Going Long Hair

For Glyn’s Mixed Music Bag #11, Monthly Challenge Week 11 where we are asked to write about a song by a group or solo artist beginning with the letter E or F.

Today I’m going out on the proverbial limb by doing something completely different. We’re going long-hair, and I’m not talking about hard rock metal bands. Sit up straight and pay attention, boys and girls; we’re going classical!

In his seven-section Requiem, the French composer Gabriel Fauré distilled some of the most beautiful melodies he ever composed. The creation was a musical tribute to his father who died in 1885, three years before work on the piece began.

As with much of Western classical music, Requiem owes its roots to Christian faith. Traditionally, it is a prayerful lament for the dead; however, Fauré’s Requiem was altogether different because, unlike his contemporaries, Fauré had no clear religious beliefs.

In place of the somber nature of most requiems, Fauré’s is noted for its calm, serene and peaceful outlook. Anyone looking for morose themes is barking up the wrong tree. Instead, here you will find musical solace in a work that focuses not on the morbid, but on the restful and fear-free nature of death.

Of all seven sections of Fauré’s Reqiuem, the Pie Jesu, Agnus Dei and In Paradisum emerge as the most glorious, filled with rich, soulful melodies. The work garnered the praise of many other composers who thought it divine. It was performed at Fauré’s own funeral in 1924.

I’ve been a member of choirs all my life and have sung Fauré’s Requiem countless times, especially during Holy Week leading up to Easter. Since we are rapidly approaching that time of the season, I will be attending a performance of both Faure and Mozart’s Requiems presented by the Taconic Opera this Sunday, March 17. It just so happens that my son David will be singing lead tenor. I am incredibly and unceasingly proud of him.

Please bear in mind …. you don’t have to be a classic music buff or at all religious to listen/enjoy a requiem, especially one as breathtaking as Fauré’s. Here are the Pie Jesu (Pious Jesus) , Agnus Dei (Lamb of God) and In Paradisum (Into Paradise).

This is VOICES8 performing Faure’s “Pie Jesu”

This is “Agnus Dei” performed by Netherlands Radio Chorus / Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra

Performed by the Winchester Cathedral Choir, this is “In Paradisum”

I hope you have enjoyed today’s change of pace. You can check out Taconic Opera here if you are so inclined.

May you be peaceful.

NAR©2024

Mixed Music Bag 2024 – week 11 – Faithless

All text, graphics and videos are copyright for The Sicilian Storyteller, The Elephant’s Trunk and The Rhythm Section and is not for use by anyone without permission. NAR©2017-present.