Herald AV Publications

HAVPCD234 – Duruflé Requiem

	Disk Title	Duruflé Requiem
		Music for St-Étienne-du-Mont
	Soloists	Vincent Warnier (Organ)
		Thierry Escaich (Organ)
	Choir	Cambridge Voices
	Conductor	Ian de Massini
	Location	St-Étienne-du-Mont, Paris
	Date Recorded	March 1999
	Audio Tracks	13

Maurice Duruflé was born in Louviers, Normandy, but spent most of his life in Paris. He became a student at the Paris Conservatoire, where he won five First Prizes, and where he later became Professor for 26 years. He was assistant organist at Ste-Clotilde and at Notre-Dame Cathedral, becoming organist at St-Étienne-du-Mont from 1930 – a post he held until his death. In his Requiem, Duruflé truly reveals himself as the spiritual heir to Tournemire, finding inspiration in the treasure-house of Gregorian melodies: transporting them with embellishments and counterpoint, yet still retaining their essentially non-rhythmic, fluid, and improvisatory qualities. Madame Duruflé once said that this work is her husband’s finest and most personal expression of his faith in the Resurrection.

Cambridge Voices came into being in 1990 to fulfil the promise made by their director ‘to bring a choir to sing Mass at St-Étienne’. One thing has certainly led to another: their meeting in 1991 with the Swiss composer, Carl Rütti, resulted in a dramatic growth of repertoire and engagements, including many overseas tours to Austria, Switzerland and former East Germany as well as to Rome and many parts of France. From the beginning, their concerts under the inimitable direction of their founder, Ian de Massini, have been distinguished by a lively and original approach to presentation, often inspired by the architectural features of the building around them or by the expressive requirements of the music. They aim to create in their audiences a feeling of entertainment and involvement in the music and, so doing, make of each performance a memorable occasion.