Mozart: Requiem in D minor, K. 626, II. Sequenz Dies Irae ( Choir of New College, Oxford)

From the album W. A. Mozart, Requiem. Released 2011. Recordings can be found here: Disclaimer: I do not own the music or images. Dies iræ Dies illa Solvet sæclum in favilla: Teste David cum Sibylla The day of wrath, that day Will dissolve the world in ashes As foretold by David and the sibyl Probably in midJuly 1791, Mozart was commissioned by Count WalseggStuppach, under conditions of secrecy, to compose a Requiem for his wife, who had died on 14 February 1791; work on this was postponed at least until October 1791, after the completion of La clemenza di Tito and Die Zauberflöte. It is likely that Mozart was aware of Walsegg s identity: his friend Puchberg lived in Walsegg s Vienna villa, and the inclusion of bassethorns in the score suggests that Mozart could count on the participation of specific players, who would have been booked far in advance for a date and place