American conductor Robert Shaw and his choral ensemble, the Robert Shaw Chorale, commissioned German composer Paul Hindemith to set Whitman's text to music to mourn the death of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt on April 12, 1945. Hindemith had lived in the United States during World War II. The work was titled "When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom'd: A Requiem for those we love". Hindemith set the poem in 11 sections, scored for mezzo-soprano and baritone soloists, mixed choir (SATB), and full orchestra. It premiered on April 20, 1946, conducted by Shaw. The composition is regarded by musicologist David Neumeyer as Hindemith's "only profoundly American work." and Paul Hume described it as "a work of genius and the presence of the genius presiding over its performance brought us splendor and profound and moving glory." It is noted that Hindemith incorporated a Jewish melody, "Gaza", in his composition.