Kuljeric: Glagolitic Requiem

The music of the Croatian composer and conductor Igor Kuljerić (1938–2006) is almost unknown outside his homeland. This recording should change that: the "Glagolitic Requiem," written in 1995/96, has been considered the central sacred work of Croatia since its premiere. The church music of the predominantly Catholic Croats, who have been permitted to celebrate their services in their native language since the Middle Ages, stems from orally transmitted melodies that also exhibit influences from folk music. Kuljerić’s Requiem is both a musical declaration of the cultural identity of the young republic and a successful attempt to take up the ancient oral tradition of the liturgy of Croatia and distill it into a work of art. The chants of the Glagolitic script—the first Slavic alphabet—were set to music. Bell sounds and psalmodizing choirs create a fundamental sacred atmosphere in the Introitus, a deeply felt musical prayer for the dead. The recording of the work by the Bavarian Radio Choir and the Munich Radio Orchestra under Ivan Repušić underscores the Requiem's status as one of the most outstanding sacred compositions of the late 20th century.