Giuseppe Verdi - Requiem / LSO; Gianandrea Noseda

Giuseppe VERDI (1813-1901)

Requiem

Soloists:

Erika Grimaldi,

 Daniela Barcellona, 

Francesco Meli,

 Michele Pertusi

 

London Symphony Orchestra, 

London Symphony Chorus

Gianandrea Noseda

Chorus Director:

Simon Halsey

Recognised as one of the leading conductors of his generation, Gianandrea Noseda gathers together an outstanding cast of Italian stars for these searing performances of Verdi’s Requiem to open the LSO’s 16/17 season.

The Requiem shows Verdi’s mastery of choral writing. It was written as a memorial for the Italian writer and poet Alessandro Manzoni and premiered on 22 May 1874 – the one-year anniversary of Manzoni’s death. Verdi’s purpose was religious as well as dramatic. His Requiem may be seen as a protest against the outrage of death as much as a plea for celestial peace and it is a work of the most highly concentrated emotion.

As Brahms described the piece after its premiere: ‘Only a genius could’ve written something like this.’

Reviews:

‘The LSO Chorus are superb throughout, as are the LSO themselves. The strings and brass, especially, respond to Noseda’s direction with refinement and panache.’

Gramophone

‘Top class vocals from both soloists and chorus members, and the LSO’s accompaniment is virtuosic.’ 

Klassikmusikk

‘The brass playing in the Tuba mirumis splendid, and the choral attack is simply breath-taking.‘ 

MusicWeb International

'What is striking are the passionate fire of this performance, the extreme dynamic range... and an incredibly sophisticated lyricism.' 

Pizzicato

‘Noseda faces the score with an intense and energetic approach, opting for timing and rhythm dramatically when the pentagram seems to require it, but opening up deep meditation in the passages most loaded with poetic and expressive value.’ 

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