ATBGb Recorder version (Low setting)

Kyrie 1:

Christe & Kyrie 2:

Requiescat in pace and Gloria

Commissioned by the Washington (DC) Recorder Society in 2021, “Missa super-brevis” was composed in memory of Barry Moyer (1944-2021). Barry was a frequent and beloved participant in Early Music workshops across the United States as well as Europe, with many, many friends. I met him in 2008 when he came to Berkeley for the Early Music Festival (BFX). His nickname was “Bear”, which lent itself to the title “Ursus cœli”. Barry liked the bigger bass recorders and had a decent collection of them, which guided the instrumentation downward to exclude Soprano and include the Great Bass in C. A part for Soprano-only players is provided for the Cantus line, which mostly doubles the Alto, as well as an Altus part in alto clef for viols.

I had the idea to write a Mass, but for portability the result is a pared-down “Missa super-brevis” with two Kyries, a 3-part Christe (Tenore is tacet), a slow brief “Requiescat in pace”, and finally a Gloria. At the end of the Gloria, all parts come together to sing “Alleluia” (actual singing is optional).

The music emulates Barry’s favorite musical style — the Renaissance poly­phony of the 15th and 16th centuries, as found in the Odhecaton, a collection of instrumental music first published in 1501 by Ottaviano Petrucci.

Barry’s name appears in solmization in all parts throughout the piece, either as a slow cantus firmus amid florid decorations, or in small imitative fragments and paraphrases in augmentation, diminution, or inversion. In this treatment, the vowel of each syllable is assigned a pitch according to which degree of the hexachord it rhymes most closely with (Ut, Re, Mi, Fa/La, Sol). “Barry Moyer” renders as La-Mi, Sol-Mi-Re, and “Ursus cœli” becomes Ut-Ut-Re-Mi.

Tempo suggestion: in general the whole note should be about 60. The Christe is twice as fast as the other movements and Requiescat can be as slow as you like. Note values remain the same at time shifts within each movement.

I would like to thank Adam Knight Gilbert for his invaluable tutelage helping me to understand the composing style in this project.

As in all my music, tasteful ornamentation is welcome and encouraged.