• Cyclische mis in Es groot voor dubbel koor SATB en orgel 

  1. Kyrie 2. Gloria 3. Credo 4. Sanctus 5. Agnus Dei 6. Amen

• Duration: 15'
• 6
• Composed in 2017
• Downloadable scores for inspection:
  Mis_opus_112_voor_dubbelkoor_en_orgel.pdf
  Eerste_koorpartij_Mis_nr_2.pdf
  Tweede_koorpartij_Mis_nr_2.pdf
  Orgelpartij_Missa_nr_2.pdf

A cyclic mass refers to a setting of the Ordinary of the Roman Catholic Mass, in which each of the movements – Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Sanctus and Agnus Dei – share a common compositional material, thus making it a unified whole. As in the composer's mass nr. 1, the interval of the perfect fifth symbolizes God. Each movement concludes with the Amen based on the open fifth, one such fifth at the end of the Kyrie, two superimposed fifths at the end of the Gloria, three at the end of the Credo, four at the end of the Sanctus and five at the end of the Agnus. To the usual five movements, the composer added a sixth Amen movement in which the organ plays all these concluding Amen in retrograde sequence and alternates with the choral singing based on the Credo. The tonal reference in the subtitle refers to the conclusion on a E flat major triad in the Credo. For a composer whose entire output is atonal, bitonal, polytonal, modal or polymodal, the year 2017 saw him also using the same E flat major triad in his piano concerto opus 108, an incidental fact about which he jokingly refers to as "a first sign of senility". In the mass nr. 2, the composer uses an anhemitonic hexatonic scale, more commonly labelled as the whole tone scale. The absence of semitones contributes to create a feeling of weightless suspension in contrast with the chromatic clusters on the words peccata mundi, crucifixus and passus et sepultus est. A third contrasting compositional device is the superimposition of thirds on Laudamus Te, Quoniam Tu and etiam pro nobis. In December 2016 I visited Greenwich and chanced upon a service in the Chapel of St. Pieter & St. Paul at the Old Royal Naval College. The superb acoustic of the space, the fine organ and excellent performance of the g minor mass by Vaughan William provided the artistic impetus to compose a mass for the same forces. 

The dramatic value of the text of the Roman Catholic Mass is perfect for a composer. The permanence of the Latin language solves the issue of language and translation. However, the verbosity of the Credo creates a challenge to the composer. Whereas the Kyrie has 3 words, the Gloria 51, the Sanctus 24 and the Agnus 11, the Credo culminates with 176 words. Some composers bite the bullet and write massive Credo. Others choose to omit a few lines. Some superimpose a few lines. Some omit the whole Credo. In my first mass, I have the church congregation recite the credo as per normal. At specific points corresponding to end of paragraphs, I have the choir sing the word Credo. In my second mass, I alternate between a classic setting of the words with a superimposition, four lines at the same time on three different moments, then one time three simultaneous lines and the last time six simultaneous lines. The intelligibility of superimposed lines is reduced. Unavoidably the question of faith arises. I think it is possible for a composer to compose a Mass, or any religious work for that matter, without being a believer. Christianity inspires me respect for its bold monotheism, admiration for the art it has inspired, self-indulgence for its pompous rituals, mistrust of the proselytists, fundamentalists and creationists, disgust for the senseless destruction it has provoked. All of the above is valid for any creed. I would have loved to have the tranquil unshakable faith of my parents. I don’t know if I believe. I believe I don’t know. I do know that I don’t know. The fact of interrogating oneself is central to the human condition. I wonder, thus I am.