Every year there is a performance with orchestra of a French setting of the Requiem Mass at St. Mary Magdalene, Paddington, at the High Mass on All Souls’ Day. This isn’t of course very topical, but I’ve been reminded of it by a couple of things recently.
I sang at this Mass several times in the 1990’s, in performances conducted by Nicholas Kaye. In the last few years I’ve fallen off the postal mailing list (they’ve never as far as I know used an email list to recruit singers), or the invitation has come too late for me to accept it; I hoped to take part a couple of years ago, but the date of the service was changed a few weeks beforehand which made it impossible. Once I was invited to sing at another service there. I felt flattered that I’d been asked to come all the way over from Cambridge, until I was told the reason: because I wasn’t a London-based singer I didn’t have to be paid!
A couple of times I sang the Duruflé Requiem, as it was a rare opportunity to perform the work with full orchestra. Otherwise I’d try to turn out for some of the more obscure settings I’d probably never sing otherwise. One year it was the Bruneau Requiem, in what was believed to be its fourth ever performance (two of the previous three being in Paris in the 1890’s, the third in Paddington a few years previously). The orchestra were playing from the original parts, a century old! I can’t say that this work was really overdue for revival, though I was happy to sing it once, and I did subsequently hear another choir perform it on Radio 3 so it didn’t sink back into total obscurity. I recall various bits which were clearly ripped off from Verdi’s setting, especially the Agnus Dei (right down to the flute obbligato!).
The last Requiem setting I sang there was the one by Saint-Saëns, not a favourite composer of mine. However, this piece, written after the death of one of the composer’s children, had more depth to it than I find in much of his music and I’d sing it again (provided that I didn’t have to invest too much time!). The orchestration is notable for requiring four harps.
There are other settings they do, such as those by Ropartz, Desenclos and Inghelbrecht. This year the Requiem is by Henri Tomasi, of whom I haven’t previously heard; I don’t know yet whether I’ll try to sing in it.
[I eventually gave up this fixture when the date was changed one year at short notice to the nearest Sunday; fortunately I hadn’t bought a rail ticket. The postal invitations also dried up.]
Dear Virginia,
First may I introduce myself? I got to your website using a search. I have been singing at St. Marys since 1967!! I have had the pleasure of taking part in all of the first UK performances you mention, so have them all in my repertoire. I have copies of scores for all of them and have asked Nicholas Kaye where to get the Tomasis from. Hope to see you there, do ask him to point me out to you. I suspect we may actually know each other by sight.
You mention email / mail lists. I know they have had some recent problems with mailing lists, even to me as a long-time life member!! If you just want to get Requiem singing details I suggest to email David Gammie who gets the choir together. He is on “david.gammie@tiscali.co.uk”. ‘phone 0208-543 5861. Hope this helps, I’m sure he will not mind my giving you his details.
Best regards, Bill
Hello!
I am the composer’s son and interested by your message, because I can’t find more informations about the so-called concert of november 2nd at St Mary Magdalene Church where – may be… – will be performed my father’s Requiem for peace
Thank you very much for your help if possible
Best regards
CT
David Gammie (details above) should have details of the service.
I received my invitation to sing yesterday. The choir fixer has now changed – not David Gammie but Mark Warden (020 7978 7433 or 07971 080 194, mark@markwarden.co.uk).
It looks like I won’t be able to get to St. Mary Magdalene this year, but I’d be interested to hear what Tomasi’s Mass was like.
I hear from a friend who’s a member of the music society at the church that it’s Duruflé this year. I imagine on the basis of previous years that it’ll be a few months yet before I’m invited to sing, but I think that in any case I’m not likely to do it.
No invitation to sing yet and it’s only just over two weeks away, so either they’re leaving it very late or I’ve fallen off the mailing list, or the post has slipped up. [23 Oct: other people I know who used to be on the list haven’t received an invitation either – it looks as though they have changed the basis on which people get asked to sing, had a purge of their list or we have been swallowed by a computer glitch].