An Ommadawn Chorus: Mike Oldfield's Favourite Albums | Page 2 of 14 | The Quietus

Baker's Dozen

Artists discuss the 13 records that shaped their lives

1. FaureRequiem

I was at a church school for the last two years of my schooling, in Essex. I left school on my 15th birthday – I couldn’t wait to get out of there. But our teacher used to play us little snippets of classical music. So I had heard bits of Beethoven and Bach from quite an early age. Anyway, out of this I discovered Requiem. In fact I’ve recently uncovered some old vinyl records and I’ve still got my original copy.I just love the clarity of the voices; I love the sopranos. Also, the peace that it gave me was very important. I was really quite wound up as a teenager, very prone to anxiety in those days. I would listen to Requiem to calm those anxieties – it had a very real calming influence on me.

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