For Giuseppe Verdi it was the deaths of his fellow composer Gioachino Rossini and the literary giant Alessandro Mazzoni. For Igor Stravinsky it was the death of the revered poet TS Eliot. Verdi’s musical commemoration came in the form of a highly charged Requiem that was so forthright and hard-hitting in its expression of grief, faith and judgment that many thought it too dramatic for performance in church. Stravinsky wrote his short Introitus for male voices in memory of Eliot, which led soon thereafter to a setting of Requiem verses that couldn’t be more different to Verdi’s. Stravinsky’sRequiem Canticles focused on ritual rather than expression; on calm detachment rather than overwhelming grief.

In association with the Office for Cultural and Scientific Affairs of the Embassy of Spain in London.

Information taken from: http://www.lpo.org.uk/whats-on-and-tickets/247-passion-and-grace.html