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The scars of war never heal. Few knew this better than Benjamin Britten, a lifelong pacifist who used the poetry of Wilfred Owen to depict the horrors of war in his 1962 War Requiem.
The work was composed to honour the new Coventry Cathedral, after the 14th-century cathedral was destroyed by German bombs in World War II. The Bach Choir made a celebrated recording of the War Requiem in 1963, conducted by Britten himself, and it has always held a special place in our repertoire.
Wilfred Owen documented the sorrow and hardship of war directly from the battlefield, where he was killed in action in 1918. His words still resonate uncomfortably over a century later:
“We laughed, knowing that better men would come, And greater wars”
Contrasts hang heavy in the air throughout Britten’s setting of Owen’s poetry, interspersed with movements of the Latin Requiem Mass. The tritone interval (or ‘The Devil’s Interval’) is conjured up frequently by the piece’s huge ensemble and choirs. It strives for resolution and peace, but never fully finds it. It’s a powerful metaphor for war and reconciliation.
What the War Requiem means to David Hill
BBC Music Magazine called the 1963 Britten recording of War Requiem the third best recording of all time – listen to it on Spotify here.
