The Requiem in C minor for mixed chorus was written by Luigi Cherubini in 1816 and premiered 21 January 1817 at a commemoration service for King Louis XVI of France on the twenty-fourth anniversary of his beheading during the French Revolution.
In 1834 the work was prohibited by the archbishop of Paris because of its use of women's voices,[4] and in 1836 Cherubini wrote a second Requiem in D minor for men's chorus to be performed at his own funeral.
The Requiem is orchestrated for SATB-choir, 2 oboes, 2 clarinets, 2 bassoons, 2 trumpets, 2 horns, 3 trombones, timpani, tam-tam, and strings.
A notable recording of this requiem was made under the baton of Arturo Toscanini, with the NBC Symphony Orchestra and Robert Shaw Chorale.
A recording of the Requiem in C Minor with the Ambrosian Singers and the Philharmonia Orchestra conducted by Riccardo Muti was made in 1982 and released by EMI.