Concert review – War Requiem / Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra / NDR Radiophilharmonie

“Hats off then to the conductor Andrew Manze, who brought together the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra and NDR Radiophilharmonie, both ensembles with which he holds posts, and a variety of choirs — here the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Choir, Knabenchor Hannover and Choristers of Liverpool Cathedral. The blended band, on superb form…”

The Times, November 2018

“The tone for the whole Requiem was quickly established: spacious tempi allowed softer passages to float magically into the air, with the chamber orchestra and soloists providing the rare moments of textural clarity, while elsewhere Manze was happy to forge onwards, though never with any undue hurry. The hyper-resonant acoustic was fully embraced, allowing each cadence its proper weighting. The last bars of the Requiem aeternum, as a case in point, dissolved into a pianissimo resolution, floating away into silence beautifully.”

Bachtrack, November 2018