Giuseppe Verdi’s “Messa da Requiem” was premiered 150 years ago this month. Written in memory of the writer Alessandro Manzoni — although an earlier version of the “Libera me” was first written after the death of Rossini in 1868 — it’s long been controversial, for a piece of sacred music, because of its operatic nature. But nobody could deny its phenomenal impact. Here's Herbert von Karajan’s performing with the Vienna Philharmonic / Wiener Philharmoniker. | Sony Classical

“Composer’s Portrait”: Herbert Howells 1966