Sinfonia da Requiem

Britten’s powerful Sinfonia da Requiem was composed in 1940 in response to a commission from the Japanese government to write a work marking the 2,600th anniversary of the imperial dynasty. But the commissioning authorities, objecting to the Christian titles Britten had attached to its three movements, rejected the work, declaring its dark and gloomy mood unsuitable for an occasion of national celebration. The first performance therefore took place in the US in March 1941 with the New York Philharmonic conducted by John Barbirolli. Although bearing a dedication to the memory of Britten’s parents, the Sinfonia da Requiem is a public and staunchly anti-war piece, composed against the background of the increasingly grave political situation that was engulfing Europe. The destructive forces of war are graphically projected in the “Lacrymosa” movement. Following the explosive timpani thwacks at the opening, Britten introduces a slow marching lament of Mahlerian intensity. The lament becomes increasingly ominous, building up to a shattering climax that leads directly into the second movement “Dies irae,” a grotesquely scored dance of death. Eventually, however, the music’s menacing energy dissipates, and the concluding “Requiem aeternam” movement opens extremely quietly with the flute’s consoling melody gently accompanied by solo strings and harps.