Requiem : an original composition for choir, soloists and chamber wind ensemble

Requiem is an original composition for SATB choir; mezzo-soprano, tenor, and bass soloists; and chamber wind ensemble. The liturgical Latin text is set in ten movements with a performance duration of an hour. The composition has a mix of traditional elements—tripartite formal structures, movement symmetry, and text setting conventions—and contemporary elements—chromatic melodies, dissonant harmonies, rhythmic complexities, and extended pitch ranges. Paired movements, linked by means of motive and timbral similarities, create a symmetrical structure in the Requiem as a whole. The chamber wind ensemble performs as a full force for the Introit, Sequence: Quid sum miser, Sanctus, and Libera me, while the rest of the movements use small groups taken from the ensemble. The accompanying document provides a review of Requiems that inspired my composition as well as a brief history of the requiem genre. I analyze six compositions with regard to their text settings and their formal structures: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Requiem, K. 626; Luigi Cherubini’s Requiem in C Minor; Gabriel Fauré’s Requiem, Op. 48; Benjamin Britten’s War Requiem; Christopher Rouse’s Requiem; and John Tavener’s Requiem Each of these Requiems has elements of symmetry, form, or text setting that inspired my Requiem.