Britten's War Requiem, for exceptionally large choral and orchestral forces, was written for the opening ceremony of the new Coventry cathedral in 1961. Wilfred Owen's war poems are woven ingeniously into the Latin requiem mass, expanding its religious foundation to embrace the secular humanist orientation of Britten himself. But in the post-Holocaust 1960s, that degree of focus on the first world war struck many as inappropriate, even insular. Such objections rarely withstand the test of time, and it may shock newcomers to the work to hear those objections voiced today. Just 40 years after its composition, Britten's Requiem has become a classic immune to criticism, both musical and political. Its anti-war message is as tragically relevant today as it ever was, rejecting the idea of good versus evil to insist on our humanity.

The theatricality and vast forces of the Requiem need expert handling. Mark Elder's keen dramatic instincts and effortless control of those forces, including the superb Hallé and Leeds Festival Choruses, made compulsive listening. The performance paid imaginative attention to detail: the chorus's simple, childlike intonation of Recordare Jesu in the Dies Irae; the alternation of choirboy trebles with a nasal, folk-like singing in the Offertorium; the haunting ambivalence of the off-stage Requiem Aeternam that infiltrates the valedictory ending.

Most of Owen's poems are sung by the tenor, who has the more substantial of the two male roles. Paul Nilon's expressive, lyrical tenor was mesmerising throughout, and perfectly offset Peter Coleman-Wright's sombre baritone in the final poem, Strange Meeting. The soprano part, sung by Amanda Roocroft, weaves in and out of the chorus, reinforcing key phrases of the Latin text. Roocroft was more poised than passionate in the role, which could have been given a little more prominence, especially in the Sanctus. But this was an overwhelming performance overall, and the warm response it received was richly deserved.