Music at St. Paul's, Burlingame

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Our wonderful staff quartet singing for an All Saints' Day service.

MUSIC FOR ALL SOULS’ SUNDAY May those who mourn find comfort in a unique 2020 offering of the Brahms Ein deutsches Requiem as part of the online service from St. Paul's on Sunday, November 8. ______________________... Ein deutsches Requiem (A German Requiem) Johannes Brahms (1833-1897) 1. Selig sind, die da Leid tragen (Blessed are those who mourn) Choir of St. Paul’s & Chamber Orchestra (2018) 4. Wie lieblich sind deine Wohnungen (How lovely are your dwellings) Sung virtually by Choir of St. Paul’s 5. Ihr habt nun Traurigkeit (You have now sorrow) Soprano: Natalie Dias; Quartet: Elizabeth Kimble, Akane Ota, David Kurtenbach, Jason Harvey 7. Selig sind die Toten, die in dem Herren sterben (Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord) Choir of St. Paul’s & Chamber Orchestra (2018) _______ Four movements from Ein deutsches Requiem (A German Requiem) by Johannes Brahms (1833-1897) are offered in the service for All Souls’ Sunday. This includes two new recordings: a virtual recording of IV. Wie lieblich sind deine Wohnungen (How lovely is thy dwelling place; Psalm 84) sung by the Choir of St. Paul’s from their homes and V. Ihr habt nun Traurigkeit (You have now sorrow) with soloist Natalie Dias, the latter videoed at St. Paul’s with St. Paul’s staff quartet. Archived recordings of the opening and closing choruses are heard from All Souls’ Sunday 2018, sung by the Choir of St. Paul’s and chamber orchestra. Brahms composed the Requiem during the period 1857 to 1868, the fifth movement, Ihr habt nun Traurigkeit, with the tender soprano solo sung by Natalie Dias added last, most likely as a reflection on his mother’s death in 1865. A text from the prophet Isaiah is repeated throughout this movement: I want to comfort you, as one is comforted by his mother. Rather than the traditional Latin text for the Requiem, Brahms created his libretto from scriptural texts, including the Psalms attributed to King David, the Beatitudes of Jesus (cited above), and the Revelation of John. Brahms evocatively juxtaposed passages from throughout the Bible and set them with timeless music, thus composing a musical icon through which we might begin to glimpse the divine in life and in death. St. Paul’s baritone and vestry member Jim Steichen writes that through his Requiem, Brahms speaks in universalizing terms about the passage from life to death, and especially the nearness of death in the midst of life. The first and final movements frame the work with similar texts and musical themes, beginning with words of comfort to those who mourn the loss of loved ones (Matthew 5:4), and concluding with an assurance that the work of the blessed who die in the Lord lives on as they enter eternal rest. At the center of the Brahms Requiem is the joyous setting of Psalm 84, Wie lieblich sind deine Wohnungen, How lovely are thy dwelling places.

Happy All Saints' Day! Music Highlights: 25:01 Alice Parker | Saints bound for heaven... Quartet 30:57 Undine Smith Moore | Come down, angels Teens of the Choir School 36:18 Lesbia Scott | I sing a song of the saints of God Choir School (grades K-6) 39:13 Bréval | Cello Sonata in C Major, Op. 40, No. 1 Haruka, age 11

Happy All Saints' Day! The west stained glass window of St. Paul’s, above the baptismal font, is the Te Deum window, designed by Frederick Wilson (1858-1932) and installed in 1937. Born in Ireland, Wilson immigrated to the United States and worked for many studios, including Tiffany Studios (1893-1923) and Judson Studios (1923-1932) of Los Angeles for whom he designed this exquisite window at St. Paul’s. Pictured at the center of the Te Deum window is Christ, surrounded by angels, saints, and prophets, with the words from the Te Deum hymn: Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of Sabaoth. It is always a special joy to gaze on St. Cecilia, the patron saint of music, next to the church's patron saint, St. Paul.