Andris Nelsons leads this all-Mozart program featuring four acclaimed vocalists in Mozart's transformative Requiem, which he began in response to a mysterious commission. The work remained incomplete at his death in 1791, but at Constanze Mozart's request, Mozart's pupil Franz Xaver Süssmayer finished it with remarkable fidelity to the master's style. Opening the program, the great Romanian pianist Radu Lupu plays one of Mozart's most unusual piano concertos, No. 24 in C minor. Composed in the spring of 1786 and premiered by the composer in Vienna, the proto-Romantic C minor is unique in its strangeness and restlessness, and features a fascinating theme-and-variations finale.(Emphasis added.)
See the performance detail page also for all the usual links to background material.
The reviews in the Globe and BMInt are favorable, if slightly mixed in the Globe's case. Like the reviewers, I found the concerto cleanly performed and, for a piece in minor mode, placid. The Requiem had its loud and forceful moments, which I felt as more earnest than desperate. I'd like to hear it all again, but unfortunately I'll be tied up both this evening and on May 1, when it is to be rebroadcast.
As always, you can hear it on air or on line through WCRB at 8:00 p.m., EST, this evening, with a rerun on May 1, also at 8:00. Check the website for links to other information. Enjoy the concert.
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