This edition of Brahms' greatest, most ambitious vocal work is reprinted from the definitive edition of the composer's works, prepared by Breitkopf & Härtel of Leipzig. Inexpensive but sturdily constructed to provide years of pleasurable use, this full score combines all the musical parts in a clear, readable format, with wide margins, large noteheads, and many other helpful features.
Brahms conducted the first major performance of the German Requiem in Bremen Cathedral in April 1868. The occasion — attended by many distinguished musicians, among them Clara Schumann — provided the 34-year-old composer with his first great public success. Scored for mixed chorus, solo voices, and full orchestra, the Requiem reflects Brahms' virtuosic grasp of nineteenth-century vocal technique as well as the polyphonic vocal traditions of the previous three centuries. Above all, it radiates Brahms' stalwart individuality, technical mastery, and stirring emotional appeal, which were soon to secure his unique position in the musical world. More than a century after its debut, this masterpiece of choral music is one of the most performed and recorded works in the repertoire of religious music.