Dudamel tackles Verdi's Requiem (Gustavo Dudamel, Los Angeles Philharmonic)

Los Angeles Times ^ | November 6, 2009 | Mark Swed

[EveningStar]

Gustavo Dudamel is back in town, and Thursday night he conducted a magnificently theatrical performance of Verdi’s Requiem that felt like his first real concert as music director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. All Los Angeles, of course, knows that last month Dudamel began his tenure with a free event at the Hollywood Bowl, and that was followed by nervous-making high-profile programs in Walt Disney Concert Hall the next week.

[EveningStar]

Orange County Register: Gustavo Dudamel unleashes a potent Verdi Requiem, or, What else did you expect?

[EveningStar]

ping

[freedumb2003]

Dudamel is taking LA by storm.

I haven’t heard this kind of buzz in the arts here ever.

[bboop]

Article says that Verdi was not religious. Can anyone confirm that? I think it is bogus — his music is reverential and liturgical. Sounds like revisionist history to me.

[JoeProBono]

[Borges]

Verdi was not religious at all. The Requiem was criticized at the time as being more of a theatrical spectacle. His operas are blood and thunder. Where do you here the ‘reverential and liturgical’ side? Or are you confusing him with Monteverdi?

[bboop]

I was thinking of the wondrous chorus in (some) opera — ‘by the rivers of Babylon we hung up our harps.’ Which I had thot was Verdi, but we saw it several years ago and I am quite possibly mistaken.

I play viola, so am lost in the matrix, do not pay attention to all the details. That’s why I was verifying.

[sitetest]

Dear EveningStar,

Thanks for the ping!

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sitetest

[MeekMom]

Looooooove Verdi!