Presents
David Popper
Requiem for Three Cellos and Piano, Op.66
David Popper's Requiem is perhaps his most moving work. It was composed in 1892 and dedicated to the memory of his good friend and his first publisher, Daniel Rahter of Hamburg. This gorgeous work is both elegiac and melancholy. Highly expressive, the material is divided between the three cellos with each being given solos. It was played at Popper's own funeral in 1913 and marked the end of the era of great romantic cellists of the 19th century. Our soundbite gives a little less than half the work.
David Popper (1843-1913) was born in Prague. He studied at the Prague Conservatory with Julius Gottermann. He was widely considered the the greatest cellist of the last decades of the 19th century and toured as a soloist throughout Europe for nearly 30 years. He knew virtually all of the leading composers of the day such as Wagner, Bruckner, Liszt, Raff and Brahms, with whom he was good friends. Liszt, founder of the Budapest Conservatory, personally selected Popper to be his Professor of Cello. In addition to his solo career, he served as cellist in two of the foremost string quartets of the time, the Hellmesberger Quartet of Vienna and the Hubay-Popper Quartet of Budapest.
Although this work has been available in various editions other than the original, only the original, published by Rahter's firm, was edited by Popper himself. That edition has been unavailable for a long time and we are pleased to make it available once again. In addition, we are pleased to offer the Requiem in a version for 2 Cellos Bass and Piano. Our bass part was made by Anthony Scelba, noted bass soloist, Professor of Music and Director of the Concert Artists Program of Kean University. In an effort to give bass players a chance to play many of the great works of the chamber music repertoire, Professor Scelba has made several highly acclaimed transcriptions, including one for the Schubert Quintet D.956, which has been recorded.
| (A) 3 Cellos and Piano-Parts | $12.95 |
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| (B) 2 Cellos, Bass & Piano-Parts | $12.95 |
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| (C) All Five Parts | $16.95 |
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