What’s on Yorkshire: Brahms Requiem for two pianos at Wakefield Cathedral – book now for November 2
Wakefield Cathedral will be the stunning setting for a special All Souls Day concert by St Peter’s Consort.
Those that enjoy classical music and choral works are in for a treat when this renowned company performs Johannes Brahms’s Ein Deutsches Requiem (A German Requiem) in its entirety.
Musical Director James Bowstead said: “All Souls Day is when the church traditionally remembers all those who are no longer with us in a service which often takes the form of a Requiem Mass.”
“This substantial work is originally scored for a large choir and orchestra, but Brahms also produced an arrangement for piano duet, known as the ‘London Version’ because it was used for the first British performance of the work, which we will be using for our performance.”
He explained that in the 19th century there was a strong tradition of composers producing arrangements of orchestral pieces for piano solo or duet, designed for domestic performance – this would have been the primary way most people would have been able to hear these works.
Performing the Requiem in this arrangement with a smaller choir will give it a more intimate feel than it often has, which I think is actually very much in keeping with the nature of the work
Brahms chose passages from the Bible as the texts for the requiem, rather than writing them himself, with a general theme of comfort and consolation.
“There are certainly none of the references to wrath and judgement found in many other Requiems (particularly in the Dies Irae movements).In fact, there is often more focus on the living than on the dead – the first line is ‘Blessed are they that mourn, for they shall be comforted’.
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“Brahms’s is certainly a far more intimate and positive Requiem than Verdi’s, for example, and could be said to have started a trend for Requiems taking a more understated and positive approach.”
- Johannes Brahms’s Ein Deutsches Requiem
- Saturday November 2, 7.30pm at Wakefield Cathedral
- The performance will last a little over one hour (there will be no interval)
- Tickets are £12 on the door (contactless payment accepted) or can be booked in advance online on Eventbrite via Consort’s website here
Christmas concert
St Peter’s Consort’s final concert of the year will be its traditional Christmas concert. This year it takes place on 21 December, 7.30pm at St Peter’s and St Leonard’s, Horbury.