Reflections on Rutter's Requiem

John Rutter wrote his requiem fueled by his love for the one by Gabriel Fauré and also by the death of his father. Before the first performance Rutter said, "illness intervened, which was slightly worrying when I thought of poor Mozart writing his Requiem and dying before he could finish it. Luckily, however, I got better." But he wasn't able to finish all seven sections before the March 1985 performance date, so only four were performed at that time. Even so, Rutter says, "I'm one of...
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John Rutter wrote his requiem fueled by his love for the one by Gabriel Fauré and also by the death of his father. Before the first performance Rutter said, "illness intervened, which was slightly worrying when I thought of poor Mozart writing his Requiem and dying before he could finish it. Luckily, however, I got better." But he wasn't able to finish all seven sections before the March 1985 performance date, so only four were performed at that time. Even so, Rutter says, "I'm one of those composers that finds it quite difficult to finish anything if I haven't got a deadline." As he recalls, he was still writing the "Lux Aeterna" section the night before the performance! The reaction to just those four movements was so enthusiastic that Rutter decided he'd better go ahead and finish it. Rutter found that keeping to a strict schedule helped him deal with his illness during this time, and his work habits even now are legendary. And his music is an ongoing gift to us.