Contents
Giuseppe Verdi (1813-1901): Requiem
[CD1]
1. Requiem et Kyrie
Sequence
2. Dies Iræ (The Day of Wrath)
3. Tuba mirum (The Wonderful Sound of the Trumpet)
4. Liber scriptus (The Book Written)
5. Quid sum mise (I Am Wretched)
6. Rex tremendæ (The Great King)
7. Recordare (Remember)
8. Ingemisco (I Lament)
9. Confutatis (Condemned, Damned)
10. Lacrymosa (The Day of Tears)
[CD2]
Offertorio
1. Domine, Jesu Christe (Lord, Jesus Christ)
2. Hostias (Hospitality and Prayer of Praise)
3. Sanctus und Benedictus Holy and blessed be He.
4. Agnus Dei (Lamb of God)
COMMUNIO (Communion)
5. Lux aeterna (Perpetual Light)
RESPONSORIO (Response)
6. Libera me (Save me)
Jessye Norman (Soprano)
Agnes Baltsa (Mezzo-Soprano)
José Carreras (Tenor)
Evgeny Nesterenko (Bass)
Bavarian Radio Chorus (Choral Director: Gordon Kember)
Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra
Riccardo Muti (Conductor)
Recorded live on October 8 and 9, 1981
Herkulessaal, Munich, Germany
[Long-awaited first CD release from the official recording! Muti's Verdi Requiem with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra in 1981
This highly anticipated performance of Verdi's Requiem, held at the Herkulessaal in Munich in October 1981, features some of the finest soloists of the time—Jessye Norman, Agnes Baltsa, José Carreras, and Evgeny Nesterenko—and features the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and Chorus conducted by Riccardo Muti. Now, 40 years later, BR-KLASSIK is releasing this highly anticipated performance. While Verdi's Requiem was rarely performed in Munich at the time, the intense performance led by Muti, then 40 years old, left a powerful impact on audiences and became a legendary recording. Critics raved, writing, "North of the Alps has never heard such a masterful performance," "The performance, in a style befitting Verdi, was both terrifying and sweet, offering a glimpse into a transcendental realm," "The brass sounds seemed to resonate from the otherworld," and "It was something extraordinary, unlike anything I'd ever seen, heard, or experienced in my life." Muti's conducting, which never let the music slacken for even a moment with its powerful momentum, the four soloists' impassioned singing, and the dazzling sound of the orchestra and chorus all add up to the rave reviews that were surely justified at the time.
Media Reviews and More
This concert of Verdi's Requiem was held at the Herkulessaal in Munich in October 1981. Featuring some of the finest singers of the time, Jessye Norman, Agnes Baltsa, José Carreras, and Evgeny Nesterenko as soloists, and conducted by Riccardo Muti with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, this remarkable performance is now being released by BR-KLASSIK 40 years later. (C)RS
