Brahms completed his deutsches Requiem in 1868. He had written six of the seven movements by 1866, adding the additional one – it became the fifth section with its soprano solo – in 1868.
Unlike the Catholic Requiem Mass with its concentration on the post mortem fate of the soul, Brahms chose texts from the Lutheran Bible that were mostly focussed on consoling the living in their loss.
The composer explained that the deutsches [German] of the work’s title simply referred the language of the texts; that the work was aimed not specifically at the German people but at all mankind – in a letter he called it Ein menschliches Requiem [A human Requiem].
In its final version, the Requiem demonstrates an interesting mirrored symmetry, with two groups of three movements surrounding a central vision of heaven:
Brahms: Ein deutsches Requiem, Op. 45
Selig sind, die da Leid tragen 0:00:44
Denn alles Fleisch es ist wie Gras 0:12:05
Herr, lehre doch mich 0:27:08
Wie lieblich sind deine Wohnungen 0:37:06
Ihr habt nun Traurigkeit 0:42:36
Denn wir haben hie keine bleibende Statt 0:49:29
Selig sind die Toten, die in dem Herren sterben 1:00:49 ∙
Score
(in English)
… but if you just want a parallel text in German and English and their Biblical sources, click here.
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Pontarddulais!
The Art of Listening 