Giuseppe Verdi - Messa da Requiem

Although Requiem was a religious work, it was presented more in concert halls than in churches. Giuseppe Verdi wrote the famous Requiem in honour of his close friend, Alessandro Manzoni, the great Italian poet, writer, and humanist, who died in 1873. It is a powerful fusion of intense drama and passion, with moments of reverent simplicity. Verdi conducted the first performance at St. Mark's Church in Milan on May 22, 1874, the first anniversary of Manzoni's death. Revolutionary composition Verdi's Requiem has been revolutionary in two respects: First, because while the traditional requiem is a prayer of the living for the dead, Verdi's work was a function as much for the living as for the dead. As Verdi would expect, it's a dramatic, theatrical play. Written for four solo voices (soprano, mezzo-soprano, tenor and bass) with full choir and orchestra, it follows the typical Roman Catholic Latin mass for the dead. The "libretto" certainly comes from the dram
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Mendelssohn - Song Without Words

from Book 5, Op. 62


The term "Song Without Words" was introduced by Mendelssohn to describe a solo piano that employs a singing melody accompanied by bass (left hand). He published eight books with such "Songs" over a period of thirteen years. What we present here comes from the Fifth Book published in 1843.

Mendelssohn wrote a total of 48 compositions of this kind. These are familiar miniatures that were written to be played in the evenings at friendly gatherings.

Mendelssohn deliberately wrote these songmelodies without words, because he thought words would limit the emotional wealth he wanted to express. This short work, written in 1842-4, is a dark and imposing mourning march. Perfectly crafted and measured, it conveys a sense of gentle melancholy and like almost all of these pieces, it is unpretentious and sincere.




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