Brahms Requiem Review in the Diss Express

Brahms in 1866 and Lauridsen in 1977 bought sought in music consolation for their dead mothers.

Instead of an orchestra, the German Requiem featured two pianists, Ian Le Grice and Jonathan Rutherford, at one piano. Their contribution was constant and telling.

Under Leslie Olive’s direction, the gently welling first chorus would have comforted any bereaved person.

The choir brought shudders of mortality to All Flesh is Grass, a peaceful lovely energy to How Lovely Are Thy Dwellings and some thrilling notes to the dead being raised.

The soloists were Alan Loader, with an eloquent bass-baritone voice, and Jane Burnell, still young enough to be pre-university. She combined the innocence of the pure soprano voice with the assurance of things to come.

With Ian Le Grice now at the organ, Lauridsen’s Lux Aeterna had a very different texture to the Brahms. Warm and heartfelt, it provided a complimentary version of bereavement and the letting-go process.

Basil Abbott, Diss Express