Bruckner: Requiem in D Minor, WAB 39

Description

Anton Bruckner composed his Requiem in D Minor at the young age of 24 in memory of a friend of his father's who was his patron. The work was greatly influenced by the Viennese classical style. He revised the work at the age of 70 in 1894 and held it in high regard throughout his career, even though his setting never enjoyed the popularity of similar works by Mozart or Verdi in the concert repertoire. The edition represents the revised version, which can be regarded as a very personal, and at the same time impressive compositional testimony to Bruckner's artistic development on his journey towards becoming the great church musician and symphonist.

Bruckner set the text of the Requiem Mass in a relatively compact form in terms of extent and scoring. The range of compositional colors stretches from Alpine-influenced writing for male voice choir (Hostias), to a five-part choral movement (Sanctus) and an unaccompanied movement (Requiem), to movements with choir and soloists.