Organization

Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival

Singer

Soprano

Berit Norbakken

Baritone

Rafael Fingerlos

Pianist

Philip Mayers

Angela Gassenhuber

Timpani

Alexander Schröder

Conductor

Nicolas Fink

Others

Schleswig Holstein Music Festival Chorus

Ein deutsches Requiem, op. 45 -  (A German Requiem)

Rendsburg

Germany

Christkirche

Lüneburg

Public

A German Requiem

Approved

Johannes Brahms wanted to create a requiem »for the people« – one that is not committed to being performed in a church service, but above all is able to give hope beyond all conventions and restrictions. With his "German Requiem" op. 45, Brahms composed one of his most touching and comforting works, it signified his artistic breakthrough - the influential music critic Eduard Hanslick, for example, explained the success after the premiere in Bremen in 1868 by saying that Brahms' Requiem was closer to our hearts than any other work of this kind. The Festival Choir dedicates itself to the timeless work in a version for two pianos and timpani, which places particular focus on the vocal part: Brahms did not set the usual Latin text of a requiem to music, but chose passages from the Old and New Testament himself. He later arranged his monumental orchestral version for piano duet, integrating the choral parts into the piano part. Heinrich Poos created a version from this that extracts the vocal writing again and is characterized by extremely slim textures, which make Brahms' compositional techniques transparent and let the work shine in a new sonorous light.

The Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival would like to thank the Hanseatic City of Lüneburg for sponsoring the concert.

English

Performance credits (Cast & Crew )

Cast

Crew

Ensemble