Antonín Dvorák: Requiem Op 89

Antonín Dvorák (1841 - 1904) was celebrated in England in the late 19th century for his choral music. His Requiem was commissioned in 1989 for the Birmingham Music Festival and was first performed there in 1891, followed by a performance in Manchester in 1892. It was not heard in Dvorák’s native country until a few days later, such was his reputation in England.

Written for concert performance and not liturgical use, it is a reflective rather than a dramatic statement of faith. Contemplation on death evokes not dread, but more sorrow at having to say farewell to those closest to him, to nature and to his beloved music.

This is considered to be one of the most powerful settings of the Mass for the Dead. It is not the folksy Dvorák of dances and songs, but the work of a composer with considerable depth and feeling, and, by this stage in his life, complete technical mastery.

The conductor Hans Richter described the Requiem as a work in which “there are places that make you want to cry out in pain and joy.”