by Brian Hathaway
The performances of Giuseppe Verdi’s Requiem by The Florida Orchestra and The Master Chorale of Tampa Bay are only about a month away on the weekend of April 20-22. As part of The Florida Orchestra’s Masterwork Series, Verdi’s Requiem is one of the most dramatic Requiems in the choral repertoire.
When I prepare for a Masterwork Concert, there are several components to my preparation, including score study, individual practice, and rehearsal with my Master Chorale colleagues. To further enhance my understanding of the music, I research the history of the music, so I can better appreciate what the composer was trying to achieve in composing and performing it. During my research for this concert series, I uncovered several facts about Verdi and his Requiem. Some of these facts are very well known, while others may qualify as trivial or little-known facts. I would like to share the facts I uncovered.
When I prepare for a Masterwork Concert, there are several components to my preparation, including score study, individual practice, and rehearsal with my Master Chorale colleagues. To further enhance my understanding of the music, I research the history of the music, so I can better appreciate what the composer was trying to achieve in composing and performing it. During my research for this concert series, I uncovered several facts about Verdi and his Requiem. Some of these facts are very well known, while others may qualify as trivial or little-known facts. I would like to share the facts I uncovered.
| Giuseppe Verdi was a man of great spirituality. But, after his childhood, when he walked three miles to church every Sunday morning to his job as organist in Busetto, he distanced himself from the Church. Years later, when he was famous and wealthy, he would drive his wife Giuseppina to church, but wouldn't go in with her. He was never an atheist; simply, as Giuseppina put it, "a very doubtful believer." Like Brahms' A German Requiem completed five years earlier, Verdi's Requiem Mass is a deeply religious work written by a great skeptic. Verdi famously wrote, “For some virtuous people a belief in God is necessary. Others, equally perfect, while observing every precept of the highest moral code, are happier believing in nothing.” | Verdi Requiem April 20, 21, 22, 2018 with The Florida Orchestra & The Master Chorale of Tampa Bay Michael Francis, conductor Janice Chandler-Eteme, soprano Nancy Maltusby, mezzo Derek Taylor, tenor Tim Mix, bass-baritone The Master Chorale prepared by Dr. Beth Gibbs |
The story of Verdi’s Requiem begins in 1868, with the death of Gioachino Rossini in Paris. Verdi suggested that the city of Bologna, where Rossini grew up and first tasted success, honor him with a composite “Messe per Rossini,” commissioning separate movements from Italy's leading composers. The idea was approved, and the various movements were assigned. Diplomatically, Verdi was given the final “Libera me” and the mass was completed, but a performance never took place.
At the time of Rossini's death, Verdi called him "one of the glories of Italy," asking, "When the other one who still lives is no more, what will we have left?" The other one was Alessandro Manzoni, a celebrated poet, and the author of the landmark nineteenth-century novel, “I Promessi Sposi” (The Betrothed), a book Verdi himself had read when he was sixteen. When Manzoni died on May 22, 1873, Verdi returned to the idea of a requiem.
When poet and novelist Alessandro Manzoni died, Verdi was too grief-stricken to attend his funeral, and the entire country mourned the loss of one of its leading cultural icons. Verdi shared the same national aspirations that Manzoni had, and Manzoni’s literature helped fuel an Italian national identity. Verdi also supported Italian unification, and his last name was used as an acronym for support of unification under Sardinian King Victor Emanuel: Vittorio Emanuel, Rei di Italia (Victor Emanuel, King of Italy). Following unification in 1860, Verdi served as a Senator.
When poet and novelist Alessandro Manzoni died, Verdi was too grief-stricken to attend his funeral, and the entire country mourned the loss of one of its leading cultural icons. Verdi shared the same national aspirations that Manzoni had, and Manzoni’s literature helped fuel an Italian national identity. Verdi also supported Italian unification, and his last name was used as an acronym for support of unification under Sardinian King Victor Emanuel: Vittorio Emanuel, Rei di Italia (Victor Emanuel, King of Italy). Following unification in 1860, Verdi served as a Senator.
Verdi went to the mayor of Milan and proposed composing a memorial in the form of a requiem to honor the memory of Manzoni. Verdi reworked the existing Libera me from the “Messe per Rossini” and incorporated thematic material from it in the other movements. While he was quite sincere in his desire to memorialize Manzoni, Verdi, a successful businessman, was also aware of the commercial possibilities for the Requiem. While he was negotiating with the city of Milan to underwrite the premiere and with the Church to allow women singers to appear, he was also arranging publication and performance royalties. As part of the arrangement with the city of Milan, Verdi offered to pay for the score printing himself on the condition that Milan assume responsibility for the cost of the performances.
The premiere took place in May 22, 1874, at the Church of San Marco as part of a liturgy so no applause was allowed. Women (Soprano Theresa Stolz and Mezzo Maria Waldmann, soloists who performed in Verdi’s European premiere of Aida four years earlier) were given a special exemption to perform by the local Archbishop on the condition that they must be veiled in black and hidden behind a grating. Verdi also arranged three concert performances at La Scala a few days later which were greeted with great enthusiasm. In the year following the premiere, it was performed all over Italy, in Paris, London, Vienna and even in America. The Requiem had become one of Verdi's most popular compositions.
The premiere took place in May 22, 1874, at the Church of San Marco as part of a liturgy so no applause was allowed. Women (Soprano Theresa Stolz and Mezzo Maria Waldmann, soloists who performed in Verdi’s European premiere of Aida four years earlier) were given a special exemption to perform by the local Archbishop on the condition that they must be veiled in black and hidden behind a grating. Verdi also arranged three concert performances at La Scala a few days later which were greeted with great enthusiasm. In the year following the premiere, it was performed all over Italy, in Paris, London, Vienna and even in America. The Requiem had become one of Verdi's most popular compositions.
Verdi composed his Requiem with Soprano Theresa Stolz and Mezzo Maria Waldmann in mind as the female soloists. Soprano Stolz has been described as "the Verdian dramatic soprano par excellence, powerful, passionate in utterance, but dignified in manner and secure in tone and control” and premiered many of Verdi’s Operas. Verdi hired Mezzo Waldmann for the mezzo-soprano role in his Requiem, for which he wrote the Liber Scriptus with her voice in mind. Verdi particularly valued her for the rich, dark color of her lower, contralto register. For a Paris performance, Verdi revised the Liber Scriptus to allow Maria Waldmann a further solo for future performances. Previously, the movement had been set for a choral fugue in a classical Baroque style. With its premiere at the Royal Albert Hall performance in May 1875, this revision became the definitive edition.
When German conductor, composer, and virtuoso pianist Hans von Bülow, a close friend of Verdi’s rival Richard Wagner, stole a look at the Requiem score just days before the Milan premiere, he offered his famous snap judgment, "Verdi's latest opera, though in ecclesiastical robes," and decided not to attend the concert. When he finally heard it, at a parish performance eighteen years later, he was moved to tears. Bülow wrote to Verdi to apologize, and Verdi replied, with typical generosity, that Bülow might have been right the first time. By then, Verdi had grown accustomed to critical disdain, especially from the followers of Richard Wagner. And he knew that Bülow, who once switched his allegiance from Wagner to Brahms, wasn't the last listener who would change his mind about this music as well.
When German conductor, composer, and virtuoso pianist Hans von Bülow, a close friend of Verdi’s rival Richard Wagner, stole a look at the Requiem score just days before the Milan premiere, he offered his famous snap judgment, "Verdi's latest opera, though in ecclesiastical robes," and decided not to attend the concert. When he finally heard it, at a parish performance eighteen years later, he was moved to tears. Bülow wrote to Verdi to apologize, and Verdi replied, with typical generosity, that Bülow might have been right the first time. By then, Verdi had grown accustomed to critical disdain, especially from the followers of Richard Wagner. And he knew that Bülow, who once switched his allegiance from Wagner to Brahms, wasn't the last listener who would change his mind about this music as well.
Playwright and music critic George Bernard Shaw had a different opinion. Attending the London premiere, Verdi’s Requiem captivated him. His first impression stayed with him, as he had the “Libera me” performed at his funeral in 1950.
In January 1901, while staying in Milan, Verdi suffered a stroke. He died a few days later. Arturo Toscanini conducted the vast forces of combined orchestras and choirs composed of musicians from throughout Italy at his funeral service in Milan. To date, it remains the largest public assembly of any event in the history of Italy.
In January 1901, while staying in Milan, Verdi suffered a stroke. He died a few days later. Arturo Toscanini conducted the vast forces of combined orchestras and choirs composed of musicians from throughout Italy at his funeral service in Milan. To date, it remains the largest public assembly of any event in the history of Italy.
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Performance of Defiance
Verdi’s Requiem experienced a resurgence in popularity in the 1930’s, and one of the most interesting and disturbing chapters in its history took place between 1942 and 1944, when 16 performances were held in the Nazi concentration camp at Terezin (formerly Theresienstadt) in Czechoslovakia.
The story begins with Rafael Schacter, a pianist and conductor who was a Czech Jew. On November 30, 1941, he was transported to the Terezin Camp as part of the Holocaust. Terezin was a former Czech fortress and walled town that was set up as a ghetto for Jews who were later taken to Auschwitz-Birkenau and other death camps. Allowed to take only one suitcase, he filled it with items he treasured, including scores from Verdi’s Requiem and Dvorak’s Carnival Overture.
The Nazis tried to make Terezin a model village as an example of how they were treating Jews humanely. Part of the façade was to create an active cultural environment in the ghetto, so shortly after arriving, Schacter was given the task of assembling a choir of 150 to perform Verdi’s Requiem. Not having enough scores for all the singers, he taught them the music by rote. The first performance took place in January 1942.
It is interesting to note that this Requiem for the dead premiered in January 1942, the same month that SS General Rheinhard Heydrich led the Wannsee Conference that approved the “final solution” to the Jewish question. Immediately following the premiere, about half the chorus members were loaded on a train bound for Auschwitz. Rafael Schachter was forced to reconstitute the chorus for the fifteen subsequent concerts as chorus members were either taken away or died in Terezin. The final concert was performed for members of the International Red Cross, who were visiting the camp at the invitation of the Nazi SS. Rafael Schachter was finally taken by train to Auschwitz in October 1944, subsequently dying while a prisoner.
In a postscript to the Terezin story, it is worth mentioning that Rheinhard Heydrich was also the SS Officer who ordered SS and SA troops to carry out the Kristallnacht in 1938, where Jewish synagogues, homes and businesses were attacked and burned all over Germany. English composer Michael Tippett was appalled by the news of the attacks and decided to memorialize the tragedy in music. His composition, “A Child of Our Time,” is on The Florida Orchestra and Master Chorale schedule for November 9 - 11, 2018, on the 80th anniversary of Kristallnacht.
Giuseppe Verdi’s Requiem has been loved by audiences and performers since its premiere in 1874. It is recognized as one of the most frequently performed masterworks in the choral repertoire. For me, I will have a completely different emotional connection to the Requiem because of the research I completed for this blog post.
Foremost in my mind will be the unknown victims who created a work of drama and beauty in the face of death and terror. I am drawn to recall the opera “Nabucco” by Verdi, where in The Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves, they sang “let the Lord inspire you a harmony of voices which may instill virtue to suffering.” For the prisoners of Terezin, the closing “Libera me” (Deliver me) was their most fervent plea for deliverance.
Even if you have listened to recordings of Verdi’s Requiem, the beauty and drama of the music is best experienced during a live performance. Please consider attending one of our concerts to experience it yourself.
Foremost in my mind will be the unknown victims who created a work of drama and beauty in the face of death and terror. I am drawn to recall the opera “Nabucco” by Verdi, where in The Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves, they sang “let the Lord inspire you a harmony of voices which may instill virtue to suffering.” For the prisoners of Terezin, the closing “Libera me” (Deliver me) was their most fervent plea for deliverance.
Even if you have listened to recordings of Verdi’s Requiem, the beauty and drama of the music is best experienced during a live performance. Please consider attending one of our concerts to experience it yourself.
