Requiem (Duruflé)

Start of the second movement, Kyrie, of Duruflé's Requiem ("organ only" version published in 1948)
Requiem
by Maurice Duruflé
Opus Op. 9
Text Requiem
Language Latin
Based on Gregorian plainchant
Dedication To the memory of his father
Movements 9

The Requiem, Op. 9, by Maurice Duruflé, published in 1948 by the French publishing house Durand, was first issued in a version for SATB choir and organ.[1] It had been commissioned six years earlier under the collaborationist Vichy regime,[2] but Duruflé was still working on it in 1944 when the regime collapsed and in fact did not complete it until the year of publication. The composer dedicated the Requiem to the memory of his father.[3]

The work is for SATB choir with brief mezzo-soprano and baritone solos. It exists in three versions: one for organ alone (with obbligato solo for cello); one for organ with string orchestra and optional trumpets, harp, and timpani; and one for organ and full orchestra.[4]

At the time of commission, Duruflé was working on an organ suite using themes from Gregorian chants. He incorporated his sketches for that work into the Requiem, which uses numerous themes from the Gregorian "Mass for the Dead."[5] Nearly all the thematic material in the work comes from chant.[5]

Structure

Duruflé structured the work in nine movements:[3]

  1. Introit (Requiem aeternam)
  2. Kyrie eleison
  3. Offertory (Domine Jesu Christe)
  4. Sanctus and Benedictus
  5. Pie Jesu
  6. Agnus Dei
  7. Communion (Lux aeterna)
  8. Libera me
  9. In Paradisum

Like many requiems, Duruflé's omits the Gradual and the Tract. The Dies irae text, perhaps the most famous portion of the Requiem Mass, is not set. Duruflé's omission of this text and inclusion of others (Pie Jesu, Libera me, In Paradisum, from the burial service, mirroring Fauré), makes the composition calmer and more meditative than some other settings. In the full score, the fifth movement, Pie Jesu, has the only solo for the mezzo-soprano; in addition, even in the "organ-only" version of the Requiem, there is an obbligato cello solo. The baritone soloist has parts in the third and eighth movements, "Domine Jesu Christe" and "Libera me." Duruflé left indications in the score that, for the baritone solos, it was preferable to have the choir sing the solos instead. This has resulted in various forces being used in different performances, some with both soloists, some with only the mezzo-soprano, and some (such as Robert Shaw's Telarc recording) using no soloists at all.

Instrumentation

The full orchestra version is scored for 3 flutes (2nd and 3rd doubling piccolo), 2 oboes (2nd doubling 2nd cor anglais), cor anglais, 2 clarinets, bass clarinet, 2 bassoons, 4 horns, 3 trumpets, 3 trombones, tuba, timpani, cymbals, bass drum, tamtam, celesta, harp, organ, and strings (violins, violas, cellos, and double basses).

The reduced orchestra version is scored for 3 trumpets, timpani, harp, organ, and strings (violins, violas, cellos, and double basses). The organ part used in the reduced version is different from the organ part used in the version for choir and organ.

Discography

References

  1. ↑ Maurice Duruflé / Requiem / Choers à 4 Voix (S.A.T.B.). Durand. 1948.
  2. ↑ Frazier, James E. (2007). Chapter Sixteen: The Vichy Commissions / Chapter Seventeen: The Requiem. The Man and his Music. University Rochester Press. pp. 156–180. ISBN 9781580462273.
  3. 1 2 Gammie, David (2014). "Requiem, Op 9". Hyperion. Retrieved 3 August 2017.
  4. ↑ Coghlan, Alexandra (2016). "Duruflé Requiem". Gramophone. Retrieved 3 August 2017.
  5. 1 2 Creasy, Barry. "Requiem – Maurice Duruflé (1902 - 1986)". Collegium Musicum of London. British Choirs on the Net. Retrieved 26 July 2014.
  • Cooksey, Karen Lou (2000). "The Duruflé Requiem: A Guide for Interpretation". Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection. Butler University. Retrieved 1 March 2007.
  • Dellal, Pamela (2017). "Miscellaneous Translations / Requiem / Maurice Duruflé". Emmanuel Music. Retrieved 1 March 2007.
  • Oestreich, James R. (16 November 1989). "Review/Music; Maurice Durufle Requiem Opens 3-Part Retrospective". The New York Times. Retrieved 1 March 2007.
  • Oestreich, James R. (8 March 2012). "Elegant Theft: Maurice Duruflé's Requiem". The New Yorker. Retrieved 3 August 2017.
  • Kaye, Nicholas. (2001, January 01). "Duruflé, Maurice." Grove Music Online. Ed. Retrieved 13 September 2018.
  • "Maurice Gustave Duruflé / 1902 - 1986 / France". requiemsurvey.org. 2017. Retrieved 3 August 2017.
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