Verdi's Requiem was composed in memory of Alessandro Manzoni (1785-1873), an Italian poet and novelist, much admired by Verdi. The first performance in San Marco in Milan on 22 May 1874 marked the first anniversary of his death.

When Gioachino Rossini died in 1868, Verdi suggested that a number of Italian composers should collaborate on a Requiem in Rossini's honor, and began the effort by submitting the conclusion, Libera me.
In May 1873, the Italian writer and humanist Alessandro Manzoni, whom Verdi had admired all his adult life and met in 1868, died. Upon hearing of his death, Verdi resolved to complete a Requiem - this time entirely of his own writing - for Manzoni. It included a revised version of the Libera me originally composed for Rossini.
The Requiem was first performed the following May in the church of San Marco in Milan, on the first anniversary of Manzoni's death. Verdi himself conducted.

The transmission of the concert on the screen in front of the Opera is supported by SIA Rīgas Nami