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3-26-2011

Concert: Requiem by Maurice DurufléIthaca College Choir

Lawrence Doebler

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Recommended CitationIthaca College Choir and Doebler, Lawrence, "Concert: Requiem by Maurice Duruflé" (2011). All Concert & Recital Programs. 38.http://digitalcommons.ithaca.edu/music_programs/38

Ithaca College Choir

Requiem by Maurice DurufléLawrence Doebler, conductorJean Clay Radice, organTristan Rais-Sherman, cello

Ford HallSaturday, March 26, 20118:15 p.m.

Program

Leonardo Dreams of His Flying Machine Eric Whitacre(b. 1970)

Charles Anthony Silvestri,librettist

Melissa Daneke, Sarah Jenkins, Katherine Henly, Rachel Mikol, Erin Peters, Mike Hollabaugh, soloists

Melissa Daneke and Nathan Murphy, percussion

RequiemIntroitKyrieDomine Jesu ChristeSanctusPie JesuAgnus DeiLux aeternaLibera meIn Paradisum

Maurice Duruflé(1902-1986)

BiographiesIthaca College Choir and Lawrence Doebler, conductor

The Ithaca College Choir, under the direction of Lawrence Doebler, has beenrecognized through its annual tour and many campus appearances as one of the finestand most innovative ensembles at the collegiate level. This years' tour presented J. S.Bach’s Mass in B Minor in Bethesda MD, Philadelphia and Ithaca with afaculty/student orchestra and faculty voice soloists. This took place in October 2010.

In each of the last thirty-two years, the Ithaca College Choir has premiered a workthat has been published by Theodore Presser as part of the Ithaca College ChoralSeries. Composers who have accepted commissions are Vincent Persichetti, SamuelAdler, Karel Husa, William Schuman, Eugene Butler, Iain Hamilton, Ellen Zwilich,Richard Wernick, Peter Schickele, Thomas Pasatieri, Augusta Read Thomas, RonaldCaltabiano, two by Norman Dello Joio, Thea Musgrave, Daniel Pinkham, Daniel Asia,two by Chen Yi, Robert Maggio, Lowell Lieberman, George Tsontakis, AnthonyIannaconne, Daniel Dorff, Dan Welcher, Ron Nelson, Dana Wilson, Gary Schocker,Behzad Ranjbaran, Steven Stucky and René Clausen.

The Ithaca College Choir has toured extensively on the East Coast, South andMid-West United States and eight years ago performed in Ireland. The Choir haspresented major concerts at the American Choral Directors Association in Providence,the Music Educators National Conference in Baltimore and Providence; Lincoln CenterAvery Fisher Hall and Alice Tully Hall, Carnegie Hall, Symphony Space, St. Patrick's Cathedral, and Cooper Union in New York City; the Brooklyn Academy of Music inBrooklyn, the Troy Savings Bank in Troy, NY and the Strand Theatre in York, PA. Inaddition to the a cappella tradition, the choir has performed with the Cayuga ChamberOrchestra, the Ithaca College Orchestra and Wind Ensemble, and other professionalensembles.

Lawrence Doebler is a professor of music at Ithaca College where he serves asDirector of Choral Activities. Currently in his thirty-third year at the college, his dutiesinclude conducting the Choir, Madrigal Singers, and Choral Union and teachingconducting (both undergraduate courses and graduate majors), choral techniques, andchoral literature. The Ithaca College Choral Union and Symphony Orchestra haveperformed at Lincoln Center in Avery Fisher Hall under Mr. Doebler’s direction, mostrecently presenting Verdi’s Requiem with soprano Sharon Sweet (MM ‘78),mezzo-soprano Leah Summers, tenor David Parks, and baritone Randie Blooding.

Early training in keyboard, strings, voice, and brass led to degrees in conducting fromOberlin Conservatory and Washington University in St. Louis. Professor Doebler beganhis professional career in 1969 at Smith College. From 1971 through 1978 he taughtand conducted at the University of Wisconsin at Madison.

Mr. Doebler has received awards for research and teaching excellence from theUniversity of Wisconsin and Ithaca College and has appeared throughout the easternand Midwestern United States and Ireland as a clinician and guest conductor. As aneditor of "no barline" Renaissance music, Mr. Doebler's editions are published by theLorenz Company in the Roger Dean catalogue. In addition to his academicappointments, he has served as music director of the Cayuga Vocal Ensemble and hasbeen the director of music at churches in Cleveland, St. Louis, Madison, and Ithaca.

Jean Clay RadiceJean Clay Radice, organ, has taught organ and harpsichord at Ithaca College since 2007.She studied organ at Syracuse University before obtaining a bachelor’s degree in organperformance from Boston University and a master’s degree in organ performance fromthe University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. Her major teachers havebeen Donald Sutherland, Will Headlee, George Faxon, Jack Fisher, and Roberta Gary.She is currently organist at First Presbyterian Church in Ithaca. She specializes inhistorical keyboard literature for organ and harpsichord up to and including JohannSebastian Bach. Professor Radice performed the Bach B Minor Mass with the IthacaCollege Choir and faculty/student orchestra this past fall.

Ithaca College ChoirLawrence Doebler, conductor

Sarah Jenkins and Lee Wright, graduate assistantsSoprano IJaclyn Goldstein Katherine HenlySarah JenkinsAndrea PerroneKatie SullivanMegan Wright

Soprano IIElizabeth FarandaLaura Gladd Kristina JacksonRobyn LustbaderMelissa MontgomeryAna Strachan

Alto I Perry AlbertJessica BennettEmma Ladouceur Rachel MikolLydia Walrath

Alto IIDanielle CarrierMelissa DanekeAnna KimbleErin PetersMiriam Schildkret

Tenor IMario BurgosAlexander CanovasBrandon CoonDaniel Mahoney Christopher Miranda

Tenor IIDan BatesDave Grossman Nick HarmantzisDonald Haviland Brett Maley Ted Zimnicki

BaritoneKevin FortinMike Hollabaugh Steve HumesJohnny Rabe Stephen WilkinsRyan Zettlemoyer

BassMichael GaertnerMatt Jones Nathan MurphyMikey Wade Christopher Weigel Lee Wright

NotesLeonardo Dreams of His Flying Machine

The collaboration of composer Eric Whitacre and poet Charles AnthonySilvestri may be considered to be profound. Each has worked closely with theother through many revisions to create these two pieces. Not only was greatimagination and skill needed to wed these elements but the result is one thatallows the imagination of the performer and listener to be transported to adream state in which anything is possible.

Eric Whitacre received his master’s degree in composition from The JuilliardSchool of Music studying with John Corigliano and David Diamond. Whitacrehas received many composition awards from ASCAP, the Barlow Foundationand the American Composers Forum. He is in demand as a composer,conductor and clinician. The Los Angeles Times praised his music as “electric,chilling harmonies; works of unearthly beauty and imagination.” CharlesAnthony Silvestri is a poet, teacher and historian and has written both the textfor Sleep and the libretto for Leonardo.

Text and TranslationTormented by visions of flight and falling,

More wondrous and terrible each than the last,Master Leonardo imagines an engineTo carry man up to the sun…

And he’s dreaming the heavens call him,Softly whispering their siren-song: “Leonardo, Leonardo, vieni a volare.” “Leonardo, Leonardo, come fly.”

L’uomo colle sua congiegniate e grandi ale, A man with wings large enough and dulyconnected

facciendo forza contro alla resisitente aria. might learn to overcome the resistance of air.

As the candles burn low he paces and writes,Releasing purchased pigeons one by oneInto the golden Tuscan sunrise…

And as he dreams, again the calling, The very air itself gives voice:“Leonardo, Leonardo, vieni a volare.” "Leonardo, Leonardo, come fly.”

Vicina all’ elemento del fuocco… Close to the sphere of elemental fire…Scratching quill on crumpled paper(Rete, canna, filo, carta.) (Net, cane, thread, paper.)Images of wing and frame and fabric fastened

tightly.…sulla suprema sottile aria. …in the highest and rarest atmosphere.

As the midnight watchtower tolls,Over rooftop, street and dome,The triumph of a human ascendingIn the dreaming of a mortal man.

Leonardo steels himself,Takes one last breath, and leaps…“Leonardo, vieni a volare! Leonardo,

sognare”“Leonardo, come fly! Leonardo, dream!”

RequiemMAURICE DURUFLEFor Maurice Duruflé (1902-1986) composition was a slow, laborious processinvolving constant revision and impeccable craftsmanship: only ten workshave been published - one fewer than his teacher Paul Dukas, a similarlyfastidious perfectionist. Unlike his friend and fellow-student Olivier Messiaen,Duruflé eschewed the avant-garde experimentation that might have resulted ina fashionable new language, choosing instead a retrospective stance, looking toplainsong for his inspiration and great French composers Debussy, Ravel,Fauré and Dukas for his models. He was known to feel 'incapable of addinganything significant to the piano repertory, viewing the string quartet withapprehension, and envisaging with terror the idea of composing a song afterthe finished examples of Schubert, Fauré and Debussy'. Instead Duruflécomposed for his two favorite media, orchestra and organ (he was renowned asa virtuoso organist).

THE REQUIEMDuruflé was working on a suite of organ pieces based on plainsong from theMass for the Dead when the commission for the Requiem arrived from hispublishers, Durand. The sketches already on his desk proved themselves anideal starting point, the plainsong becoming the basis of the whole work,unifying it and breathing into it the timelessness and meditative spirituality thatare its essence. The model is Fauré's Requiem; but this is no mere imitation,rather a reworking within the structure and mood established by the oldercomposer, born of admiration and respect. Fauré chose to break away from theexamples typified by Berlioz and Verdi and their tragic, blazing images ofhell-fire and heaven-storming grief. He omitted the 'Day of Judgment' texts andconcentrated instead on rest and peace, even going so far as to borrow the InParidisum from the Burial Service. Duruflé sets the same texts as Fauré(although the division into movements is a little different, and he retains theBenedictus) and adopts a similarly restrained approach. Both use a baritonesoloist in the Domine Jesu Christe and Libera me, and a treble for the Pie Jesu.Duruflé opens the work within the same tonality as Fauré, the Offertory withthe same voices, and the Pie Jesu in an identical fashion. The structure of theSanctus owes a huge debt to Fauré's example, as do the Libera me and InParadisum - yet the overall effect transcends the possible limitations of such afine model, and gives us something very original.

The strength of Duruflé's composition lies in its extraordinary fusion ofdisparate elements - plainsong, liturgical modality, subtle counterpoint, and thesensuous harmonies and refined scoring of Debussy, Ravel and Dukas.Duruflé's often-literal use of plainsong melody gives the work a greatexpressive and rhythmic freedom and results in a natural flow of both text andmusic. When seated within such colorful tonalities and underpinned with

modal harmonies, the emotional impact is heightened, yet somehow theall-pervading tranquility and spiritual optimism is maintained. The Introitflows smoothly, the plainsong rendered note for note, moving into the imitativeentries of the Kyrie and its heartfelt pleas for mercy. The Sanctus takes theform of an instrumental moto perpetuo against which the voices are cleverlybuilt into a climax at 'Hosanna in excelsis', then subsiding, arch-like, to apeaceful conclusion. The Pie Jesu is the physical and emotional centre of thework, a poignant and almost painfully beautiful setting of the plainsong fortreble and solo cello, supported by harmonies rich in seconds and sevenths.The Agnus Dei moves us gently onward, yet without detracting from theatmosphere left by the preceding movement. Duruflé weaves an expressivecounter-melody around the plainsong, avoiding any dryness of expressionwithout affecting the delicacy of the scoring. More imaginative touches arefound in the Lux aeterna - the vocalizing of the lower voices beneath thetrebles, and the unison chanting of 'Requiem aeternam' over changing chords.The Libera me brings lengthier development, and the dramatic climax of thewhole work with the 'Dies illa'; the last 'Libera me', like Fauré's, is sung inunison to the end of the movement. The final movement, In Paradisum, is anexquisite creation: the opening chords form an ethereal mist from which thetrebles emerge, finally at peace. The sensuous chords of the full choir add tothe spiritual tranquility, and the last chord, an unresolved dominant ninth,evaporates into eternity.

Text and TranslationINTROIT and KYRIE

Requiem aeternam dona eis Domine: et Grant them eternal rest, O Lord: andlux perpetua luceat eis. let everlasting light shine on them.Te decet hymnus, Deus, in Sion, To thee, O God, praise is meet in Sion,et tibi reddetur votum in Jerusalem and unto thee shall the vow be performed in

Jerusalem.Exaudi orationem meam: Hearken unto my prayer:ad te omnis caro veniet. unto thee all flesh shall come.Kyrie eleison. Lord, have mercy upon us.Christe eleison. Christ, have mercy upon us.Kyrie eleison. Lord, have mercy upon us.

DOMINE JESU CHRISTEDomine Jesu Christe, Rex gloriae, Lord Jesus Christ, King of Glory,libera animas omnium fidelium deliver the souls of all the faithfuldefunctorum de poenis inferni departed from the pains of hellet de profundo lacu. and from the bottomless pit.Libera eas de ore leonis, Deliver them from the jaws of the lion,ne absorbeat eas tartarus, that hell may not swallow them up,ne cadant in obscurum; and they may not fall into darkness;sed signifer sanctus Michael but may the holy standard-bearer Michaelrepraesentet eas in lucem sanctam bring them into the holy light,quam olim Abrahae promisisti as Thou didst promise of old toet semini ejus. Abraham and his seed.Hostias et preces tibi, Domine We offer unto Thee, O Lord, sacrifices andlaudis offerimus, tu suscipe pro prayers of praise: do Thou receive them onanimabus illis quarum hodie memoriam behalf of those souls whom we commemoratefacimus; fac eas, Domine, de morte this day. Allow them, Lord, to pass from death

transire ad to lifevitam quam olim Abrahae… as Thou didst promise Abraham…Libera animas… Deliver the souls…

SANCTUSSanctus, sanctus, sanctus. Domine Holy, holy, holy LordDeus Sabaoth. Pleni sunt coeli God of Sabaoth. Heaven and earthet terra Gloria tua. Hosanna in excelsis. are full of thy glory. Hosanna in the highest.Benedictus qui venit in nomine Blessed is he that cometh in the nameDomini. Hosanna in excelsis. of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest.

PIE JESUPie Jesu Domine, dona eis requiem. Blessed Jesu, Lord, grant them rest.

AGNUS DEIAgnus Dei qui tollis peccata mundi: Lamb of God, that takest away the sins of the

world:dona eis requiem. grant them rest.Agnus Dei qui tollis peccata mundi: Lamb of God, that takest away the sins of the

world:dona eis requiem sempiternam. grant them eternal rest.

LUX AETERNALux aeterna luceat eis, Domine, May eternal light shine on them, Lord,cum sanctis tuis in aeternum, with thy saints everlasting,quia pius es. because you are merciful.Requiem aeternam dona eis, Domine Rest eternal grant them, Lord,et lux perpetua luceat eis. and may perpetual light shine on them.

LIBERA MELibera me, Domine, de morte aeterna Deliver me, O Lord, from eternal deathin die illa tremenda, on that awful day,quando coeli movendi sunt et terra; when the heavens shall be moved and the

earth;dum veneris judicare saeculum when thou shalt come to judge the worldper ignem. by fire.Tremens factus sum ego, et timeo, I am seized with trembling, and I fear the

momentDum discussio venerit atque ventura ira, when the trial comes, and the coming wrath,quando coeli movendi sunt et terra. when the heavens shall be moved, and the

earth.Dies irae, dies illa calamitatis et miseriae, A day of wrath, that day of calamity and

misery,dies magne et amara valde. An exceedingly great and bitter day.Requiem aeternam dona eis Domine, Grant them eternal rest, O Lord,et lux perpetua luceat eis. and let perpetual light shine upon them.

IN PARADISUMIn paradisum deducant angeli: God’s holy angels lead you to paradise:in tuo adventu at your comingsuscipiant in martyres, et perducant te may the martyrs receive you, and conduct youin civitatem sanctam Jerusalem. into the holy city, Jerusalem.Chorus angelorum te suscipiat: Choirs of angels sing you to your rest:et cum Lazaro quondm paupere and with Lazarus raised to eternal life,aeternum habeas requiem. May you forevermore rest in peace.