Best of Britten's memorial to fallen MUSIC War Requiem Queensland Conservatorium Symphony Orchestra. Queensland Conservatorium Concert Hall, April 24. IN the 50 years since its first appearance, Benjamin Britten's War Requiem stands out as the choral masterpiece of the mid-20th century. Whenever some kind of musical war memorial is required, Britten's monumental work is called to service. In coming years, as we wade through Anzac centennials, we will encounter it many times. This year marks Britten's own centennial -- he was born on November 22, 1913 -- and the War Requiem will be heard more frequently still. Three performances by three Queensland ensembles are slated for Brisbane alone this year. The first took place this week, twice, at the Queensland Conservatorium. Brisbane has become a kind of nodal point for Britten performances in Australia, principally due to the advocacy of the Con's head of opera, Gregory Massingham, who studied with tenor Peter Pears, Britten's muse and lifelong partner. It was especially fitting that Massingham should reprise the role written for Pears in the War Requiem, the old English soldier who comforts a younger German counterpart, here the baritone Shaun Brown. They made an especially poignant pair, painting the vivid lines of Wilfred Owen with the darkest of Turner-like hues. Their diction was exemplary, as was that of soprano Rebecca Cassidy, her red dress a poppy in a sea of black-clad choristers comprising the Brisbane Chorale and various Conservatorium choirs. They could have benefited by the inclusion of more operatic voices. Nonetheless, it is cheering to see choral forces, largely amateur groups, tackle works like these with conviction. The Con's orchestral forces carried this performance. Under the magisterial direction of Nicholas Braithwaite, they relished Britten's signature touches, those explosions of brass, the sweeps of melody, the cascading fusillades of major thirds. A pity there was not a larger audience at the first performance to appreciate the monumental effort in mounting this work. While any performance of Britten's War Requiem is welcome, saturation point looms. Choral directors might embrace works that celebrate the better qualities binding humanity. Australian composer Raymond Hanson, born a day after Britten and dying two days after him, drew inspiration from the texts of Indian poet Tagore for an oratorio celebrating those very qualities. The Immortal Touch has yet to performed in its entirety. It is perhaps more deserving than another War Requiem created a half-century ago.