VERDI, REQUIEM

We've all heard Hans von Bülow's sharp comment to his rival, Giuseppe Verdi , about the Requiem , “An opera in ecclesiastical garb”. The piece was composed for a huge group of 100 instruments, 120 choir singers and soloists, and it is true to say that the Messa da Requiem does tend toward the operatic, sidestepping the Catholic church and adding colour to the voices of the soloists, but it nevertheless remains a work whose power and fervour was unprecedented in the Milanese composer's career, paying homage to the hero of Italian unity, the writer Alessandro Manzoni.

With an amazing ensemble of soloists, the Greco-Russian conductor Teodor Currentzis , a huge fan of musical romanticism, will present his emotional and vibrant vision of this Italian masterpiece, at the helm of his own orchestra, MusicAeterna.