by Philip Daniel » 25 Aug 2004, 18:38
Cherubini's Requiem in C Minor: Dies Irae, performed by the URSS Symphony Orchestra & Choir conducted by Roszdestvensky. Both Beethoven and Haydn admired this piece, which during that time was rated as highly as Mozart's Requiem, and I too think it is worthy of such an honor. Cherubini's characteristic perfect choral writing, a model for choral music, especially in England, to follow, develops the warm, lush, & gorgeous characteristic polyphonic idiom of Palestrina, a composer whom Cherubini studied & admired, and combines it with his own natural, almost violent dramatic power & energy, his amazing genius. Beethoven & Schumann considered him the greatest dramatic composer of their time. He was born in 1760 and died in 1840.