Jean Perrin: De Profundis, Op. 26 - Choeur de la Radio Suisse Romande, André Charlet, Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne, Victor Desarzens

Jean PERRIN: De Profundis, Op. 26

Jean PERRIN: De Profundis, Op. 26: I. De profundis clamavi ad te, Domine – II. Fiant aures tuae intendentes in vocem deprecationis meae – III. Si iniquitates observaveris, Domine – IV. Quia apud te propitiatio est – V. Sustinuit anima mea in verbo ejus, speravit animea mea in Domino – VI. A custodia matutina usque ad noctem – VII. Speret Israël in Domino – VIII. Quia apud Dominum misericordia – IX. Et ipse redimet Israël es omnibus iniquitatibus ejus – X. De profundis clamavi ad te, Domine. Requiem aeternam dona eis, Domine

Chœur de la Radio Suisse Romande, André Charlet
Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne, Victor Desarzens

https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean_Perrin_(musicien)

Out of the depths I cry to you, Lord

The De Profundis (Psalm 130) is one of the great texts of spirituality of all time. A cry of distress, it passes from anguish to hope. It is above all an appeal: “De profundis clamavi ad te, Domine” — out of the depths I cry to you, Lord. This appeal has never been more timely. This cry, this anguish exist within each of us. But they are also the appeal of a world delivered over to violence, to mourning, to the iniquity of humankind.

I. De profundis

Entrusted solely to the choir and the orchestra, this part expresses that collective appeal, with the hammered contour of its rhythm, strongly accented on the first syllable of “clamavi,” its surges that rise from pianissimo to fortissimo, the answers and interweavings of the orchestral and choral lines. After the climax, punctuated by the brass, everything subsides on “vocem meam.”

II. “Let your ears be attentive…”

The second part follows on without interruption from the first. Over the words “let your ears be attentive to my supplication,” the tone becomes more intimate, though still urgent. Taking its support from a major seventh interval, which later widens to a minor ninth, the soprano solo unfolds its arabesques supported by the woodwinds, in dialogue with the choir whose brief interventions are like a calm reply.

III. Si iniquitates

In the third part the music cleaves closely to the text. It bursts forth — violent, incisive, essentially rhythmic, somewhat Stravinskian in aspect — and strongly scans the words “Si iniquitates observaveris, Domine, quis sustinebit” (if you take account of iniquities, who shall stand?).

IV. Quia apud

At some length, this section alternates the soloists (soprano and alto) with the choir. Much of it is imbued with gentleness, with expressive chromaticism and conjunct melodic curves that underscore the words: “But with you there is forgiveness” (quia apud te propitiatio est). The tone rises into a great tutti of choir and orchestra on the words “and then you are feared,” then softens again. At that moment the “Si iniquitates” from the previous section breaks out abruptly, this time in pianissimo.

V. “Sustinuit anima mea”

“I hope in the Eternal; I rely on his word” is treated in the manner of a Credo — an act of faith — with strongly marked phrases that fall like incantatory affirmations.

VI. A custodia matutina

“My soul waits for the Lord more than a watchman for the dawn”: simplicity and candor of the harmonies in the tenor and soprano solos, meditative in character — harshness of language and eddies in the orchestra in the concluding section which, as it quiets, prepares the seventh movement, Speret Israel (“hope in Yahweh”), a light, winged choral fugue that retains a certain spring in moments of intensity and that, on a final statement of the theme in inversion, gradually fades away like lights going out.

VIII. Quia apud Dominum

The four soloists are the protagonists of the eighth part: “with Yahweh is grace; with him is plenteous redemption.” The tone here is that of an expressive, individual melisma, with certain inflections that partake both of Gregorian chant and of oriental incantation. Note that one of the phrases contains one of the very few series in the score.

IX. Et ipse redimet Israel

The choir and orchestra play the essential role in the ninth part, “it is he who will redeem Israel,” built almost entirely — except for its peroration — on a B pedal, with constant oscillations from low to high for the strongly accented choral motives, underlined by a wide deployment of timbres across the full instrumental range. A fairly extended soprano solo and a brief entry of the bass solo (“with Yahweh is grace, abundant redemption”) prepare the listener for the tenth and final part, Requiem aeternam.

X. Requiem aeternam

This begins with the reprise, a semitone lower, of the music and words of the initial “De profundis clamavi.” It brightens at the entry of the words “Requiem aeternam dona eis, Domine, et lux perpetua luceat eis” (Grant them eternal rest, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them), and the music ends in accents of trust and light, in an utmost transparency.