Poulenc: Mass in G; Motets for Christmas & Lent etc.

Featuring

James O'Donnell
Mark Kennedy
Iain Simcock
Matthew Vine
Eamonn O'Dwyer
Westminster Cathedral Choir

Francis Poulenc

Did you know?

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Composition History

The difficult Mass in G, completed in August 1937, is dedicated to the memory of Poulenc's father, twenty years after his death.

Composition History

Poulenc began his Litanies à la Vierge Noire for women's voices and organ on the evening of a visit to Rocamadour, a sanctuary in France.

Composer's Artistic Vision

Poulenc aimed to express a feeling of 'peasant devotion' in his Litanies à la Vierge Noire, inspired by the sanctuary of Rocamadour.

Composition History

Poulenc's interest in Roman Catholicism was rekindled after the tragic death of his colleague Pierre-Octave Ferroud, leading to a new phase in his creativity.

Composer Biography

Francis Poulenc (1899-1963) was born into a wealthy family; his father was a devout Roman Catholic with business interests in the pharmaceutical trade, co-founding the Rhône-Poulenc Company.

Compositional Technique

Poulenc often used open, sustained vowel sounds or hummed passages to support a solo line in his choral music, as heard in the Agnus Dei of the Mass and the Quatre petits prières.