Verdi's Requiem

Synopsis

If you Google “Verdi” and “Royal Albert Hall,” you’ll probably be directed to a fine Italian restaurant named after the famous Italian opera composer that is located in that famous British concert venue, but back in 1875 the combination of Verdi and the Royal Albert Hall meant not a hot meal — but a hot ticket — for Londoners.

On today’s date that year a chorus of over 1000 and an orchestra of 150 assembled at Royal Albert Hall to give the U.K. premiere of Verdi’s Requiem Mass, a brand-new sacred work to be conducted by the composer himself.

Verdi’s “Requiem” had received its world premiere performance almost exactly one year earlier — on May 22, 1874 to be exact — at the Church of San Marco in Milan, a performance also conducted by the composer. Although it was premiered in a church, just three days later Verdi brought his Requiem to Milan’s La Scala opera house and cast the lead singers from his latest opera Aida as its four vocal soloists.

Commentators ever since have noted shared musical similarities of mood, color, and drama in these two works, and quipped Verdi’s “Requiem” might just be his greatest opera.

Music Played in Today's Program

Giuseppe Verdi (1813-1901): “Sanctus” from Requiem; Monteverdi Choir; Orchestre Revolutionnaire et Romantique; John Eliot Gardner, conductor; Decca 441142

On This Day

Births

• 1567 - Baptismal date of Italian composer Claudio Monteverdi, in Cremona

• 1808 - Irish composer Michael William Balfe, in Dublin

• 1908 - Swedish composer Lars-Erik Larsson, in Akarp (near Lund)

• 1941 - American composer and pianist Richard Wilson, in Cleveland

Premieres

• 1913 - Debussy: ballet "Jeux" (Games), at the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées by the Ballet Russe, Pierre Monteux conducting

• 1920 - Stravinsky: ballet "Pulcinella," by Ballet Russe; at the Paris Opéra, with Ernest Ansermet conducting

• 1939 - Douglas Moore: opera "The Devil and Daniel Webster," in New York City

• 1949 - Hindemith: Concerto for Winds, Harp and Orchestra, in New York

• 1949 - Randall Thompson: Symphony No. 3, Columbia University, in New York, Thor Johnson conducting

• 1958 - Cage: Piano Concerto, in New York City

• 1960 - Shostakovich: String Quartet No. 7, in Leningrad, by the Beethoven Quartet

• 1972 - Rochberg: String Quartet No. 3, at Tully Hall in New York City, by the Concord Quartet

• 1992 - Stephen Paulus: "Air on Seurat (The Grand Canal)", for cello and piano, at the National Cello Competition at Arizona State University in Phoenix, Arizona

• 1993 - Steve Reich: opera "The Cave," in Vienna at the Wiener Festspielhaus

Others

• 1750 - First documented report of an audience standing during the “Hallelujah” chorus of Handel’s Messiah. On May 1 and 15, 1750, Messiah had been performed as a benefit for the Foundling Hospital charity (Gregorian dates: May 12 and 26, respectively).