I’ve sung the Mozart Requiem in choirs at least twice, perhaps thrice, and I love it. The coolest piece is the Dies Irae. And it occurred to me that this is one of those pieces that gets used A LOT in commercials and movie trailers. I heard it most recently in a trailer for the VERY DARK – don’t say I didn’t warn you – Japanese movie called Battle Royale, along with the Verdi requiem that also appears in the film.
I wondered if anyone put together a list of the music’s appearances. Here’s a roster of Mozart in the movies which lists six appearances of Requiem, but only one, Incredible True Story of Two Girls in Love, which I’ve never seen, where the Dies Irae is specified. About.com notes three films, X-Men 2, Duplex, and The Incredibles DVD: Jack-Jack Attacks; I saw only the former.
My request: where have YOU heard this music before – I know you have – outside of a performance of the Requiem itself, besides in the movie Amadeus?
Incidentally, Dies Irae (Day of Wrath) is a famous thirteenth-century Latin hymn thought to be written by Thomas of Celano. The Mozart Requiem was completed by Franz Xaver Süssmayr; there is a controversy about “how much of the piece was completed by Mozart before his death. The autograph manuscript shows the finished and orchestrated introit in Mozart’s hand, as well as detailed sketches of the Kyrie and the sequence, Dies irae.”
Composers just aren’t made like this anymore, are they? I wonder what Mozart would think if he knew his music was being used in commercials and movies? He was an inanely talented genius.
You have sung in one of the greatest masterpieces of the classical world! How wonderful to be able to do so! I don’t mind if some classical musical pieces are used for commercials as long as the commercials are of high quality and not referring to toothpaste or washing powder. Still I prefer nice modern music used in commercials.