Happy Memorial Day! For those who would like to go beyond Taps to honor our fallen soldiers, here are some pieces that are suitable for the day. Not all were specifically written in response to war or loss, but all evoke emotion appropriate to the gravity of the day.
Symphony #3 by Beethoven
Missa Solemnis by Beethoven
Symphony #9 by Beethoven
1812 Overture by Tchaikovsky
Mass in the Time of War by Haydn
Adagio for Strings by Barber
Lament by Frank Bridge (I know this was written in memory of the German bombing of the Lusitania, a luxury ship, but the piece is so haunting I had to include it here.)
Symphony #7 by Shostakovich
Lincoln Portrait by Copland
Symphony for the Sons of Nam by James "Kimo" Williams
Requiem by Mozart
Requiem by Faure
Requiem by Brahms
War Requiem by Britten
2 comments:
And you can add a little known but truly extraordinary piece by James "Kimo" Williams, Symphony for the Sons of Nam. As a Vietnam era vet I can tell you it brings tears to the eyes listening. I first heard it played by the Rockford Symphony in honor of the conductor's brother who was wounded in Vietnam. It is a magnificent piece of writing though never really finished by Williams. I have a copy on the cd titled "Epitaph" put together by Paul Freeman of the Chicago Sinfonietta. I would highly recommend it for possible inclusion in the KSO program some day.-- Hobbes
Thank you for that addition, and thank you for your service!
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