November 1940, in an act of wartime aggression, Coventry Cathedral was raised to the ground and the city decimated. In 1962 attention turned again to war-torn Coventry where in the city’s newly built cathedral, Britten’s War Requiem received its symbolic world premiere, commissioned for the its reconsecration.
Vinyl Edition: 3xLPs cut to lacquer at half-speed* audiophile vinyl by Miles Showell at Abbey Road Studios, and pressed on 180gm vinyl; with poly-lined inner sleeves.
Order Now: https://LSOBritten.lnk.to/WarRequiemIB
*Mastering to lacquer at half-speed has the advantage of halving the high-frequency energy passing through the cutterhead, producing a cleaner and more precise top-end of the audio spectrum due to a more accurately etched groove. The cleaner top-end results in a more detailed and stable stereo image and lifelike soundstage.
In his deeply moving score, Britten set the entire text of the Latin Requiem Mass and interpolated nine of Wilfred Owen’s harrowing poems from the trenches.
Recorded between January 3 and 10, 1963, in London’s Kingsway Hall by Decca’s ‘dream team’ of producer John Culshaw and engineer Kenneth Wilkinson, Britten’s ideals were achieved when the provincial forces in Coventry were replaced by the London Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, the Bach Choir (trained by David Willcocks), and the boys of Highgate School.
Three members of the original 1963 Decca recording crew, now in their 80s, have provided valuable insights for this restoration: Producer John Mordler, who joined Decca in late 1962, was assigned to oversee and edit the secret recordings of Benjamin Britten’s rehearsals for the ‘War Requiem’. Engineer Peter Van Biene, along with assistant engineer Michael Mailes worked with Mordler in a concealed control room, using two microphones to record Britten’s voice and recalls: “I recorded the voice of Ben Britten with two mikes, one on the conductor’s stand and one in the control room, but I was out of sight, hidden in the mono recording room situated up the stairs at the side of the stage”.
Accompanying these audio releases is a lavishly illustrated and documented booklet with a treasure trove of insights, including excerpts from John Culshaw’s autobiography, ‘Putting the Record Straight’; reminiscences shared by Decca’s recording team, technical notes, detailed essays on the ‘War Requiem’ and the recording sessions, as well as rare, original session photographs and recently discovered curios including a facsimile of John Culshaw’s producer score plus a new introduction by Decca Classics Label Director Dominic Fyfe.
“Among the most magnetic performances of British music ever put on record.”
— Gramophone
BENJAMIN BRITTEN (1913–1976)
War Requiem, op. 66
Galina Vishnevskaya soprano
Peter Pears tenor
Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau baritone
The Bach Choir & London Symphony Chorus
Chorus master: David Willcocks
Highgate School Choir
Director: Edward Chapman
Simon Preston organ
Melos Ensemble
London Symphony Orchestra
BENJAMIN BRITTEN
Also available Hybrid 2xSACD Edition presenting 24-bit / 192kHz original tape transfer HD remaster audio version of the above.
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Thanks to Britten Pears Arts for their support on creating these documentaries.
Shot on location at Britten Pears Arts
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Documentary Director/producer: Dave Myer
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