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On July 19, Quintessence gave the United States premiere of Taylor Scott Davis’s Requiem, with Matthew Greer conducting, joined by VOCES8 US Scholars. The performance landed in Albuquerque a matter of weeks after the work’s inclusion on VOCES8’s Decca Classics release i carry your heart — a choral-orchestral requiem moving from a landmark recording to the concert stage in short order.

Requiem was commissioned by VOCES8’s Barnaby Smith for the ensemble and its Foundation, and recorded by VOCES8 and its Choir — a lineup that includes the group’s UK Scholars. The Albuquerque premiere, with VOCES8 US Scholars taking part, extended that same commissioning and education lineage across the Atlantic.

Davis currently serves as VOCES8 Foundation Composer-in-Residence, a post that runs through 2027, and the pairing of Decca release and U.S. premiere inside the same short window was a rare one for a work of this scale. The Wall Street Journal has described the writing in Davis’s music as vocal lines that “overlap and intensify to stunning effect” — a description that fits Requiem‘s combination of tumult and hope directly.

The score reached the U.S. premiere already carrying performance pedigree from its 2025 Barbican world premiere, and the Albuquerque performance built directly on that record: a choral-orchestral requiem now heard on both sides of the Atlantic and preserved on a major label within the same season.

Quintessence and the VOCES8 US Scholars perform Requiem under Matthew Greer, Albuquerque, July 19. Photo: Antonio Cordova.

Featured works available from E. C. Schirmer Music Company:

• Requiem (SKU 9464)

Taylor Scott Davis and conductor Matthew Greer discuss Requiem following the premiere. Photo: Antonio Cordova.

About Taylor Scott Davis

Taylor Scott Davis is a contemporary composer whose choral, orchestral, chamber, and vocal music has been premiered at venues including Cadogan Hall, Sydney Opera House, and Carnegie Hall, and performed throughout the USA, Europe, South America, and South Africa. He collaborates regularly with VOCES8 and the Grammy-winning ensemble Conspirare, and serves as VOCES8 Foundation Composer-in-Residence through 2027. Davis holds a Bachelor of Sacred Music degree from Centenary College of Louisiana and is a Fellow of Melodious Accord.

View all publications by Taylor Scott Davis.