Our Requiem service will be Nov 3, 2024, at 6:30pm. This is an evening of prayer and remembrance for the souls of those who have died that we still keep close to our hearts. Please use the form below to submit the names and photos of your loved ones you would like to add to the necrology list, which is read during the Eucharist.
Click here to add names and photos to the necrology list to be read aloud during the Eucharist.
From our music director, Sara Torbeck:
What is the All Souls Requiem Mass and why should I attend?
November 3 is a big day in the Liturgical Calendar. We celebrate All Saints Day in the morning, where we recall and pray for the triumphant saints, elect, and martyrs of the church. From very early times the ‘saints’ were primarily persons of heroic sanctity, whose deeds inspired awe and gratitude in later generations.
Beginning in the 10th century, a separate All-Souls mass was formed to commemorate the general body of faithful departed, the ‘everyday saints’ and dear loved ones that touched our lives in a personal way. This mass for the dead is a time for remembrance and reflection; a place to bring our grief, our sorrows, and joyful memories, and to recall and pray for those departed loved ones. At this mass, we speak aloud the names of our departed loved ones in gratitude for their influence on our lives.
Many composers have written beautiful musical settings of the requiem mass texts, intended to be performed as part of the chanted service, although it has become a stand-alone concert genre as well. Some of the more famous settings include Mozart, Verdi, Berlioz, Duruflé, and Fauré. Many of these composers return to the early Gregorian chant melodies for inspiration.
Our requiem setting this year is composed by Spanish Renaissance composer Tomás Luis de Victoria (1541-1611). Born in Avila, Spain, to a wealthy family, Victoria benefitted from early musical training at the Avila Cathedral and in 1565 attended the Collegio Germanico in Rome, founded by Jesuit missionaries. He was deeply influenced by the Catholic Reformation movement. After training as a singer and organist and later serving as Director of Music at the Collegio Germanico, in 1575 he became ordained as a priest. He worked clerical duties and continued to compose and publish masses and motets.
His Missa pro Defunctis (Mass for the Dead) for 4-voice choir was published among these earlier compositions in 1583. He later revised and reworked it in 1603/1605 to become the 6-part masterpiece of Renaissance polyphony which he is most known for. We will be singing the earlier edition of this work. Victoria’s part-writing is full of emotional appeal. His melodic lines are written with elegant clarity and simple counterpoint. He avoided the frills of other Renaissance composers of his era, following the ideal put forth in the Council of Trent (1545-1563) that the ‘music is at the service of the liturgical text’ and should promote clarity, reverence, and inspire religious contemplation.
Each movement is preceded by the ancient Gregorian chant tones of the Requiem mass. The movements feature a cantus-firmus which is a pre-existing plainchant melody that moves at a slow steady pace while other more florid lines embellish around it. The composition uses polyphony, 2 or more independent musical lines that create complex harmonic and rhythmic textures. It also uses moments of homophony, where all the voices move together on the same words at the same time. These expressive devices come together to create a beautiful, mysterious, and deeply contemplative Requiem mass that will inspire listeners to ponder the mysteries of the divine beyond.
It is my prayer that our music and service will inspire you and touch those quiet places in your hearts. The All Souls Requiem service will be held on Sunday November 3rd at 6:30 PM.