War Requiem

I went to a concert last night, sat amongst the Norman pillars and peerless stained glass of Gloucester Cathedral for the first night of the Three Choirs Festival.

Their programme is so good this year that I wish I lived nearer, so that I could wander off to something every day this week, but the travelling would be a bit prohibitive.

The piece chosen to be this year’s festival opener is a seminal piece of English oratorio; Britten’s War Requiem.  Not everybody’s taste, but definitely mine.  Britten’s original concept of uniting the Requiem Mass with some of the texts of Wilfred Owen was a masterstroke and listening to the work, it’s difficult to comprehend that the poet didn’t pen his words for this precise use.

He also had the interesting idea of the tenor and baritone soloists being representative of the two sides in WWII; their words are those of Owen and they depict the harshness and the pity of war.

The soprano soloist fulfils the role of an angel who sings some of the words of the Requiem and acts as a commentator on the action.

The concert itself was breathtaking. 

For me, the soloist who stood head and shoulders above the other two was tenor, James Gilchrist.  He sung not only with passion, but with impeccable tone and diction.  The Agnus Dei was perfection.

The Philharmonia Orchestra and substantial festival chorus were both impressive, although at one or two climactic points the soloists were pretty much overwhelmed by the wall of sound they created.  Gloucester’s boys, perched on top of the organ gallery, acquitted themselves well.

This concert spelled out the beginning of a musical feast for those who are lucky enough to be in its catchment area.