CHERUBINI: Requiem; Marche funebre

Coro della Radio Svizzera, Fasolis, Diego, Radio Svizzera Italiana Orchestra

8.554749

"Name a famous piece of music whose title begins with the letter "F", written by a composer whose last name begins with a "C", and whose opening features a tam-tam crash followed by thudding drums. If you said Copland's Fanfare for the Common Man, then you're--wrong! Well, you're right, actually, but this description applies equally to Luigi Cherubini's impressive Funeral March (okay, I cheated a little, because in French it's Marche funŠbre), a work that makes an excellent companion to the superb Requiem in C minor. Admired by virtually every composer in the 19th century, this masterpiece combines depth of feeling and a real sense of drama with classical poise and proportion. It's the finest work of its kind from the Classical era, far superior, for example, to Mozart's incomplete Requiem, and its current neglect is unaccountable....The chorus sings with fervor, achieving genuine expressive force in the Dies irae and the magnificent Agnus Dei, and it's backed both by a solid, positive orchestral contribution and warm recorded sound. You'll enjoy this disc, not least for the highly theatrical and melodramatic Funeral March with which we started." • David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com, August 2000

CD x 1

Naxos

11.07.00

636943474921