With all the mayhem that Giuseppe Verdi crafted in his operas, his Requiem has a vividness that leaps off the stage in passages of death and judgment.

No one will fault conductor Grant Cooper and the West Virginia Symphony Orchestra that those moments are the most memorable from its performance of that Requiem Friday night at the Clay Center.

But the whole performance was very even, full of many delightful moments, especially in quieter moments.

Cooper's interpretation favored warmth of tone in the opening "Requiem aeternam," even in the grave muted strings at the outset. The initial choral entrances, a fugato - with the combined forces of the West Virginia Symphony Chorus (Joseph Janisch, conductor), the Alderson Broaddus College Concert Choir (Lauren Brandon Lindsey, conductor), the West Virginia Wesleyan College Concert Chorale and members of the Larry Parsons Chorale (both conducted by Larry Parsons)- lacked focus, but quickly gained in precision and accuracy.

I felt the same way about the soloists, the soprano Barbara Shirvis, the mezzo soprano Audrey Babcock, the tenor Jeffrey Springer and the baritone John Shuffle. Lines stood out unconnected from the surrounding orchestral and choral texture, but as the textures thickened in the Kyrie, a satisfactory balance appeared.

The Sequence, including the apocalyptic "Dies Irae," is the first of those vivid Verdi moments. The opening was tumultuous with furious strings and winds, towering brass playing and Matt Larson's defibrillating bass drum prodding the powerful choral forces.

Babcock's beautiful singing in "Liber scriptus" heralded the fine work of the soloists in the movement. A trio, "Quod sum miser," adding Shirvis and Springer, had sweet tone and great obbligato work from Klif Hodgkin, the principal bassoonist. Springer spread the attack on a high A in the "Rex tremendae" but found solid ground in the "Ingemisco."

Cooper's conducting made things suspenseful. The climaxes were driven while the lyrical passages lingered just enough to set the tension buzzing among them and the returning "Dies Irae" theme.

The middle movements take a more lyrical posture. The "Offertorio" featured the cello section quickly ranging over the whole instrument before loosing the solo quartet. Cooper made balances of the loud passages neatly fit the soloists, and I never missed a word of text.

The Sanctus had one of the few miscalculations of the evening. The choruses' singing nearly covered everything the orchestra's upper instruments were playing. I could not make out the violins' lines through most of the piece. The end was radiant though.

The Agnus Dei had Shirvis and Babcock singing a lovely duet with an accompaniment of flute trio, the best moment in the performance.

The trio of Babcock, Springer and Shuffle had an adventure in indistinct pitch at the start of the "Lux aeterna," but made a nice recovery when the orchestra rejoined.

Shirvis and the choruses sang outstandingly in the final "Libera me." Cooper made the intricate details of the climactic fugue stand out without losing the propulsive musical line. The final dissolution into tranquility was a well-paced walk into a Romantic-era sunset.

The concert repeats at 8 p.m. today at the Clay Center.

With all the mayhem that Giuseppe Verdi crafted in his operas, his Requiem has a vividness that leaps off the stage in passages of death and judgment.

No one will fault conductor Grant Cooper and the West Virginia Symphony Orchestra that those moments are the most memorable from its performance of that Requiem Friday night at the Clay Center.

But the whole performance was very even, full of many delightful moments, especially in quieter moments.

Cooper's interpretation favored warmth of tone in the opening "Requiem aeternam," even in the grave muted strings at the outset. The initial choral entrances, a fugato - with the combined forces of the West Virginia Symphony Chorus (Joseph Janisch, conductor), the Alderson Broaddus College Concert Choir (Lauren Brandon Lindsey, conductor), the West Virginia Wesleyan College Concert Chorale and members of the Larry Parsons Chorale (both conducted by Larry Parsons)- lacked focus, but quickly gained in precision and accuracy.

I felt the same way about the soloists, the soprano Barbara Shirvis, the mezzo soprano Audrey Babcock, the tenor Jeffrey Springer and the baritone John Shuffle. Lines stood out unconnected from the surrounding orchestral and choral texture, but as the textures thickened in the Kyrie, a satisfactory balance appeared.

The Sequence, including the apocalyptic "Dies Irae," is the first of those vivid Verdi moments. The opening was tumultuous with furious strings and winds, towering brass playing and Matt Larson's defibrillating bass drum prodding the powerful choral forces.

Babcock's beautiful singing in "Liber scriptus" heralded the fine work of the soloists in the movement. A trio, "Quod sum miser," adding Shirvis and Springer, had sweet tone and great obbligato work from Klif Hodgkin, the principal bassoonist. Springer spread the attack on a high A in the "Rex tremendae" but found solid ground in the "Ingemisco."

Cooper's conducting made things suspenseful. The climaxes were driven while the lyrical passages lingered just enough to set the tension buzzing among them and the returning "Dies Irae" theme.

The middle movements take a more lyrical posture. The "Offertorio" featured the cello section quickly ranging over the whole instrument before loosing the solo quartet. Cooper made balances of the loud passages neatly fit the soloists, and I never missed a word of text.

The Sanctus had one of the few miscalculations of the evening. The choruses' singing nearly covered everything the orchestra's upper instruments were playing. I could not make out the violins' lines through most of the piece. The end was radiant though.

The Agnus Dei had Shirvis and Babcock singing a lovely duet with an accompaniment of flute trio, the best moment in the performance.

The trio of Babcock, Springer and Shuffle had an adventure in indistinct pitch at the start of the "Lux aeterna," but made a nice recovery when the orchestra rejoined.

Shirvis and the choruses sang outstandingly in the final "Libera me." Cooper made the intricate details of the climactic fugue stand out without losing the propulsive musical line. The final dissolution into tranquility was a well-paced walk into a Romantic-era sunset.

The concert repeats at 8 p.m. today at the Clay Center.