Rufus Wainwright »Dream Requiem«

Rufus Wainwright’s »Dream Requiem«

That Rufus Wainwright can dance confidently at more than one wedding has already been impressively demonstrated by this musician, who has found success both as a singer-songwriter in pop music and as a composer of operas and orchestral works. Here too, in »Dream Requiem,« he elegantly weaves together diverse themes and influences into a single, unified whole.

Between Pandemic, Fire and Darkness

Under the dual impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and climate change – specifically the devastating wildfires in California – he began work on this piece in isolation in 2020. He has combined the text of the Catholic Mass for the Dead with Lord Byron’s poem »Darkness,« which vividly describes the world shrouded in gloom following the catastrophic eruption of Mount Tambora in Indonesia in 1815 – the »year without summer.« While the Rundfunkchor Berlin, divided into two choirs, sings the »Requiem«, Iris Berben will narrate Byron’s poem as the evening’s speaker. Wainwright’s »Requiem« – dedicated to Verdi – need not shy away from comparison in terms of drama. It will be conducted by Kazuki Yamada, leading the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester.