Requiem (Mozart) - Structure

Structure

The Sussmayr completion of the Requiem is divided into fourteen movements, with the following structure:

  • I. Introitus: Requiem aeternam (choir and soprano solo)
  • II. Kyrie eleison (choir)
  • III. Sequentia (text based on sections of the Dies Irae):
    • Dies irae (choir)
    • Tuba mirum (soprano, contralto, tenor and bass solo)
    • Rex tremendae majestatis (choir)
    • Recordare, Jesu pie (soprano, contralto, tenor and bass solo)
    • Confutatis maledictis (choir)
    • Lacrimosa dies illa (choir)
  • IV. Offertorium:
    • Domine Jesu Christe (choir with solo quartet)
    • Versus: Hostias et preces (choir)
  • V. Sanctus:
    • Sanctus Dominus Deus Sabaoth (choir)
    • Benedictus (solo quartet, then choir)
  • VI. Agnus Dei (choir)
  • VII. Communio:
    • Lux aeterna (soprano solo and choir)

The Introit is in D minor and finishes on a half-cadence that transitions directly into Kyrie. The Kyrie is a double fugue, with one subject corresponding to "Kyrie Eleison" and the other to "Christe Eleison". The movement Tuba mirum opens with a notable trombone solo accompanying the bass. The Confutatis is well known for its string accompaniment; it opens with agitating figures that accentuate the wrathful sound of the basses and tenors, but it turns into sweet arpeggios in the second phrase while accompanying the soft sounds of the sopranos and altos.

Read more about this topic:  Requiem (Mozart)

Famous quotes containing the word structure:

    “A structure becomes architectural, and not sculptural, when its elements no longer have their justification in nature.”
    —Guillaume Apollinaire (1880–1918)

    “There is no such thing as a language, not if a language is anything like what many philosophers and linguists have supposed. There is therefore no such thing to be learned, mastered, or born with. We must give up the idea of a clearly defined shared structure which language-users acquire and then apply to cases.”
    —Donald Davidson (b. 1917)

    “Science is intimately integrated with the whole social structure and cultural tradition. They mutually support one other—only in certain types of society can science flourish, and conversely without a continuous and healthy development and application of science such a society cannot function properly.”
    —Talcott Parsons (1902–1979)