Duruflé - Requiem: Live from Trinity College Chapel | The Choir of Trinity College Cambridge

Recorded live in Trinity College Chapel on Wednesday 30 September 2020.
Download the order of service here:
trinitycollegechoir.com/media/...
The Choir of Trinity College Cambridge
Conductor: Stephen Layton
Senior Organ Scholar: Harrison Cole
Alto: Rachel Coombs
Bass: Florian Störtz
Cello: Dan Gilchrist
Chaplains: John Summers and Olga Fabrikant-Burke

[@marshallartz395]

Requiem Mass for the Departed *Trinity College Chapel, September 30, 2020* Maurice Duruflé (1902-1986) Requiem, Op. 9 *(1948)* 0:00:00 _Opening Credits_ 0:00:15 _Processional_ 0:02:18 I. Introit *(Requiem æternam)* 0:05:44II. Kyrie 0:09:27 _Requiem Mass_ 0:16:01 V. Pie Jesu 0:19:38 _Requiem Mass_ 0:23:56 III. Domine Jesu Christe 0:31:47 _Requiem Mass_ 0:32:42 IV. Sanctus 0:35:49 _Requiem Mass_ 0:39:00 VI. Agnus Dei 0:42:47 VII. Lux æterna 0:47:02 VIII. Libera me 0:52:56 _Requiem Mass_ 0:55:40 IX. In Paradisum 0:59:18 *Recessional* 1:02:01 *Closing Credits* *The Choir of Trinity College Cambridge* Stephen Layton, conductor Harrison Cole, organ *Rachel Coombs, Alto* *Florian Störtz, Bass* *Dan Gilchrist, Cello*

[@ScottKnitter]

The Sanctus is here; I'd be heartbroken if it were not... kzbin.info/www/bejne/mV61moyFpcaMjNk

[@ScottKnitter]

@@marshallartz395 Thank you! I know my time stamp was a little early. Thanks for fixing it.

[@andysweet7550]

Thanks very much for posting this, it helps me follow along with the order.

[@sudhirchopde3334]

The negative time scale on the clip,is no help !

[@nightoil6567]

TrinityCollegeChoir - could this useful post not be pinned to the top? Also, Marshall Artz, "Angus Dei" might be corrected to Agnus Dei!

[@gabrielsimerson9635]

What a feat to have pulled off such ensemble in such a compromised formation! Beautiful musicmaking in the ultimate Trinity way: simultaneous tears and fire, with no straight vocal line to be found.

[@kennethduckworth4910]

Wonderful performance of this beautiful work. Listeners may also find inspiration in a later film of the Duruflé Requiem made by the same choir at St. Eustache in Paris. It was made available on KZbin on Feb. 22, 2023.

[@peterellis9374]

This is a stunning performance - I really can't get over the dynamic control.

[@metinali2126]

И

[@LindaPgh]

It's hard to know where to start in extolling this other-worldly performance. A few things stand out for me: The fluid elegance of Harrison Cole's, playing, so totally at-one with the music. The choir's incredible dynamic range from the cosmic fff of excelsis to the heart-stopping ppp of requiem. The transparency of textures, which allowed countless individual moments of beauty fo emerge. The redefinition of the term "decrescendo" by Maestro Layton: We now know it doesn't mean "get softer;" it means "lean in closer to the ultimate mystery." The sensuous beauty and perfection of the individual vocal sections and of the various pairings: S+A; A+ T; A+B; S+T, SATB unison. Am I imagining it, or does the choral sound seem much more resonant in this formation? I feel like I'm hearing the choir in a much larger space.

[@shermanhesselgrave6635]

Thanks for posting the link. It was a fantastic performance. I do wish they would record it.

[@lyndallbarrett4504]

Outstanding!

[@johnfox7985]

@@shermanhesselgrave6635 Trinity does have a recording of Duruflé's Requiem available on Spotify, I believe, only it's under both the Chandos label and Richard Marlow's baton. No Layton-led recordings bar this one, afaik!!

[@markyoung2348]

This is the reason Gramophone ranked them among the world's top five choirs ! What an ethereally beautiful performance.

[@chriswinchell1221]

An absolutely beautiful offering of one of the world's great Requiems. Lovely to see it in the context of the Eucharist, as well. Thank you, Stephen Layton

[@Mackaronni2]

Who are these thumbs down people on this heavenly requiem....? God help them...

[@QHarefield]

They probably work in the fingerprint department at Scotland Yard and did it by force of habit.

[@petek3872]

It's the masks. Why is the conductor exempt? The organist? The celebrant bows down, even.

[@1968KWT]

Philistines . . .

[@helendale7668]

Memories of singing in the same place, same piece in 1980 or 1981.. :-)

[@theloudtenor]

I would LOVE to hear Florian Störtz sing Ralph Vaughan Williams' 5 Mystical Songs.

[@LindaPgh]

A good start to what could be a very long list.

[@richardhoover4471]

This is my favorite piece of music. Magnificently sung, played, and directed. Just what I needed to hear at this time in our world.🙏🏼

[@dissilymordentroge5818]

Every praise this performance has been showered with is justified. I also think I hear a strange artifact of placing the choristers a distance apart. By some mysterious process this adds an almost cosmic dimension to the sound. Astonishing!

[@LindaPgh]

You've expressed this so beautifully--that strange artifact adding a cosmic dimension. I felt that too but you've captured it perfectly.

[@gemmacoebergh8062]

It has an amazing effect, I was deeply moved by it!

[@tenorandguitar]

You need good singers to do it, but I have seen American choirs do it long ago, and it can indeed be magical!!

[@ryanhepburn2583]

That Dies Irae: terrifying, all the more wild for its fierce control, and stunningly beautiful, all in one go. Thank you, Trinity Choir and Stephen Layton. Superlative performance of this great giant of a piece.

[@rolandjohannes]

Please Hyperion, do a recording of this. As is, one take. This was absolutely brilliant!!

[@99LordRock]

Totally agree. This is the best ever performance I have heard of this work. Needs to be available for all via Hyperion. Thank you Trinity 💜

[@HagiaSophia1952]

They already have! But with the Corydon Singers. I collect Requiems; and have around one hundred of them. This remains one of my favourites. And this IS an exquisite performance: especially in the liturgical context. And the words of Thomas Cranmer, to boot. It ticks all the right boxes.

[@rolandjohannes]

@@HagiaSophia1952 True, but this is next level stuff...

[@karencilman3002]

It sounds as if they're constantly mindful that this is a Requiem made of chants. A highly sensitive, tonally beautiful performance. Bravo and thank you.

[@sacredtarot]

I don't think I've ever heard the Durufle Requiem sung with such a perfect combination of purity and sensuality. I do hope you record this with Hyperion some day soon. For now, heartfelt thanks for such a wonderful performance. You lit my evening up during these dark times.

[@QZI04541]

Thank you for sharing from Japan. I am really consolated by this special service.

[@quickfoxxes]

Thank you for sharing this splendid offering of worship. Durufle is full of subtle and wonderful harmonies which mesmerize the singer and the audience. Bless you all and those you love.

[@Reid-yy5nw]

If left on this Earth with only 1 piece of music besides the Bach B MINOR MASS, I couldn't make a go of it without the Durufle REQUIEM either. It would take two!

[@paulcaswell2813]

Beethoven Op.130 (with Große Fuge)???

[@kennethduckworth8100]

The epitome of heart-easing music!

[@charlescanaan1286]

Some of my most memorable musical experiences were in this place. The quality of music brings tears to one's eye. Thank you for sharing this.

[@kempedkemp]

Sublime... having trouble coming back down.

[@R_Jackson]

Very beautiful. The In Paradisum in particular surpassed all I've heard before. Many, many thanks for sharing this service.

[@7171Julian]

This is absolutely beautiful music by Maurice Duruflé, and it is sung beautifully as well, and of course the organ playing is superb here as well.

[@friendsofstedmundschurchfa3301]

The most beautiful thing the power of the human voice in harmony in such a beautiful score in the harshest of times for music and musicians what a joy to hear and see music returning play on sing out music matters

[@tatalito]

absolutely wonderful !

[@clivespendlove5993]

Remarkable. I know these musicians are top notch but I fancy the spacing ADDS something wonderful. To me it sounds like some kind of light as well as lightness, even air, that I somehow 'hear'. At a time when so many people are struggling to breathe, this sublime music and performance is even more special to me.

[@LindaPgh]

I love your comment. In coming up with impossible simile of sounding" like some kind of light as well as lightness, even air" you totally nail it. Yes, there's something so exquisite this performance that the normal categories of musical discourse fail us. A few years ago I read a review of Stephen Layton's London performance of the B Minor Mass in the Independent. In that review Michael Church wrote that the Sanctus was like "a great tree thrusting up out of the earth." I loved that because that's another impossible simile--trees don't do that in the natural world. But the writer was pushed to that image by the emotional knock-out of the Sanctus. I know, I was there.

[@wcbmkr]

Sublime. Thank you for posting.

[@kaechee26]

Absolutely beautiful!

[@-alain-ferdinandbrun6449]

Beyond the words .Thank you so much !

[@GeorgFresen]

Von diesem wunderbaren Gottesdienst bis zum Himmelreich ist kein weiter Weg mehr.

[@LindaPgh]

Man kann diese Aufführung nicht ohne Engel und Himmel beschreiben.

[@thomstanbury1266]

This has been so wonderful, thank you

[@Innperlenburg]

Breathtaking. Thank you.

[@marycoyle5533]

This was absolutely beautiful - thank you

[@timothyturner01]

Absolutely wonderful. Thanks for sharing

[@elijahshanks9665]

Trinity College Choir, thank you for singing again. Beautifully done!

[@cassiemabrey6128]

I always come back to listen to this and it always gives me chills

[@bronxboy47]

Truly, one of the loveliest requiems ever penned.

[@philipevans5656]

Can't listen to it without tears (the bass entry at the start of the Kyrie 😥....)

[@OrganGuyPhil]

So beautiful. My favorite piece!

[@alerchen]

Absolutely extraordinary! I could listen again and again. Thank you for making this available!

[@garyhinkle5736]

Absolutely Magnificent🎵

[@nevillehamilton7842]

Truly wonderful

[@MichaelConwayBaker]

An absolutely stunning performance of this great masterpiece. Bravo!!

[@984francis]

Magnificent.

[@drewcantrill-fenwick5185]

Beautifully sung and played - in what looks like a very challenging formation!

[@haimteicherteicher4227]

Wonderful performance, an experience to cherish. The harmony of this requiem and this particular performance get you right in the heart.

[@gerardvanamstel]

Wonderful performance. It’s my favourite Requiem!

[@SingerGuy59]

The Duruflé Requiem is my favorite of the requiems (Faure being a close second because of the Libera Me). I have this on CD and will play it as I drive. I admit to getting some strange looks from other drivers when I'm singing along with it and my windows are down. Thank you for posting this beautiful rendition of this great piece.

[@pennylane8936]

Same. Duruflé and Fauré as a close second. The libera me is powerful but as a soprano the In Paradisum is also very enchanting

[@reneveen6988]

Very intens and beautiful performance of this masterpiece of music.

[@sudhirchopde3334]

Wonderful...a renewal. The distancing and modern recording helped...a great performance. Shedding this earthly existence and going up!

[@philcollins9435]

A superb liturgical performance of this beautiful Mass.

[@jv04jm]

Absolutely spell binding! 😇😍

[@christianbourguignon4691]

It's a little gem for all of us.

[@tatalito]

a great composer from my Region, Normandy.

[@cassiemabrey6128]

This requiem was the last one I performed din highschool and man it was beautiful

[@Nelsup]

And the last note! Held so long with the organ strings resonating!

[@kerrib86]

Yes, really giving time to contemplate it. World without end. Amen.

[@trevorwilliams6815]

Brilliant!

[@archiebald4717]

Exquisite!

[@dr.a.995]

Let’s face it, even a high-school glee club would sing way above its usual performance level in this inspiring and beautiful environment.

[@paulcaswell2813]

Listen to Trinity on their travels: the performance level would remain the same even in a tin shed!

[@gianluigiboscolo4019]

Meraviglia!!!

[@augustomariogoulartpimenta4727]

Uau, maravilhoso

[@stephenhigginson1838]

I am not familiar with the Durufle Requiem but will make a point of being so after this. It was heart-warming to see it sung in a service and not just as a concert

[@pennylane8936]

I performed this at the cathedral of Troyes in France years ago and it was magical. The challenge though was the distance of 90meters between choir and organ. There were no monitors to help synchronize

[@ScottKnitter]

....sempiternam. Lost it right there. Thank you.

[@wftjet]

Serve the Lord without fear.

[@michaelking1579]

This is glorious. I wonder if the distancing created a different effect.

[@ScottKnitter]

I think it made for a gorgeous blend and balance. I did feel this was dangerous at the time; although they were distanced, they were filling the chapel with aerosols. I didn't see any headlines about this having been a superspreader event, so I assume all was well.

[@sam0xin]

Thanks to musicians Now #KZbin ! Is it possible to have some instructions/suggestions for placing commercials just at any place ... if they’re noticed about movements of one of the genre of CM so They won't wantto chop like by an ax in the holiest phrases of this timeless blessing masterpiece !! Thank You

[@ScottKnitter]

I know...I think the only answer is to pay for a premium membership. The ads show up at the worst time for me.

[@sam0xin]

@@ScottKnitter I’m trying to explain KZbin authorities that they should educate their personnel just a LITTLE BIT , they could place commercials in between movements .

[@PhillipLayton-ur9uz]

Hard to know where to begin. Wonderful - as good as David Briggs and Masse for Notre Damme.

[@catherinekyngdon327]

VII. Lux æterna - Wow!!

[@democraticpatriot2657]

Decades ago there was a release on Decca, I believe, of the Durufle Requiem from Kings College (I recall). Again just organ and cello. However the voices are all male, including boys choir, men, and boy soprano soloist. A magically pure sound. Does anyone know if the recording is still available? So much more satisfying than the bombastic performances with full symphony orchestra and large choir.

[@donna30044]

0:01 Entry Procession 2:18 Requiem

[@cathyg8792]

Loved this and the ethereal effect of the distance - but one question: Why was the Pié Jesu eliminated?

[@sam0xin]

Organist accompanist W☀️W 🙏🏻

[@MrPdmus]

One of the few performances of this haunting requiem where they have understood the last bars with the dying chord that seems to go on for ever. It's an unresolved 7/9, representing Paradise as an entity that never ends. Perhaps that's not what Durufle meant but it's how I see it! My only quibble is that the 9th is persistent, not being on a swell manual, and throws the rest out of balance as well as reducing the fade effect.

[@TrinityCollegeChoir]

That's a cultured quibble, Paul (and glad you enjoyed it!)

[@andyfield7397]

If you like this have a listen to Duke Chapel Choir too

[@Hdhead]

It's interesting that the organist watches a video feed of the conductor. If this CCTV system is using up to date digital technology there could be a video latency of 30 ms or even higher. Would that have an adverse effect for the organist or is this latency negligibly small to have a real impact?

[@mackhopper]

In a room such as this, with sound that bounces off of marble, wood and stone and reverberating far beyond milliseconds, not a problem for the action of the song, or its timing.

[@chrisburkins]

Was this a requiem mass for Covid victims?

[@Nelsup]

Exemplary and moving in every respect.

[@astoryelangueuzian9149]

What version of the Prayer Book is he using, 1928?

[@paulcaswell2813]

1662.

[@urbanviii5103]

I wonder why they're doing it now, instead of November 2nd.

[@michaeltres]

I find it difficult not to think of this as a requiem for those who have died of this COVID plague, whether that was the intention or not.

[@mjd1949]

Beautiful music. I just can't get past Stephen Layton conducting with a pencil! I find it most strange and can't watch him without thinking how strange it is. I keep hoping it'll fly out of his hand! Apart from that, it's a magnificent performance.

[@clossaron3025]

Amazing performance and recording, pure and wonder full. I wish there were less pious interruptions from the clergy or non at all - no lack of devotion and spirituality expressed by the music on its own.

[@ianhunter6744]

It's all been said. Superlatives inadequate.

[@rravvia]

Organ is superior to orchestra for this.

[@Doug19752533]

ironically the organ version was Durufle's least favorite of the 3 versions (the other two being full orchestra and chamber).

[@cassiemabrey6128]

@@Doug19752533 looking back from the grave like 👁👄👁💢

[@burmesecolourneedles4680]

Totally agree! So much more liquid and thrilling by turns, for this exquisite work.

[@tenorandguitar]

Actually I prefer organ in the Faure as well...maybe it's a touch of nostalgia, but I love those little tunes such as before the tenor section solo entries!!

[@dansullivanstudios]

I would agree with the exception of the domine jesu christe. you can't beat it with orchestra there.

[@HagiaSophia1952]

THIS is what JUSTIN WELBY should have done - from the High Altar of Canterbury Cathedral - from the moment JOHNSON ordered him to close the churches; and he complied! We needed an AMBROSE OF MILAN (he taught Christians to sing hymns in the face of adversity; to lift their morale). Instead we got JUSTIN WELBY! Need any more be written?

[@HagiaSophia1952]

@Jean Cabrol I'm afraid you commit the same deliberate errors as Black Lives Matter, when interpreting the virtue of figures from the past. Thomas Moore was as cruel a man as Henry VIII, whom he served, all those years ago.

[@sparklingmarxist6688]

Lmao at this comment. Imagine thinking this is the hill to die on during a global pandemic..

[@HagiaSophia1952]

@@sparklingmarxist6688 What?! I mean, Pardon?!?

[@davidhall7455]

I applaud the decision to present this music in a liturgical setting since that is an interest of mine but the choice of the 1662 CofE Prayer Book Communion Service can not be allowed to pass without comment. It's like attending a seminar on Newton's thinking to discover it is focusing without comment or warning on his research about alchemy. At Cambridge no less. There is a grievous sin against scholarship to be confessed here and room for some further thinking. If setting words to musical accompaniment makes it possible to countenance Catholic theology that is otherwise impossible to accommodate you are ascribing immensely more significant powers to musical settings than they actually possess. On a further matter, the moving of the Pie Jesu away from the (no longer existent) Elevation and back to where the rest of the Dies Irae (of which it is the textual conclusion) was found was a possibility I had not considered before when contemplating editing music to respond to new liturgical frameworks. And a last note about liturgical reenactment: Durufle (or Faure either) did not set all the music that would happen at a Requiem mass. So in a liturgical reenactment (and maybe even in just a concert performance) the missing items should be included, sung to the unelaborated gregorian chant. And some of those would be sung by a priest. It certainly was at the premiere of Verdi's Requiem.

[@robertcohn8858]

A beautiful performance. I wonder if the performers are really safe distanced as they are? I've heard that singing is one of the most effective ways of spreading Covid.

[@pennylane8936]

I was wondering that, too. In Germany you have to have at least 6m distance in front of you and 4m to the side

[@ransomcoates546]

Beautiful symbolic effort, but the tempo is much too fast.

[@LindaPgh]

I believe if you compare the performance tempi here with the composer's tempo indications in the 1948 Durand score, you will be enlightened.

[@ransomcoates546]

LindaPgh Thank you; I will do that.

[@sudhirchopde3334]

Also the clippety -clop at the end( exit) ,we need not have seen/heard

[@organisten]

“By the inspiration of YOUR Holy Spirit, that we may perfectly love THEE?” Excuse me @trinitycollegechoir?! Either use Modern English, or Middle English. Not both! If ye use "thou", then "ye", "you", and "your" must be plural! Have ye therefore pluralised the Godhead?

[@morganm5370]

The celebrant only made a mistake, it's easily done

[@LindaPgh]

Breaths there a man, with soul so dead, Who ever to himself hath said, When hearing music passing fair, "Thy thees and thous afflict my heart; Angelic songs no joys impart." And sought a grievance thus to air.

[@paulcaswell2813]

Middle English??? I heard no Langland...

[@organisten]

@@paulcaswell2813 Middle English is, in fact, what traditional church English is (with the second person singular). Old English is much more difficult to understand. Middle English, by contrast, is (greatly oversimplified I accept) merely Modern English except for the grammatical distinction between the singular and plural in the address.

[@sanadomine1]

Actually a bit disappointing from a liturgical point of view. Service with the only audience being the choir. Bible readings from Job and the Gospel itself from a handheld Bible in front of the altar. Not from a lectern or something more distinguished. There must be something like that in the Trinity College Chapel! The liturgy itself is clearly secondary to the music - completely in service to the music instead of the music being uplifting to the liturgy. Singers with their back to the altar during the whole service! The communion rite is minimalized to its bare bones to give more room for the music. The communion rite is a sham actually. Why not just record the music and leave it at that? The liturgy is just a boring and not convincing limb to the music. Just put on and listen to the old Fauré and Duruflé recordings of King's College and their neighbours at St. John's in your living room. This performance is a bit of a tragic theatre experience not fitting to the Anglican rite and tradition.

[@obsidiansteed3202]

ok boomer

[@obsidiansteed3202]

ok boomer

[@clivespendlove5993]

This kind of music and its execution expresses whatever it is that I can call my 'spirituality', for want of a better term. More than good enough for me.

[@sanadomine1]

@@clivespendlove5993 That's OK. Just be aware that the composer was a very religious Catholic believer and viewed music for the liturgy as something to uplift that liturgy. That is not happening here.

[@nendwr]

The choir are congregation too. It doesn't lessen anything that all the congregation can sing. And this level of ceremonial feels completely what I'd expect as a moderately religious Anglican believer (my slight twitch moment was moving the General Confession from before the Comfortable Words to before the Collect of the Day, but that's very much at the mild end of twitch!).

[@DAF2194]

Sad that there is is this religious crap in between this magnificent music

[@ScottKnitter]

While I wouldn't call it that, I agree the music would be best presented on its own; it's meant for a different liturgical context than the 1662 Book of Common Prayer Holy Communion service.