Soprano: Sandrine Piau
Alto: Éléonore Pancrazi
Tenor: Mathias Vidal
Bass-Baritone: Thomas Dolié

Choir: Chœur De Chambre De Namur
Orchestra: Le Concert de la Loge
Conductor: Julien Chauvin

Date:
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Label: Alpha Classics
Cat No.: ALPHA919
Released: 2023

Mozart’s Requiem was not performed in Paris until 1804, in a version slightly different from the composer’s original score. The press reported a triumph. That same year also saw the coronation of Napoleon Bonaparte – who had brought back a pronounced taste for Italian music from his Mediterranean conquests. He appointed the Neapolitan Giovanni Paisiello (1740-1816) as his maître de chapelle and commissioned him to write the music for his coronation: a Solemn Mass in B flat major . The Palazzetto Bru Zane has produced the modern edition of the work that is recorded here. Aside from the sumptuous events of 1804, the other year that links Napoleon to Mozart is 1841, when the Requiem was heard once more, this time at Les Invalides as Napoleon’s remains entered the building for their final burial. Sandrine Piau, Chantal Santon, Eléonore Pancrazi, Mathias Vidal and Thomas Dolié are the soloists in this programme, with Julien Chauvin conducting his ensemble Le Concert de la Loge and the Namur Chamber Choir.

Characteristics of the 1804 Paris Version

The Parisian adaptation of the Requiem involved several modifications to Mozart’s original composition:

• Introduction of Jommelli’s Introitus: The performance began with the Introitus from Niccolò Jommelli’s Requiem, a piece well-known and appreciated in Paris at the time.
• Instrumentation Adjustments: The orchestration was altered to suit the preferences and resources available in Parisian ensembles. Notably, the wind section played the trombone solo in the Tuba mirum, a part originally intended for solo trombone, to create a more pronounced effect.
• Choral and Vocal Modifications: The choral arrangements and vocal parts were adapted to align with the local choral traditions and the capabilities of the singers in Paris.