Maurice Duruflé — Requiem, Op.9 (1947) [w/ score]

Composer: Maurice Duruflé (1902 - 1986)

Mezzo-soprano: Kiri Te Kanawa
Baritone: Siegmund Nimsgern
Ambrosian Singers
New Philharmonia Orchestra
Conductor: Andrew Davis

The majority of thematic materials in Duruflé's "Requiem" are taken from the Gregorian chant of the "Mass for the Dead". This Requiem is clearly influenced by Fauré's: both sharing identical choices and arrangements of liturgical texts. On a broader scale, this Requiem, like Fauré's, possesses lyrical, meditative, and gentle qualities, which are typical of the musical language of early 20th-century France. While Duruflé was a conservative composer, this work is much more modern compared to Fauré's, featuring some characteristics of impressionistic harmony, such as parallel chords, non-functional seventh chords (clearly heard in the "Pie Jesu"), and the use of pentatonic scales.

Personally, this Requiem is the most beautiful one I have ever heard. It represents a pure and eloquent French sound that touches deepest emotions. Unlike the highly chromatic, contrived, and pretentious German and Austrian music, French music is fresh and vibrant, yet it can evoke the most genuine sense of poetry in human hearts. In the midst of dark days of Shanghai lockdown due to the outbreak of the pandemic and various conflicts in the news and public opinion, this Requiem reminds me that there are still pure and beautiful things in the world. I hope this Requiem can bring comfort and strength to all who listen to it.

00:00 - cover
00:03 - I. Introït
03:59 - II. Kyrie
07:47 - III. Domine Jesu Christe
16:13 - IV. Sanctus
19:35 - V. Pie Jesu
23:05 - VI. Agnus Dei
27:28 - VII. Lux æterna
31:59 - VIII. Libera me
37:30 - IX. In Paradisum

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