Exactly 30 years ago, on June 13, 1994, Lithuanian diplomat, public figure, and President of Hope, Stasys Lozoraitis, died in Washington, DC. It is said that March 11 was his achievement: on the eve of the event, when the Supreme Council was debating when to declare Lithuania's independence, it was a call to Stasys Lozoraitis, the head of the diplomatic mission of Lithuania in Washington during the occupation, that was decisive. In 1995, Osvaldas Balakauskas, one of Lithuania's most prominent composers, composed the Requiem in memoriam Stasys Lozoraitis for mezzo-soprano, choir and chamber orchestra, expressing his deep respect for the diplomat, who was, in the composer's words, a "freedom fighter, an exemplar of honour and nobility".
According to Balakauskas and musicologist Beata Baublinskienė: "This is not a monumental work, but rather a chamber piece, intimate and intimate, with an air of medieval spirituality directed to God and a calm contemplation of death and mourning, full of consonantal singing. "I don't think death is a problem - we don't solve it, it is inexorable and always solved for us. (...) It is a condition of life", the composer said in an interview. In this work, he draws on the medieval liturgical music tradition - Gregorian chant, organum, Ars nova motets - although he does not follow the canonical structure of the funeral mass. "It is more old-fashioned even than Palestrina", as the composer once described his Requiem. The 'simplicity' of the music is indeed very powerful and profound."
In September 1995, five movements of Requiem were performed at the Vratislavia Cantans festival of cantatas and oratorios in Wrocław, with the St Christopher's Chamber Orchestra, the Aidija Choir, Judita Leitaitė, and Donatas Katkus conducting. The premiere of the complete work took place in March 1996 in Vilnius, and later in other Lithuanian cities. In 2004, Naxos, one of the largest music record labels, released a CD of the opus. In this concert, the opus is performed by the aforementioned orchestra and the choir Jauna muzika, which recorded the CD. The mezzo-soprano part will be performed by Gabrielė Kupšytė, who currently sings mainly on foreign stages. Modestas Barkauskas, laureate of international competitions and artistic director of the St. Christopher Orchestra, will conduct.
