Norma Fantini, soprano
Anna Smirnova, mezzo-soprano
Francesco Meli, tenor
Rafa Siwek, bass

Recorded at the basilica di San Marco, Venice, 16 Nov 2007

The performance of Verdi's famous Messa da Requiem in 2007 celebrating Toscanini's fiftieth anniversary of death took place at the beautiful basilica of St Mark's in Venice, where it was first performed on 22 May 1874 to mark the anniversary of the death of the Italian poet Alessandro Manzoni.

The Orchestra Symphonica Toscanini was founded in Rome in 2006 and consists of some two hundred young and highly skilled musicians, all of whom have been selected by Lorin Maazel, the orchestra's Music Director for life.

The use of opera singers in this sacred work gives this interpretation a special splendour, harking back to the performance tradition that can be retraced to the first performances led by Verdi himself in 1874.

With this gorgeous interpretation, Lorin Maazel celebrates Maestro Toscanini's fiftieth anniversary of death and the country of Italy which gave him his inspiration.