When the conductor Hans von Bülow sneeringly dubbed Verdi’s Requiem “an opera in ecclesiastical costume”, Brahms severely reprimanded him. Bülow would later retract his remark and Verdi apparently forgave him.

Yet Bülow had some sort of point. One entire section of the Requiem (the Lacrimosa) began as a scene in Don Carlos that was eventually dropped during rehearsals, while the inherently dramatic quality of Verdi’s Mass for the Dead is apparent throughout; nor would he have seen any contradiction in it being so.

Indeed it was the sheer drama of this Proms account of the piece, given by the Concert Association of the Chorus of the Deutsche Oper Berlin and the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra under Donald Runnicles – who is music director of both organisations – that registered most impressively.

Runnicles showed a keen appreciation of the vast scale and emotional extremity of this music, as well as an ability to encompass its dynamic range at its widest: the opening (marked by Verdi “as soft as possible”) drew the listener towards its almost imperceptible emergence from absolute silence, while the apocalyptic fury of the Dies Irae achieved a truly Italianate terribilità.

There was some superb choral work, benefitting from the large professional chorus. The tonal fineness and pristine precision of the Sanctus suggested, as it should, innumerable angels dancing on the head of a pin.

Of the four soloists, exceptional were the succulent-toned soprano Angela Meade and her grandly rhetorical mezzo colleague, Karen Cargill: their immaculately co-ordinated duetting provided some of the highlights of the interpretation as a whole. Notwithstanding his appealing lyric timbre, Korean tenor Yosep Kang suffered from the odd moment of uncertainty, though bass Raymond Aceto’s sepulchral tones amply fulfilled all Verdi’s requirements.

• Available to listen again on iPlayer until 3 September. The Proms continue until 12 September. Box office: 0845-401 5040.