LatinDomine Jesu christe, rex gloriae,libera animas omnium fidelium defunctorum de poenis inferni et de profundo lacu. Libera eas de ore leonis, ne absorbeat eas tartarus, ne cadant in obscurum, sed signifer sanctus Michael repraesentet eas in lucem sanctam. Quam olim Abrahae promisisti et semini ejus.
Hostias et preces tibi, Domine, |
EnglishLord Jesus christ, king of glory,deliver the souls of all the faithful departed from the pains of hell, and from the deep pit. Deliver them from the lion's mouth, lest hell swallow them up, lest they fall into darkness; and let the standard bearer, St. Michael, bring them into the holy light. Which Thou didst promise of old to Abraham and his seed.
We offer Thee, o lord, |
A short introduction opens the 'offertorio':a rising figure in the cellos answered softly by woodwind. A brief motive of great significance is introduced by the strings and the tenor and Mezzo-soprano answer it.
String motive -realaudio 
The 'offertorio' proper begins with the bass taking this motive and developing it into a flowing melody. The tenor and mezzo soon join and in the ensuing terzet respond briefly to every utterance of the bass. The fear from the Pains of hell does not become expressed at all. 'De poenis inferni' is composed as a continuation of this flow of music, just a little bit clouded.
The terzet ends suddenly and quietly, with the soprano's entrance. She sings a high note which completes the last chord of the terzet - a chord that is no longer there.. Here occurs one of those beautiful transitions typical of the late Verdi - All is quiet while the soprano hovers alone in mid-space. A single violin quietly begins playing the terzet melody, floating around the single tone of the soprano's..And then both soprano and violin shift a semi-tone downward. Only then does the soprano begin to sing, with what to many seemed one of the few absolutely operatic touches in the requiem, the 'Signifer sanctus michael'.
'Signifer sanctus michael' -realaudio
The other soloists join in and finish the melody with a peaceful cadence. A rising phrase from the bass leads to 'Quam olim abrahae'.
The 'Quam olim abrahae' is usually set as a fugue. Verdi follows that tradition half-heartedly and the fugue soon proves to be only a short fugato. This dies out quickly and in the following ambiance of shimmering ppp strings the tenor begins to sing the 'hostias'.
It is a noble melody, the tenor standing out almost ritually, offering the sacrifice. The bass repeats him and then the other soloists join in in a minor-key mid-section, remembering the dead. The tenor resumes the 'hostias' melody.
The 'Quam olim abrahae' fugato returns, and ends more fiercly this time, with a stress on 'Promisisti' - 'Thou didst promise'.
A coda ends the Offertorio, with all four soloists singing the main melody which served a terzet at the beginning, tutti, and then throwing parts of it gently among them. Then only the strings remain. The melody, which took life from the strings' brief motive at the beginning, is gone back to that motive, shimmering as when it started, and brief..
In silence all ends.
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