Kyrie eleison: "Lord have mercy".nnHere is a performance of the Kyrie excerpted from the BBC's "Afghanistan - A Service of Commemoration", b...
Kyrie eleison: "Lord have mercy".nnHere is a performance of the Kyrie excerpted from the BBC's "Afghanistan - A Service of Commemoration", broadcast live from St. Paul's Cathedral, London, yesterday, Friday 13 March 2015, in the presence of HM Queen Elizabeth II. This BBC video includes clips of British Armed Forces on patrol in Afghanistan. (My apologies for the poor editing at start and finish. I shall attend to this shortly).nnFor me, a sublime work of deep emotional power, more especially in the context of this Service of Commemoration. An excellent, most moving performance by the choir of St. Paul's Cathedral. And may I say, in as humble a way as is possible, that my heart goes out to the soldiers who were sent to Afghanistan (and of course Iraq) served there, were injured there, died there. One can see glimpses of unutterable hurt and damage in the stoical faces of the soldiers who survived. It is a terrible thing, both for them, their families, and the ordinary people of both nations. Kyrie eleison: Lord have mercy upon all of us in this wicked world.nnThe Requiem, Op. 9, by Maurice Duruflé was published in 1947 by the French music publisher Durand. Commissioned in 1941 by the collaborationist Vichy regime, Duruflé was still working on the piece at the time of the regime's collapse in 1944, and completed it in 1947, dedicating it to the memory of his father. The work is for SATB choir with mezzo-soprano and baritone soloists. It exists in three orchestrations: one for organ alone (as here) one for organ with string orchestra and optional trumpets, harp and timpani, and one for organ and full orchestra.nnAt 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." Nearly all the thematic material in the work comes from chant. (Courtesy of and adapted from Wikipedia).nnChoir of St. Paul's Cathedral, London EnglandnDirector of Music: Andrew CarwoodnAss't Director and Organist: Simon JohnsonnSub-Organist: Peter Holdernn(c) BBC 2015 Less