When Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart died on December 5, 1791, he left his Requiem in D minor unfinished, though according to Constanze Mozart, he wrote down explicit instructions for its completion, first attempted by Joseph Eybler, but eventually undertaken by Franz Xaver Süssmayr. While Süssmayr's completion has been the standard performing edition for over two centuries, there have been several scholars who have criticized his labored counterpoint and clumsy orchestration, and most revisions include substantial changes of ...
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When Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart died on December 5, 1791, he left his Requiem in D minor unfinished, though according to Constanze Mozart, he wrote down explicit instructions for its completion, first attempted by Joseph Eybler, but eventually undertaken by Franz Xaver Süssmayr. While Süssmayr's completion has been the standard performing edition for over two centuries, there have been several scholars who have criticized his labored counterpoint and clumsy orchestration, and most revisions include substantial changes of material. The 2016 revision by Pierre-Henri Dutron, which René Jacobs performs here with the Freiburger Barockorchester, includes noticeable changes throughout, particularly from the ending of the Lacrimosa onward, and a major reworking of counterpoint and orchestration in the Sanctus, the Benedictus, and the Hosanna fugues. In his historically informed interpretation, Jacobs favors a lean orchestral texture and brisk tempos, and the orchestra plays with clear sonorities, preventing any...
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