Requiem (Verdi)
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The Requiem by Giuseppe Verdi is a musical setting of the Roman Catholic funeral Mass (called the Requiem for the first word of the text, which begins Requiem aeternam dona eis, Domine, meaning, "Grant them eternal rest, O Lord" — see the entry at "Dies Irae") that was completed to mark the first anniversary of the death of Alessandro Manzoni, an Italian poet and novelist much admired by Verdi. The piece is also sometimes referred to as the Manzoni Requiem.
Historical Context
Verdi wrote the Requiem's concluding "Libera me" section in 1868, when Gioacchino Rossini died. Verdi suggested that all Italian musicians should assemble a Requiem in honor of the master opera composer and conductor and began the effort by submitting the "Libera me." During the next year a Requiem for Rossini was compiled; however, this work was never performed in Verdi's lifetime. Verdi's 1869 "Libera me" has been recorded, though. Helmuth Rilling premiered the complete Messa per Rossini 1988 in Stuttgart. Verdi kept toying with his "Libera me," frustrated that the combined commemoration of Rossini's life would not be performed.
In May of 1873, Alessandro Manzoni, whom Verdi had met in 1868, died suddenly on his way home from church. Upon hearing of his death, Verdi resolved to complete a Requiem — this time entirely of his own writing — for the humanist. Verdi travelled to Paris in June, where he commenced work on the Requiem, giving it the form we know today. The Requiem was first performed the following May in Milan, on the one-year anniversary of Manzoni's death.
Throughout the work, Verdi uses vigorous rhythms, sublime melodies, and dramatic contrasts--much as he did in his operas--to express the powerful emotions engendered by the text. The terrifying (and instantly recognizable) "Dies Irae" that introduces the traditional sequence of the Latin funeral rite is repeated throughout for a sense of unity, which allows Verdi to explore the feelings of loss and sorrow as well as the human desire for forgiveness and mercy found in the intervening movements of the Requiem. Trumpets surround the stage to produce an inescapable call to Judgement in the "Tuba mirum" (the resulting combination of brass and choral quadruple-fortissimo markings resulting in some of the loudest unamplified music ever written), and the almost oppressive atmosphere of the "Rex tremendae" creates a sense of unworthiness before the King of Tremendous Majesty. Yet the well-known tenor solo "Ingemisco" radiates hope for the sinner who asks for the Lord's mercy.
The joyful "Sanctus" (a complicated eight-part fugue scored for double chorus) begins with brassy fanfare to announce him "who comes in the name of the Lord" and leads into an angelic "Agnus Dei" sung by the female soloists with the chorus. Finally the "Libera me," the oldest music by Verdi in the Requiem, interrupts to intone every man's aching desire to be delivered from oblivion. Here the soprano cries out, begging, "Free me, Lord, from eternal death.... when you will come to judge the world by fire."
Structure of the Work
1. REQUIEM Aeternam and KYRIE Eleison (chorus, soloists)
2. DIES IRAE
- - Dies Irae (chorus)
- - Tuba Mirum (chorus, bass)
- - Mors Stupebit (bass)
- - Liber Scriptus (mezzo-soprano, chorus)
- - Quid Sum Miser (soprano, mezzo-soprano, tenor)
- - Rex Tremendae (soloists, chorus)
- - Recordare (soprano, mezzo-soprano)
- - Ingemisco (tenor)
- - Confutatis (bass, chorus)
- - Lacrimosa (soloists, chorus)
- - Domine Jesu Christe
- - Hostias
5. AGNUS DEI (soprano, mezzo-soprano, chorus)
6. LUX AETERNA (mezzo-soprano, tenor, bass)
7. LIBERA ME (soprano, chorus)
- - Libera Me (I)
- - Dies Irae
- - Requiem Aeternam
- - Libera Me (II)
Recordings
- Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, Robert Shaw conducting. Telarc - #80152 (1990).
- Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, Georg Solti conducting. RCA - #61403 (1993, re-release of a 1977 Grammy-winning recording - the Dies Irae section from the same recording was first released on Compact Disc by RCA in 1990 for a special Chicago Symphony centennial box set).
- London Symphony Orchestra, Leonard Bernstein conducting. Sony - #47639
- Orchestre Revolutionnaire et Romantique with the Monteverdi Choir, John Eliot Gardiner conducting. Polygram Records - #442142 (1995).
- Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano Giuseppe Verdi with Coro Sinfonico di Milano Giuseppe Verdi, Riccardo Chailly conducting. Sacred Works, includes Libera Me from Messa per Rossini (1869 version). Decca - #467280-2 (2001).
- Vienna Philharmonic and Vienna State Opera Chorus, Georg Solti conducting, featuring Luciano Pavarotti, Joan Sutherland, Marilyn Horne and Martti Talvela. Polygram Records - #411944 (1990).
- Kirov Orchestra and Chorus, Velery Gergiev conducting, featuring Renée Fleming, Olga Borodina, Andrea Bocelli, Ildebrando D'Arcangelo. Decca - (2000).
- Berlin Philharmonic, Claudio Abbado conducting, featuring Angela Gheorghiu, Daniela Barcellona, Roberto Alagna, Julian Konstantinov. EMI - #57168 (2001)
- La Scala, Milan, Victor de Sabata conducting, live performance featuring Renata Tebaldi, 1951
Popular culture usage
Verdi's Requiem has been used in some works of popular culture such as films and (media type). The Dies Irae portion of the Requiem is the most often used. The strong music and lyrics depict scenes of catastrophe, warfare, dystopia, horror and tragedy. Here are some works in which Verdi's Requiem was performed:
- The Dies Irae is heard during the opening of the Japanese film Battle Royale and its sequel . It is performed by the Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra and its choir, directed by Japanese composer Masamichi Amano.
- It was also used in an educational video about chlamydia to accompany the main character's visions of death.
External links
- [Recordings of Verdi's Requiem]
- [Live Recording of Liber Scriptus portion of Requiem (Mary Gayle Greene, mezzo-soprano)]
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