The Requiem "composed for no particular purpose...", as Gabriel Fauré wrote, was performed for the first time in the Madeleine Church in Paris on 16 January 1888, "for the funeral of some parishioner"! It is this original performance version, without the Offertory and the Libera me, with accompaniment provided only by a string ensemble (violas, cellos and double bass), organ and harp, that is presented here in a world premiere recording. The Messe des pêcheurs de Villerville (1881), composed in Normandy in collaboration with André Messager, is far removed from the solemnities of the great Parisian church; its original version was written for women's voices with harmonium and violin accompaniment. The Chœur de Chambre de Namur invites us to return to these origins as we mark the centenary of Gabriel Fauré's death in 1924.
Works:
•Fauré: Requiem op.48 (Version 1888)
• Fauré: Cantique de Jean Racine op. 11
• Fauré: En Priere
• Fauré: Madrigal op. 35
• Fauré: Messe des Pecheurs de Villerville (Kyrie & O Salutaris von Andre Messager)
• Fauré: Fauré: Ave verum op. 65 Nr. 1
• Fauré: Maria Mater Gratiae op. 47 Nr. 2
• Fauré: Tantum ergo sacramentum op. 65 Nr. 2