."
The concert will also feature Pirogov/Cauldron Lighting, by Wellington composer John Psathas, who composed the theme music for the Olympic Games opening ceremony in Beijing tomorrow night.
The programme is completed with Rachmaninov's Cinq Études-Tableaux.
The Southern Sinfonia performs Carmina Burana at 8pm on Saturday in the Dunedin Town Hall.
