Kyrie in E minor Divisi - Digital Sheet Music

SKU: A0.1534019

Kyrie in E minor

Inspiration

In the Fall of 2023 I found myself singing the first few notes of a Kyrie and soon realized the melody was one of my melodies I had yet to develop. The idea had always puzzled me as I couldn't grasp how to use it; but all of a sudden there it was – a Kyrie. Having never composed a Kyrie before I set off to study the origins of the Kyrie and worked my way through its history dating back to the 1600's to the present day. I listened to all styles including popular new age versions. Ultimately I found myself drawn to 2 Kyrie's – Durefle's and Ralph Von Williams. Both beautiful examples of polyphonic composing and both different in style. For the next few months I studied both from a technical standpoint. Once I felt comfortable with the technique I began my Kyrie in E minor. ( I actually developed it in F minor but transposed it down later a half step)

The Music

The piece is in ABA format Kyrie-Christe-Kyrie. In the Kyrie the Cantus Firmus begins in the Bass and then is repeated (with variation) in the Alto then the Tenor and finally the Soprano. It alternates its starting pitch from the Tonic to the Dominant Key (E natural versus B natural). This 'A' section Kyrie has a more serious/dramatic feel to it noting the ascending notes in D minor at measures 8-9 within the tenor. Similarly occurring again at measures 12-13 in G minor. Overall this 'A' section is in many ways neo-classical in style as is the other sections. At measure 15 I use a portion of the cantus firmus as the theme that brings this section to a close, starting with the Tenor. At the same time I repeat the beginning of the Cantus firmus in the Bass and then the Soprano.

My approach to the “Christe” was to be more vertical in nature and more flexible in my approach to its Cantus Firmus. The “main idea”, in G major, is broken up between the voices in pairs. Measure 27-28 contain the Bass/Soprano Cantus Firmus followed by the Tenor/Alto. The idea flows up to measure 38 where it has modulated to a G major seventh chord. It then repeats the Cantus Firmus but this time in A minor. At measure 55 a modulation again has completed ending in B major, leading us back to the original key of E minor and the Kyrie.

The Kyrie now returns but this time with a more positive joyous feeling noting this in measures 62-63 as the Tenor sings an F major to a D major ascending note pattern as seen earlier in measures 8-9. The difference is quite notable. This same joyous approach is seen again in measures 66-68. I contemplated ending the piece on a picarde third but ultimately decided to end it on a perfect fifth, thus letting the listeners imagination fill in whether E minor or E major was implied.

Program Notes

At measure 8 I have an “E” in parentheses which is giving the Tenors the option of singing the “E” instead of the low “A”. I recognize that asking the tenors to jump down a 12th presents a singing challenge. However I do find hearing the low “A” much more dramatic.