On this release, Igor Markevitch conducts Verdi and Mussorgsky: two different words but each a unique, fantastic interpretation by the Russian conductor. Mussorgksy is also the arranger of the 6 Lieder with orchestra that are presented at the conclusion of this album. Verdi's Requiem was composed in memory of Alessandro Manzoni, an Italian poet and novelist whom Verdi admired. It is rarely performed in liturgy, but is regularly performed as a concert work. Igor Markevitch was discovered in 1926 by Alfred Cordot, who took him to Paris in 1926 to study under himself and Nadia Boulanger at the Ecole Normale. He made his conducting debut at the age of 18 with the Concertgebouw Orchestra Amsterdam. He became a well-respected interpreter of the French and Russian repertoire.