LONDON - 6 February 2008 - 280 words
Premiere at Farm Street
A Liturgical Premiere of the Mass will take place at the Jesuit Church of the Immaculate Conception, Farm Street, London W1 on Sunday17 February (2nd Sunday of Lent). Penitential Mass for Eight Voices by Jeremy de Satgé will be sung by Farm Street Choir directed by David Graham at the 11 o'clock Sung Latin Mass. The celebrant will be Parish Priest, Father William Pearsall SJ.
Penitential Mass for Eight Voices is - as its name suggests - primarily intended for the penitential seasons of Advent and Lent. There are three movements: Kyrie, Sanctus/ Benedictus and Agnus Dei. The piece - written for unaccompanied voices - was composed in 2001, but this is believed to be the first performance of the whole piece in its liturgical setting. It is being staged in conjunction with the Music Makers, a group of Catholic composers and musicians formed in 1996 to publish and promote new church music, principally for the Roman Catholic liturgy.
According to composer, Jeremy de Satgé, the music is both modal and contemporary in flavour. "I wanted to create a truly Catholic universal feel to the music, so some of the phrases contain hints of the Middle East," he says. "The Kyrie is extended and uses the simple (but I hope effective) device of building voice upon voice, with individual voices repeating their same line until all eight voices are beseeching God's mercy as one. This is then reversed. All three movements introduce new themes, though the Agnus Dei combines its theme with music from the Kyrie."
For details about Farm Street Church (including directions), see: www.farmstreet.org.uk
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