Artists
Conductor
Soprano
Tenor
Baritone
San Francisco Symphony Chorus
San Francisco Symphony
program
War Requiem
Benjamin
Britten
All sound clips are from San Francisco Symphony performances and are used with permission of the SFS Players Committee.
performances
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IAN BOSTRIDGE’S PERFORMANCE IS MADE POSSIBLE BY THE MARIAN LOUISE OTTO GUEST VOCALIST FUND.
Ian Bostridge and BRIAN MULLIGAN’s appearances are supported by the Phyllis C. Wattis Fund for Guest Artists.
Philippe Jordan’s appearance is supported by the Louise M. Davies Guest Conductor Fund.
Event Description
Twenty-two years after Coventry Cathedral was destroyed in a World War II air raid, Benjamin Britten wrote his War Requiem to celebrate the consecration of a new cathedral built amid the ruins of the first one. With contrasting texts from the Latin Requiem mass and WWI poet Wilfred Owen, the music embodies Britten’s deeply held pacifist beliefs. Conductor Philippe Jordan leads the SF Symphony, Chorus, and soloists in Britten’s haunting liturgy.
AT A GLANCE
In 1961, 22 years after Coventry Cathedral in England’s West Midlands was destroyed in a World War II air raid, Benjamin Britten wrote his War Requiem to celebrate the consecration of a new cathedral built adjacent the ruins of the first one. With contrasting texts from the Latin Requiem mass and World War I poet Wilfred Owen, the music embodies Britten’s deeply held pacifist beliefs. The large musical forces include three soloists, two choruses, a large orchestra, and a smaller chamber orchestra.
