Wilfred Josephs - Requiem - Recent Release

Wilfred Josephs’ REQUIEM was given its premiere at La Scala, Milan in 1963 under the direction of Carlo Maria Giulini. It is a work that has not had many performances around the world, but at the same time it is a work that was, for a time, widely regarded as a very important composition. Scored for solo baritone, string quintet, chorus and orchestra, it is an intensely moving work, especially when one considers the composer’s impetus in writing it.

Released on Lyrita Recorded Edition, Lyrita’s website notes:

Still widely regarded as one of Josephs’ most important works, his Requiem Op.39 (1963), was written in memory of the Jews who died during the Holocaust. With this score he achieved international success when, in December 1963, it won the first International Composition Competition of La Scala and the City of Milan. In January 1967 Max Rudolf introduced the piece to the United States in concerts in Cincinnati and New York and in 1972 the Chicago Symphony Orchestra programmed it three times under Carlo Maria Giulini who referred to it as ‘the most important work by a living composer’.

The CD is available from the Wyastone Estate website: BUY ONLINE

There is also a good review of this release on the Classical Source Website