Requiem

Requiem (Sussmayr-Version). By Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791). Edited by Ulrich Leisinger. Arranged by Paul Horn/Franz Xaver Sussmayr. For SATB soli, SATB choir, 2 basset horns, 2 bassoons, 2 contrabass, 3 trombones, timpani, 2 violins, viola, basso continuo. D-Moll (D minor). Stuttgart Urtext Edition. Score available separately - see item CA.5162600. Requiem; Mourning, death. Choral score. Language: Latin. Composed 1791. KV 626. 32 pages. Published by Carus Verlag (CA.5162605).

With Language: Latin. Requiem; Mourning, death.

The history of the genesis of the Requiem is entwined with legends and anecdotes. The burdens of the composition and performance of La Clemenza di Tito and Die Zauberflote, and an acute infection led to the collapse and death of the composer following a short illness. Mozart left his wife in considerable debt. Constanze therefore turned to Mozart's friends, asking them to complete the fragment. After two failed attempts, the task passed to Mozart's pupil Franz Xaver Sussmayr, who completed the Requiem in the form known today, using working materials that are no longer extant, and perhaps verbal instructions from the composer. Today the Sussmayr version is still the most well known, and it is doubtless the one with the closest historical ties to Mozart. Sussmayr's version of the Requiem has been published in a new edition which is true to the original sources.