Andrew Lloyd Webber - Requiem / Domingo, Brightman, ECO, Maazel [Audio CD, Soundtrack]

Andrew Lloyd Webber (Artist), English Chamber Orchestra (Artist), Lorin Maazel (Artist), Plácido Domingo (Artist), Sarah Brightman (Artist), Winchester Cathedral Choir (Artist) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (November 14, 1995)
• SPARS Code: DDD
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Soundtrack
• Label: Decca
• ASIN: B00000428O
• Also Available in: Audio Cassette
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (25 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #24,185 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Track Listings

1. Requiem for Soloists, Chorus & Orchestra: Requiem & Kyrie

2. Requiem for Soloists, Chorus & Orchestra: Dies Irae... Rex Tremendae

3. Requiem for Soloists, Chorus & Orchestra: Recordare

4. Requiem for Soloists, Chorus & Orchestra: Ingemisco... Lacrymosa

5. Requiem for Soloists, Chorus & Orchestra: Offertorium

6. Requiem for Soloists, Chorus & Orchestra: Hosanna

7. Requiem for Soloists, Chorus & Orchestra: Pie Jesu

8. Requiem for Soloists, Chorus & Orchestra: Lux Aeterna & Libera Me

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com essential recording

Before Andrew Lloyd Webber's seemingly endless run of Broadway shows, when he was known primarily for Jesus Christ Superstar, he managed to write this dramatic, tuneful, occasionally powerful religious work. Although Lloyd Webber takes some liberties with the text and organization of the traditional Requiem mass, the result is a unified and finely crafted composition. There are exciting moments in the "Dies irae" and in the "Lacrymosa", where voices and orchestra are most effectively used to convey the desperate yet hopeful feeling of the text. This work isn't performed much these days in its entirety, but, as in many of Lloyd Webber's musicals, it produced a "hit" tune--the "Pie Jesu"--whose popularity alone could have kept the composer living comfortably for the rest of his life. --David Vernier

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Requiem in and of itself, November 5, 2005

By	Brett A. Kniess (Madison, WI) - See all my reviews

The trouble with reviewing Andrew Lloyd Webber's Requiem is trying to compare it to other Requiem's we are all familiar with without doing either work any unjustice. Sure, I hear a definite influence of Benjaimin Britten, perhaps even a little Bernstein Mass, but this is no War Requiem, and comparing it to other settings by Verdi, Berlioz, Faure, Durufle, or Mozart would be useless. Instead, realize this is a work unto itself.

Andrew Lloyd Webber sets the Requiem and Kyrie, Dies Irae, Rex Tremendae, Recordare, Ingemisco, Lacrymosa, Offertorium, Sanctus (Hosanna), Pie Jesu, Lux Aeterna, and the Libera Me sequences of the mass of the dead. Scored for full orchestra (including saxophones), a huge array of percussion (including drum kit), harp, piano, celeste, synthesizer, and organ, this is an orchestration of monumental proportions. The chorus on the recording includes boy sopranos and altos and male tenors and basses along with solos for boy soprano, tenor (Placido Domingo), and soprano (Sarah Brightman). The voices, soloists especially, have extreme ranges (high and low) making this a work requiring virtuosity in the entire ensemble.

As for the music, everyone's perception of death is a different and personal experience, thus, ones idea of "Requiem" music will be completely different from others. You can find some snatches of chant-like material, pure melodiousness, great dissonance, revelry, bombasticity, and prayerfulness in this setting. Andrew Lloyd Webber exploits his talent of creating memorable melodies and uses thematic economy to tie the entire work together. The purity of the boy soprano is announced at the beginning with simple octave and fifth leaps, and frames the work by ending on a similar note. The soloists and their extreme ranges portray great angst and tension, but later turns into jubilation. I truly believe this is a serious work; each section gives a personal visualization of the Requiem text and creates a roller-coaster of ideas. The inclusion of more ethnic/modern drums in some places give the music its own Andrew Lloyd Webber personal spin.

The entire Requiem is rarely performed in its entirety, nonetheless recorded. This CD will probably remain the preferred performance to have until the end of time, and for good reason. It captures the excitement of a premier recording by consummate artists and performers. If you are looking for an interesting, and perhaps revolutionary, choral work, look no further.

26 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars This is a really good CD!, March 13, 1999

By	[e-mail] (maryland, usa) - See all my reviews

Well, the 1 thing that made me put 4 stars instead of 5, was, Placido Domingo seems TOO overpowering... I'm not the person that likes tenors all that much (I'm okay with Andrea Bocelli, though! hehehehe)

Sarah Brightman does a great job in Requiem & Kyrie, and I love her little 45 second duet with Placido. That's wonderful! I'd just buy the CD for that.. Recordae, she does fabulous, as in Hosanna, Offertorium, and Pie Jesu, and it all!

Paul Miles-Kingston does great in Pie Jesu, and especially Rex Tremendae! This whole CD is great though! I'm glad that they didn't have a song just for Placido, though, as they did for Sarah and Paul.

But, buy this CD if you have the chance!

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Webber's Requiem, June 3, 2001

By	Kelsie Jackson - See all my reviews

This Requiem is one of the best I have ever heard. I would put it on the same level as Verdi's Requiem and Mozart's Requiem. Webber approaches this sacred work with a style all his own, a style which breaks significantly from that of Mozart, Verdi, Berlioz, and Faure. The rushing Dies Irae - Tuba Mirum is certainly unique among the other four major Requiems, as is the "Hosanna". I am no expert in music, but I do own recordings of the Mozart and Verdi Requiems in addition to this one, and in my opinion, Webber's Requiem stands out as a unique work from a unique voice.