CD ECM Records Tigran Mansurian: Requiem

2017

Anja Petersen - soprana
Andrew Redmond - bariton
RIAS Kammerchor + Münchener Kammerorchester, dirijor Alexander Liebreich

Tigran Mansurian has created a Requiem dedicated to the memory of the victims of the Armenian Genocide that occurred in Turkey from 1915 to 1917. Co-commissioned by the Munich Chamber Orchestra and the RIAS Choir Berlin, Mansurian’s Requiem reconciles the sound and sensibility of his country’s traditions with those of Western practices, the combination of ancient Armenian religious and secular music with the Latin Requiem text “giving rise to something unexpected,” the composer says. This is profoundly moving contemporary composition, illuminated by the “glow of Armenian modality,” as Paul Griffiths puts it in his booklet essay. The work is a milestone for Mansurian, widely acknowledged as Armenia’s greatest composer. The Los Angeles Times has described his music as that “in which deep cultural pain is quieted through an eerily calm, heart-wrenching beauty.”

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Sections of chant, both in the tenors and in alternim sections between men and women’s voices, present haunting scalar passages that resonate with Eastern music. Two brief solos – one for soprano Anja Petersen and the other for baritone Andrew Redmond – are memorable parts of the ‘Tuba Mirum’ and ‘Domine Jesu Christe’ movements. […] The orchestration is particularly vivid, so much so that you don’t mind having strings accompany the ‘Tuba mirum’ sans brass. Conductor Alexander Liebreich leads the combined forces of RIAS Kammerchor and Münchener Kammerorchester in a pitch perfect performance that is austere and emotive in just the right moments. […] It is certainly a deeply touching and sensitive reimagination of a text that some may feel has long since been ossified by its own traditions. Perhaps more importantly, in addressing genocide and refugee crises from a century ago, Mansurian holds up a mirror to our own time and dares us to be unflinching in our gaze. For that alone, it is a work of great value.
Christian Carey, Sequenza 21

Mansurian’s Requiem is a very special work, blending traditional Armenian music with eight standard Latin hymns. This allows the piece to stand proudly within the tradition of the European Requiem, while at the same time making it a completely new and unique […] the recording is a glorious tribute and remembrance of the more than one million Armenians who died in the genocide. Mansurian could not have found a better chorus and orchestra to perform this masterful work. Working with two principal vocalists and a smaller chorus and orchestra also contributes to the dignity of this piece. […] Mansurian’s Requiem is a great addition to the tradition of the requiem, and it may even be one of the finest works in this tradition. This work, at the very least, stands with the finest contemporary choral and orchestral pieces composed, performed, and recorded.
Kevin Bezner, Christian Music Review



The resulting work is one of great dignity and humility. Mansurian finds a sympathetic advocate in Manfred Eicher and ECM Records, much in that same way as Arvo Pärt thirty years ago. Lets hope for much more from Mansurian on ECM.
C. Michael Bailey, All About Jazz