The idea for the Little Requiem was conceived late in 1981 when I was studying composition at the University of Texas. Initially, I was going to write the work for a capella boy's choir, then decided to make it a standard SATB setting with a small orchestra. I completed the first two movements in 1982, then got bogged down. This second incarnation was somewhat dark and brooding, and the style borrowed heavily from Bach. Since I got my text from the jacket of my recording of Mozart's Requiem, the form tended to parallel that used by Mozart.
I returned to work on Little Requiem in earnest in 1993, completing it later that year. I rejected almost all the numerous sketches I had originally written, for two reasons: First, I wanted the work to be stylistically and harmonically less predictable than it was shaping up to be, and second, I wanted it to be lighter and more poignant, in keeping with its dedication to the vicitims of child abuse. I think I was successful on both counts.
The original Introit featured a throbbing dotted rhythm in the bass, meant to be reminiscent of a human heartbeat. In the new version, I moved the rhythm up into the violins and made it faster and lighter. The main theme was intended to evoke both a mother's lullabye and the simple songs children sing while playing games such as hopscotch.
The Kyrie is built on a simple repeating bass line and a broad, recurring theme sung over it by the four voices in succession. The repetitive nature of the work represents the multi-generational nature of child abuse.
This was one of the most difficult movements to write, since the apocolyptic text did not jibe well with my "light and poignant" concept for the overall work. I felt it was important to include this text, however, because it illustrated perfectly an abused child's fear of punishment:
Day of wrath, that day Will dissolve the world in ashes, As David and Sibyl testify. What a trembling there shall be When the Judge has arrived To strictly try all things.
The interlocking, rapid arpeggios in the violins are representative of the thrashing of a belt or switch, while the choir sings with resignation of the impending doom.
This text is often translated as "wondrous sound the trumpet flings". I therefore could not resist employing a trumpet obbligato with this soprano solo (although I may go back and change the instrumentation a little, to correct balance problems between the trumpet and soprano). This aria attempts to convey a sense of childlike wonder and awe.
This short recitative is the only surviving remnant of the original sketches for Little Requiem. Using a recitative here instead of the customary chorus was an attempt to give the work a "smaller", less apocolyptic scope.
A gently rocking oboe obbligato gives this piece a kind of "lullabye" feel as the alto sings of redemption by Christ.
Another "fear of punishment" text, like that of the "Dies Irae". The "thrashing" motif is heard again, manifesting itself this time as a strong dotted rhythm in the voice part.
The "Lacrimosa" was intended to convey the intense sorrow and shame that an abused child feels in the aftermath of a beating. While this is probably the least original part of the work (it was influenced a great deal by the corresponding section of Mozart's Requiem), it fulfilled its purpose reasonably well.
This section is mournful and pleading, playing upon childhood fears and hopes, as the chorus asks Christ to "deliver them from the lion's mouth", and "let them not fall into oblivion". The concluding fugue on "Quam olim Abrahae promisisti" ("as you have promised to Abraham and his children") echoes the feelings of a child who has had many promises broken.
A short, hopeful aria that proceeds a repeat of the "Quam olim Abrahae" fugue, the "Hostias" looks toward a magical restoration that occurs as one passes "from death to life".
Like the "Tuba Mirum", the "Sanctus" attempts to capture a feeling of childlike wonder and awe. The proportions of this piece are modest compared to similar movements in many of the well-known masses, in keeping with the comparitively light atmosphere of this Mass.
The "Agnus Dei" went through many revisions before assuming its final form. Two previous versions were rejected before I came up with one that I felt conveyed the proper atmosphere of pleading and hope.
The "Agnus Dei" flows directly into the "Lux Aeterna", where the choir reiterates the crucial words, "Grant them eternal rest, Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them". To me, these words applied not only to the dead, but to survivors of child abuse, who spend the rest of their lives yearning for peace and for the healing light of Truth. Little Requiem concludes with this Latin text sung in unison by the choir to a soothing melody, as the soprano soloist counters with the somewhat ironic "quia pius es" ("for you are merciful"). The choir joins the soloist with these words as they sing the work's final chords.
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