Mass

Mass2020-10-06T22:20:59+00:00

Project Description

Wind Ensemble, Soprano and Baritone Soli, SATB Chorus, Children’s Chorus
1995, revised 2005
1 hour, 35 min.
Grade 7

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University of Miami Wind Ensemble, Janice Chandler-Eteme, soprano, Jeff Morrissey, baritone, Choral Union, Miami Children’s Chorus, Gary D. Green, instrumental conductor, Jo-Michael Scheibe, choral conductor

The University of Arizona Wind Orchestra, Lydia Catherine Easley, soprano, Charles Roe, baritone, The University of Arizona Symphonic Choir, Arizona Chamber Choir, Tucson Boys Chorus, Jane Smith, organ, Gregg I. Hanson, conductor.

On the album Mass (1996)

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Preview Score

Instrumentation

Solo S Solo Bar | SATB | Children’s Choir | Fl-2(1»Picc) Ob-2(2»EH) BbCl- BCl CACl Bsn-2(2»Cbsn) ASx-2(1,2»SSx) TSx BSx | Hn-4 Tpt1 in C(»Picc) Tpt2 in C(»Flug) Tbn-2 BTbn Euph Tuba DB | Hp Pno Org Timp Perc-4

  • Soprano solo
  • Baritone solo
  • SATB Chorus
  • SA Children’s Chorus
  • Flute (2; 1 doubles Piccolo)
  • Oboe (2; 2 doubles English Horn)
  • Clarinet in Bb (2)
  • Bass Clarinet
  • Contrabass Clarinet in Eb
  • Bassoon (2; 2 doubles Contrabassoon)
  • Alto Saxophone (2; both double Soprano Saxophone)
  • Tenor Saxophone
  • Baritone Saxophone
  • Horns (4)
  • Trumpet 1 in C (double Piccolo Trumpet)
  • Trumpet 2 in C (double Flugelhorn)
  • Trombone (2)
  • Bass Trombone
  • Euphonium
  • Tuba
  • Double Bass
  • Harp
  • Piano
  • Organ
  • Timpani
  • Percussion, 4 players required
    • Vibraphone
    • Crotales (4)
    • Orchestra Bells (2)
    • Xylophone (2)
    • Chimes (3)
    • Gong ( 5 sm., 3 med)
    • Marimba (2)
    • Suspended Cymbal (3 sm., 3 lg.)
    • Crash Cymbals (2)
    • Bass Drum (2)
    • Wood Block (sm.)
    • Anvils (2, different sizes)
    • Snare Drum
    • Tenor Drum
    • Brake Drum (2, different sizes)
    • Conga
    •  Bongo
    • Hi-hat Cymbal
    • Lion’s Roar
    • Maracas (2)
    • Tuned Gong (E, Eb)
    • Sleigh Bells
    • Tam-tam (2)
    • Cabasa
    • Tom-toms
    • Shaker (sm.)
    •  Castanets
    • Tambourine
For wind ensembles and concertos, please use one player per part. For symphonies and concert pieces, more players may be used as desired. David’s full statement.

Movements

  • Introit: “She is the moss…”
  • Kyrie
  • Before the Gloria: “Quietly entering your presence…”
  • Gloria
  • Before the Credo: “Bright window, your night is full of stars…”
  • Credo
    • (45) Et in unum Dominum
    • (131) Et incarnatus est
    • (175) Crucifixus
    • (282) Et resurrexit
    • (341) Judicare vivos et mortuos
    • (362) Et in Spiritum Sanctum
    • (396) Et unam, sanctam, catholicam
    • (455) Confiteor
    • (464) Et expecto resurrectionem
  • Before the Sanctus: “Near the hermitage of my dreams…”
  • Sanctus
  • Before the Benedictus: “Sophia, when you call me…”
  • Benedictus
  • Before the Agnus Dei: “O Earth, O Stars…”
  • Agnus Dei
  • Before the Dona Nobis Pacem: “I lay my sorrow down…”
  • Dona Nobis Pacem

Commission

The Mass was commissioned by a consortium lead by Gregg I. Hanson of The University of Arizona.

  • The University of Arizona Bands
    • Gregg I. Hanson, Director
  • The University of Arizona School of Music and Dance
    • Gary Cook, Director
  • The University of Arizona College of Fine Arts
    • Maurice Sevigny, Dean
  • Georgia State University
    • Thomas Wubbenhorst, Director of Bands
  • Illinois State University
    • Steven K. Steele, Director of Bands
  • University of Nevada-Las Vegas
    • Thomas Leslie, Director of Bands
  • University of Kentucky
    • Richard S. Clary, Director of Bands
  • Yale University
    • Thomas Duffy, Director of Bands
  • University of Massachusetts
    • Malcolm W. Rowell, Jr., Director of Bands
  • University of Miami
    • Gary D. Green, Director of Bands

The 2005 revisions were supported by Gregg I. Hanson of The University of Arizona, Steven K. Steele of Illinois State University, and Gary D. Green of the University of Miami.

Premiere

The Mass was premiered 29 April 1996 by The University of Arizona Wind Orchestra, Lydia Catherine Easley, soprano, Charles Roe, baritone, University Of Arizona Symphonic Choir, Arizona Chamber Choir, Tucson Boys Chorus, Jane Smith, organ, Gregg I. Hanson, conductor at St. Thomas the Apostle Church, Tucson, Arizona.

The 2005 Revision was 17 February 2006 by the University of Miami Wind Ensemble, Janice Chandler-Eteme, soprano, Jeff Morrissey, baritone, Choral Union, Miami Children’s Chorus, Gary D. Green, instrumental conductor, Jo-Michael Scheibe, choral conductor, at Maurice Gusman Concert Hall, Coral Gables, Florida.

Program Note

I have come to understand that transformation is the main theme of my life. Over the course of many years and a long inner journey, I have gravitated toward the Latin Mass as the significant statement of transformation. If I have gravitated toward the Mass, I must also acknowledge the action of God in all the years of my life, especially in the years of turmoil and uncertainty, moving me toward this point of opening and understanding. If transformation is the issue, then transformation toward what? The center of the Mass is the Credo, and the center of the Credo is the Crucifixus. For me the Crucifixus symbolizes the opening of the ego, and the Resurrexit the birth of the inner child. The whole of the Mass supports and makes plain this inner transformation and its result: the heart of love, the voice of praise, the assurance that the universe is ultimately personal and that no one is lost. In mysterious statements and in a “dead” language, the Mass texts speak to the opening of the heart and its connection to God.

Almost from the start of my thinking about the Mass, I was moved to include the “female creative,” or the “Holy Mother,” an image which has arisen in many forms in my meditative life. I asked my friend Richard Beale to consider the problem. His marvelous and almost instantaneous response was Hymn to Sophia, Holy Wisdom, a set of seven poems on the “Holy Mother” theme, which I have used as preludes to the Latin texts. I must say that the awareness of the “Holy Mother” has become over a number of years the significant catalyst for my creative work, and I acknowledge this presence in my life with a sense of wonder and gratitude.

If I have been moved in a special way to write this Mass, my friend Gregg Hanson has been moved in an equally special and mysterious way to bring this music into sound. He has worked on this project for nearly three years with unflagging purpose and enthusiasm, for which he has my deepest thanks and appreciation. And in this same spirit I wish to thank the supporting conductors, all the performers, and the very large number of people who have joined in to make this presentation possible.

Finally I wish to dedicate this work to the generations of my family – my grandfathers and grandmothers, my father Stanley, my mother Mary, my brothers John and Robert, my wife Alison, my children Stephen, Matthew and Kathryn – and to the continued opening of the human spirit in this age of transformation.

Program Note by David Maslanka

About Hymn to Sophia, Holy Wisdom

Note by Richard Beale

If you can imagine the dome of the sky and four cardinal points represented by great towers, and every surface covered with the shimmer of gold leaf and lapis lazuli, you would have something of the primal image of the Church of Santa Sophia in Constantinople. But you would have more than that: you would have the archetypal image of the circle in the square, historically and psychologically one of the greatest images of the union of opposites. These were primary sources as I wrote the poems that became Hymn to Sophia, Holy Wisdom. Additionally, as an artist in many media, I have been interested in the creative process itself, not only as it relates to the production of aesthetic objects but also as it mirrors the struggle of the soul to know itself.

My first cooperative venture with David Maslanka came as the result of hearing one of David’s performances in Geneseo, New York. Its sense of musical poetry made such an impression on me that I asked if he would be interested in composing a choral work using some of my poems. From a large manuscript he selected six that became A litany for courage and the seasons. It seemed to me that he caught the spirit of nature perfectly in these exquisite pieces, and the dilemma of the artist in the presence of the Creator.

After the adventure of working with David on Litany, I was looking for another opportunity to work with him on a larger piece. It was in the spring of 1992 that we began to consider a Mass. I had already sketched most of the verses of Hymn to Sophia, and with very few changes I was able to let them echo the shape of the Mass, beginning with a prelude before each of the major parts. I already knew that I wanted the poems to be about the feminine side of God to balance the predominantly masculine imagery of the Mass as it has come down to us. Critical to this stage was a letter I wrote to David in May 1992, answering his request for my personal thoughts about the Mass. In these program notes, excerpts from the letter have been marked “DM” to help the reader understand how our thoughts converged. As I look back on the years of gestation of this enormous work, it amazes me to realize that from the beginning David’s inspiration and mine were nearly identical.

The creation was not simply an act of masculine godhead, but was feminine as well. The notion of Sophia, Holy Wisdom, incorporates images of motherly nurturing. Her form is like the universe itself, round, whole, breastlike. And her face is the “look” of everything. In Western spiritual tradition, Mary, mother of Jesus, is very close to the meaning of Sophia, Holy Wisdom. Mary is the mother of God as well, and it is this principle of holy knowledge and spiritual courage that Mary represents which characterizes also the gift that Sophia holds for us. As Jacob Boehm has written, the Virgin Sophia is the soul’s mother, Divine Wisdom, or the Mirror of the Being of God. She is the Great Mother whose courage endures forever. The Hymn to Sophia begins with homage to this archetypal mother. The poem closes with the realization that our vision, our eyes, imbue us with a hunger for God, and a desire to participate in as much of the created universe as possible. As the Mass develops, there is increasing awareness of the power of God in creation, and our identification with it.

Texts

Commentary by David Maslanka (DM) and Richard Beale (RB)

Introit: “She is the moss”

She is the moss under my feet.
She is the green canopy over my head.
She is the birdsong at my right hand
And the curl of the snake around my left ankle.
She was the throb and striving of all my yesterdays
And she will be the dream of all my tomorrows.

Her disguise is a wondrous domino:
Through two windows in the silky night
The whole creation lies.
Whether it be night or day,
The beginning or the end,
We look upon this feast with hungry eyes.

RB: This hunger is the same craving described by Simone Weil in Waiting for God. She equates the spiritual hunger for beauty with the craving for God. It was only another step for me to conclude that seeing in itself is responsible for our perception of separation from God, that suffering is unavoidable if we are to know even a small part of the whole creation: a simple illustration may clarify; when we are standing in a field we cannot see the whole field, and it is the same for us in creation – while we are in it we cannot see it. The domino (mask) refers to our human vision that symbolizes our desire and our understanding, as we try, and fail, to comprehend the universe and our place in it. Another image in this poem is unusual; the snake. In Eastern philosophy the serpent represents the nature of spirit, and also the spirit of nature, an over-arching creative force. Here it is meant to suggest the richness of the universe, as the cardinal points are addressed and praised, and possibly even the presence of the male principle of creation in the depths of the creative mother.

Kyrie

Kyrie eleison Lord have mercy
Christe eleison Christ have mercy
Kyrie eleison Lord have mercy

DM: The Mass is for me an outpouring of love for God, an unconditional surrender of the soul to the one who created all there is. And the Kyrie is the greeting for the coming of the Christ, who will bring us this salvation. It can be sad, joyous, and celebratory all at once, but it has in it the awareness that what is happening is the central truth of our existence, the irreducible ceremony in which we express our love for God and for each other. In the Kyrie I visualize Christ on the way to Jerusalem riding on an ass, and the people are wild with joy, that the savior has finally come. This is the justification for calling it The Great Thanksgiving.

Before The Gloria: “Quietly entering your presence”

Quietly entering your presence
I am opened by your silence.
Help me to love without holding back
Help me to surrender to your will.
I await your inspiriting touch.
I await life with you.

RB: “Quietly entering your presence” is the supplication of a hungry soul as it begins its journey toward wisdom-of the heart. With the realization of the hugeness of Creation come the inevitable feelings of personal inadequacy, and the knowledge that our self-interest has separated us from what we most desire. This song acknowledges the power of silence, the requirement of waiting, and the hope of deliverance from separation from God. The first hint of acceptance is here.

Gloria

Gloria in excelsis Deo Glory to God in the highest.
Et in terra pax hominibus bonæ voluntatis. And on earth peace to men of good will.
Laudamus te. Benedicimus te. We praise You; We bless You.
Adoramus te. Glorificamus te. We worship You. We glorify You.
Gratia agimus tibi propter magnam gloriam tuam. We give You thanks for Your great glory.
Domine Deus, Rex cœlestis, Deus Pater omnipotens. Lord God, heavenly king, God the Father almighty
Domine Fili unigenite, Jesu Christe. Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son.
Domine Deus, Agnus Dei, Filius Patris. Lord God, Lamb of God, Son of the Father.
Qui tollis peccata mundi, You, Who take away the sins of the world,
miserere nobis. have mercy on us
Qui tollis peccata mundi, You, Who take away the sins of the world,
suscipe deprecationem nostram. receive our prayer.
Qui sedes ad dexteram Patris, You, Who sit at the right hand of the Father,
misere nobis. have mercy on us.
Quoniam tu solus sanctus. Tu solus Dominus. For you alone are holy. You alone are Lord.
Tu solus Altissimus, Jesu Christe. You alone, O Jesus Christ are most high.
Cum Sancto Spiritu, With the Holy Spirit
In Gloria Dei Patris. In the Glory of God the Father.
Amen. Amen

DM: If the Kyrie is a hymn of Immanence, the Gloria is a hymn of Transcendence. To imagine this in images is finally impossible, but hearing the extravagant truth of the senses in musical form goes a long way to transport us to a place where the unimaginable can be implied. Through dance, through the rich texture of gamelan-like complexity of gongs and bells, and voices that howl in ecstasy at the limit of their range, the limitless God of the universe becomes palpable.

Before the Credo: “Bright Window“

Bright window, your night
Is full of stars
And the promise of morning.
Your light is like a strobe,
Longer in memory
Than in our eyes.
You are the white mask of honesty,
The face without shadow,
The noonday brightness,
The light in the window.

At your hearth I am no longer a stranger.

Mother, help me.
Infuse my heart
With joyful laughter
And call my name
From the unknown place
Behind every atom
Of the universe.

RB: The bright window is the appearance, the look, of the universe itself. This window gives us light, honesty, truth, and comfort. Last but not least, it gives us the certainty of being, and a name. I view this as a prayer of supplication, a reaching into the primal center for courage and faith. By claiming a home in the created universe we achieve our true self, our identity, and the name by which. God knows us. From this act of creative provenance comes the determination to affirm God in our lives, and the grace to make a statement of faith in the Credo. There is a solemn joy in the Credo which bears this out: we know that we have come to a turning point from which there will be no retreat. David and I have slightly different feelings about the Credo. While for both or us it is the turning point of the Mass, he, especially, appreciates its transformative spirit as it is modeled for us in the life, death, and resurrection of Christ. For David, the child image is the symbol that connects us with the transformed life.

Credo

Credo in unum Deum, I believe in one God,
Patrem omnipotentem, factorem cœli et terræ, The Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth,
visibilium omnium, et invisibilium. of all things visible and invisible.
Et in unum Dominum Jesum Christum, And in one Lord Jesus Christ
Filium Dei unigenitum. The only-begotten son of God,
Et ex Patre natum ante omne sæcula. Born of the Father before all ages.
Deum de Deo, lumen de lumine, God of God, Light of Light
Deum verum de Deo vero True God of true God.
Genitum, nonfactum Begotten, not made
consubstantiolem Patri: of one substance with the Father
per quem omnia facta sunt By Whom all things were made.
Qui propter nos homines, Who for us men
et propter nostrom salutem and for our salvation
descendit de cælis. came down from heaven.
Et incarnatus est de Spiritu Sancto And He became flesh by the Holy Spirit
ex Maria Virgine: Et homo factus est of the Virgin Mary: And was made man.
sedet ad dexteram Patris and sits at the right hand of the Father.
Crucifixus etiam pro nobis: He was also crucified for us,
Sub Pontio Pilato passus, et sepultus est. suffered under Pontius Pilate, and was buried.
Et resurrexit tertia die, And on the third day He rose again,
secundum scripturas according to the Scriptures.
Et ascendit in cælum: He ascended into heaven,
Et iterum venturus est cum gloria He will come again in glory
judicare vivos et mortuous: to judge the living and the dead:
cujus regni non erit finis. And of his kingdom there will be no end.
Et in spiritum Sanctum Dominum et vivificantem And I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord and Giver of life,
qui ex Patre Filioque procedit. Who proceeds from the Father and the Son.
Qui cum Patre et Filio simul adoratur Who together with the Father and the Son is adored
et conglorificatur: and glorified,
qui locutus est per Prophetas. and Who spoke through the prophets.
Et unam, sanctam, catholicam And one holy, Catholic,
et apostolocam Ecclesiam. and apostolic Church.
Confiteor unum baptisma I confess one baptism
in remissionem peccatorum. for the remission of sins.
Et expecto resurrectionem mortuorum, And I await the resurrection of the dead.
et vitam venturi sæculi. and the life of the world to come.
Amen. Amen.

DM: The Credo has always troubled me because it implies awareness that we must surrender our mind and our will to the creator who is above everything. So there is sternness, backbone, grating irony that what I am about to pronounce for myself – I believe – is the very thing that my ego despises. And yet the words come forth and I make my declaration with the whole creation present to hear me! In phrase after phrase the soul continues to surrender itself. Such is the implacable, ineradicable, inevitable drive of the Credo. It is always too long, but for the ego it is a good lesson.

Before The Sanctus: “Near the hermitage of my dreams”

Near the hermitage of my dreams
The mountain is covered with snow.
Goldenrod and wild aster
Fade to red osier dogwood.
There, in the fastness of ice,
I lie down upon your body
And you bring to birth in me
Indelible memories of home.
I become the child you meant me to be
In the beginning.

I know what it is to love
The mother behind the mask.
She is the one who waits
And refuses to wait.
She is the endless sound
of nebulae in bloom.

RB: The spiritual journey sometimes takes us to places of arctic loneliness, and the interior landscape, even when it becomes familiar to us, contains frightening ordeals. The Hermitage of My Dreams is such a place, where the novice soul surrenders to the creator. It is a collection of images of fall and winter, the earth-body in its time of sleep, where the Great Mother imparts her creative plan for the next phases of life. In a way, it is like a time reversal: I came to the conclusion that memories of childlike love of God are the original human state, and might be worth returning to. We learn to wait for Her, and only then does She show us Her Holy, unending creation.

Sanctus

Sanctus, Sanctus Holy, Holy
Sanctus Dominus Deus Sabaoth Holy Lord God of hosts.
Pleni sunt cæli et terra gloria tua, Heaven and earth are filled with Your glory.
Hosanna in excelsis. Hosanna in the highest.

DM: The Sanctus and Benedictus always produce in me the feeling of holy awe, and even terror. The profligate beauty of the universe has overcome the human heart, and now it sees its hope for salvation fulfilled in creation itself: It is another song of praise both for the creator of the universe, and the one who brings us that message, Christ. I believe it is inevitable to conclude that we become Christ for each other. There is joy and terror in that awareness.

Before The Benedictus: “Sophia, when you call me”

Sophia, when you call me
I feel like dying.
I feel the earth opening up
I feel the Pit coming to greet me.

Sophia, when you call me
I feel like grieving.
I feel my heart breaking.
I feel valves shutting forever.
I feel pools of blood
In my fingers and toes.

Sophia, when you call me
I feel the fear of night.
I feel beasts snarling
Beyond the firelight.

RB: The spiritual journey comes to a crisis in “Sophia, when you call me.” We wonder if surrendering is really going to free us from fear. We feel grief and the numbing terror of nonbeing. It is a song of doubt, in which we feel judged and inadequate. Nothing has prepared us for the transformation that is to come.

Benedictus

Benedictus qui venit in nomine Domini Blessed is He Who comes in the name of the Lord
Hosanna in excelsis Hosanna in the highest.

Before the Agnus Dei: “O Earth, O Stars”

O Earth, O Stars, who watch our pain and our joy,
Lift us up that we may see our Mother once again.
Together we live the only life there is
Music flows from our union.
When the universe expands and contracts,
It is the love we have for each other.
It is one breath.

Mother of womanly embrace,
Wrap us in the womb
Of your unending love.

RB: When resolution finally comes, it is a surprise that it comes through the original hunger of seeing, the craving that the poet thought separated him from God in the first place. In “O Earth, O Stars,” he asks for a vision of the universe to lift him to an appreciation of the greatness of the Mother. He realizes that union with the mother-soul is his journey’s destination. While this is not different from traditional conceptions of mystical union, it is expressed in a way which specifically emphasizes motherly love, the unending love of creation itself.

Agnus Dei

Agnus Dei qui tollis peccata mundi Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world.
miserere nobis have mercy on us.
Agnus Dei qui tollis peccata mundi Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world.

DM: This hymn is for me the ultimate expression of human wretchedness because it acknowledges that without the presence of the living God there is no hope. We do daily what separates us from God, and we do not even know that we are doing it. To approach a God of mercy seems, in my darkness, to be the greatest gift. If God will forgive my transgressions, I will be whole.

I think of the Agnus Dei as the ‘great prayer’ of the Mass. It is paralleled in my mind with Kyrie, and the Crucifixus from the Credo.

Before Dona Nobis Pacem: “I lay my sorrow down”

I lay my sorrow down
By the healing waters of life.
I open my wounds
to the love of God.
Come to me, Mother,
Any way you wish.
I am ready for your kiss,
Your fellowship,
And your healing grace.

Give me peace on earth
And after death
Your company among the stars.

RB: In “I lay my sorrow down,” the writer acknowledges union with his soul by opening himself to God. With it comes gratitude and peace.

Dona Nobis Pacem

Dona nobis pacem Grant us peace

2005 Revision: Composition and performance history

David Maslanka

The Mass was composed in 1994-5 after some twenty years of coming to terms with the Mysteries represented by the Latin texts. The completion of this project would not have been possible without the wonderfully generous support of my friend Gregg Hanson, Director of Bands at the University of Arizona. Gregg, with the university’s backing, not only provided a very welcome commission stipend, but oversaw the production of all the vocal and instrumental materials, and finally conducted the premiere performance, and produced the first recording of this huge work.

The Mass was next taken up by another longtime friend and musical colleague, Steve Steele, former Director of Bands at Illinois State University, who produced three performances (in Bloomington, Springfield, and Chicago) in the spring of 1998.

The prospect of a performance at the 2005 Festival Miami gave me the impetus to undertake a substantial revision of the Mass. Another longtime friend, Gary Green, Director of Bands at the University of Miami, spearheaded the premiere of this revised version.

Gregg Hanson, Steve Steele, Gary Green, and their respective schools have graciously provided financial support for the revisions, which were completed in the summer of 2005.

Further Reading

8 Questions for David Maslanka

2 January 2016|0 Comments

The following is from an email exchange with Natasha Rotondaro, a grade 12 student from Emily Carr Secondary School in Vaughn, Ontario Natasha Rotondaro: What is your musical background? David Maslanka: I began clarinet studies [...]