Eternal Light: A Requiem – Howard Goodall

Eternal light was composed in 2008 by Howard Goodall with the work commissioned by Mark
Stephenson on behalf of London Musici. This Requiem is not written in a traditional way like that of
Mozart, Verdi or Fauré but is more reflective and intended to connect, in hope, with mortal
humanity. The setting of some of the traditional latin requiem texts and the combination of English
poems alongside a very strong setting of the passage from Revelation 7 make this a different type of
requiem to that which have preceded it.

Movement 1: Requiem: Kyrie: Close now thine eyes. The Requiem starts with a soft, rippling
accompaniment and a quiet setting of the Requiem text with just altos and tenors before the
Sopranos and Basses join for the cadence. The rising melody for the “et lux perpetua” in the
sopranos and tenors seems hopeful in strength. The melody repeats with the altos, tenors and
basses singing a longer version of the text. This breaks into a setting of the Kyrie Eleison which takes
on the rhythm from the “et lux perpetua” and starts in unison before splitting at the end of the
phrase. Starting in E major it soon modulates into A major for the second setting of the phrase
before slowly dying away, firstly in the tenors and sopranos and then in the altos and basses. The
music modulates again, into E minor, and moves along slightly more quickly before a soprano solo
setting of “Close now mine eyes” by Francis Quarles. The melody is smooth and glides over a more
rapid accompaniment before being repeated over a slow, drawn-out setting of some the poem:
“Close now thine eyes and rest secure. He that loves thee never sleeps. Close no thine eyes.” The
Kyrie and the requiem texts are set against each other before the sopranos and the solo soprano
alternate singing the original melody of “et lux perpetua” exposed earlier in the piece.

The piece starts in E major with the choir based around the tonic and variations on the tonic. This
continues until the modulation at bar 51 to the subdominant which, as the new tonic, is rooted by
the unison motive of the choir in root position. From A Major we move to the dominant minor with
the chord progression affirming E minor with the relevant sharpened supertonic. There is occasional
movement into A minor, but nothing more than exploratory harmonisation as it soon re-camped
firmly in E minor. There is yet another modulation, changing from E minor to E major in which the
kyrie motive is then set below the original requiem aeternam before the poem is weaved into the
texture in the soprano solo. The piece stays in E major until the end of the movement.

Movement 2: Revelation: Factum est silentium. This movement is a complete contrast in style, text
and speed, moving much more quickly with rapid time signature changes and a very harsh sound
implied throughout. This is a setting of the latin translation of sections from the Book of Revelation,
Chapter 8 in the bible. The sopranos, in an unaccompanied plainchant style, sing “the silence before
the storm” before the tenors and basses start to drive through the text of the seven angels with
seven trumpets, in preparation for the second coming. This syllabic setting changes key regularly,
with one assuming that an disrupted tonal centre causes as much confusion with the text and the
time signatures combined. From bar 29, where Goodall sets the part of the text that talks about the
third trumpet of the third angel the movement changes from A minor to some disrupted Ab major
chords before moving back to the original key of G minor. The momentum this piece picks up
demonstrates the urgency of the passage that is set, symbolising a hope (amongst the carnage) of
the coming of Christ a second time. Vae (woe) is set three times, with the sopranos in their upper
registers, symbolising screaming or pain before the piece abruptly ends in G minor and with great
force.

This movement starts in G minor and is firmly rooted in that position until bar 29, when the mode
changes to A minor, a neopolitan 6th based in Ab before moving into C minor and then Ab major
before moving through F minor in bars 55-59 before concluding in D minor.
Movement 3: Litany: Belief. The poem “Belief” (Ann Thorp) is set as a hopeful prayer, again in
complete contrast to the preceding movement. This quasi rubato style allows the piece to “catch”
human emotions during the grief stage of someone you know dying. Constant repetition in both the
first and second phrases makes way for an amalgamation of both melodies in both the third and
fourth phrases. There is a repeat of the text by which point the choir join the soloist emphasising the
words “somewhere” and “somehow” in the opening phrases. The text moves on, but the piece
remains in G minor and the melody repeats that of the third and fourth phrases in the first verse
before the harmony sinks into G major – offering hope and brightness in a desolate state.

The opening of this piece holds a dominant pedal in the bass before the treble introduction, which
mirrors the “close thou mine eyes” opening from the first movement in its first two bars. Firmly set
in G minor (even without the F#’s) the piece moves around an arpeggio of the tonic with occasional
passing notes (c’s and eb’s) creating the melody. There is constant repetition in the melody, as I have
explained before. The choral harmony that fills out the texture starts creates some dissonance and
discomfort but the piece remains very firmly fixed in G minor throughout, until the final tierce de
Picardy on the final plagel cadence.

Movement 4: Hymn: Lead, kindly light. Out of the hope that finishes the third movement comes a
river of affirmation in belief in a higher being; a hope that this life is not the end. The hymn text,
written by John Henry Newman, is one of the more famous texts because of the light in its words
and sentiments. The harmony, firmly rooted in F major, moves through a major progression in the
first phrase, into the relative minor (and back to the root major) in the second. The arching melody
continues into the third phrase, which is predominantly minor until the resolution back in to F major
on “one step enough for me”. The men sing the second verse, which looks at pride and self-
fulfilment with the recognition that that is the past; “remember not past years”. The final verse is
sung in unison before splitting into harmony to show a richness of harmony amongst the words
which portray that a higher being is still leading and that those angels engulf the deceased.

F major arpeggios flow through the accompaniment as the hymn follows a traditional pattern of
harmonisation. The first line finishes in the sub-dominant before resolving back to the tonic
(avoiding an E and Eb throughout the whole phrase). The second phrase begins in A minor and then
moves in a circle of downward moving 5th’s, to D minor through to G minor before using this the Bb
to pivot back to the tonic key originally stated. A movement into a section of D minor then pursues A
minor and A major before, rather surprisingly, moving back to a sub-dominant chord of Bb before the
bass moves conjunctively downward to resolve with a V7c/I cadence. The next verse follows the
same harmonic sequence, except the tenors and basses now sing the melody. The final verse starts
with a full choral unison before splitting into harmony on the final cadence of the first line – “The
night is gone;”. The harmony is then the same as the first verse until the final passage of the final
line, which is in unison until the final chord of D minor, which leads to a repeat of the final line which
then resolves into F major with a traditional V7/I cadence.

Movement 5: Lacrymosa: Do not stand at my grave and weep. A setting of the text attributed to
Mary Elizabeth Frye is set in E major over the traditional “Lacrymosa” (On this day of weeping). The
choir moves in complete homophony centred around the tonic moving from chord I-V-IV in the
opening phrase. This happens both times in the setting of the Latin whilst the English melody, set for
Tenor/Baritone solo, moves in an arpeggios around the chord sequence. This soft setting is similar to
the Requiem at the beginning of the piece in terms of style. They slow chord progression and syllabic
harmony is soothing and hopeful, yet strong.
The introduction is de-stabilised with the placement of chords or added notes. The opening is a Ic
followed by V (with an added 6th), IVc before then moving into root position (I,V, ii7). The piece then
proceeds in root position following a similar chord sequence below a repeating melody. The choir
then takes centre stage with a variation of the original “Lacrymosa” theme. The male solo then sings
the final verse under a sustained, slow moving accompaniment before the choir join for the last
three bars singing their final word in the space at the end of the solo. The voicing in the final choral
chord, of 4 octaves, creates space and depth that is encompassing and comforting.

Movement 6: Dies Irae: In Flanders Field. This is a tense, evocative setting of the Dies Irae and John
McCrae’s First World War poem “In Flanders Field” which is outlined by the initial D pedal that runs
through the first 14 bars. The Dies Irae is set in the tenors and basses with a tenor solo singing the
poem over the top. The choir tenor then takes the words of the poem before splitting back into 4
parts to move the text on. A unison Bb on “we are the dead” indicates the severity of the situation
McCrae is outlining, almost a call from the grave, with no colour or life in the harmony. The tenor
and Soprano soloists join as though the chorus of the dead is growing to include the families of the
deceased. A unison on “if ye break faith” symbolises the cry of unity in the bloody war with close
harmony possibly symbolising the closeness in which each fought with their comrades. The
continuing setting of the “Dies Irae” text under the poem continue the solemnity of the piece. A
change of key at bar 66 from G minor to E minor provide some form of hope, yet amongst all of this
the final settings of “Dies Irae, Dies Isla” from the altos, tenors and basses complete the thought of
the day of misery.

In what seems to start in D minor a progressive feeling of atonalism moves throughout this piece. No
Bb’s in the opening 14 bars create ambiguity, whilst the repeated chant symbolises a tolling bell.
Glissandi echo throughout the opening of the piece as it moves towards Bb major. Spacious chords,
spanning 5 octaves, create an eeriness. There is dissonance in every chord, with upper registers
suspended over a bar (displaced by one beat from the 4/4 rhythm). In Bb there is more stability for
the first five bars until, once again, there enters broad chords, displaced. The piece moves into G
minor then D minor before returning back to G minor. There is an abrupt key change to E minor
where the accompaniment is more flowing with the upper registers playing off the beat. There is a
return back to the glissandi that framed the beginning of the piece before it ends firmly rooted in the
final tonic.

Movement 7: Recodare: Drop, drop slow tears. The opening A minor motive, which is continued
throughout the piece, moves delicately in arpeggios, almost as if there were tears of grief. Yet
another example of Goodall setting traditional latin text against English poetry, this time we have
Phineas Fletcher’s Drop, drop slow tears. The soprano solo weaves a melody using the original
motive before settling into a traditional waltz like rhythm. The “Recordare” text is then introduced in
a lilted, descending melody before the first quaver motive is reintroduced. The choir sopranos then
join the solo, a third above, twice over before the choir settles into C major. This movement seems
to follow on from the last, allowing the space for grief and pain and prayer that has been left from
the previous movement.

Starting in A minor, both the accompaniment and choirs initial opening motif seem to resemble
crying. A descending melody in the bass (A, G, F#, E, D, A) over a tonic pedal root this piece firmly in
the minor, building anguish and pain. The addition of F#’s imply the moving to E minor before a G#
quickly turns this around back to the tonic. The setting of the recordare, which is a descending
phrase, whilst the bass (very slowly) contradicts this with upward movement until the opening
theme is repeated. The choir fill in the chords from bar 61 before the soprano’s and soprano soloist
sing the recordare theme, again, in thirds. The Altos, tenors and basses join for the conclusion of the
phrase both this time and in the repeat. The soprano soloist repeats the final line of the melody
“Jesu Pie” to finish the movement.

Movement 8: Revelation: Tum angelus tertius clanxit. In this movement we return back to
movement two for a more concise setting of the Revelation text. This time unaccompanied there is a
sense of urgency and of haste as the day of revelation approaches. The voices grow from a
pianissimo dynamic until they reach the climax following a crescendo from fortissimo.

Movement 9: Agnus Dei. A setting of the original Agnus Dei text finds itself with a beautiful tenor
melody before the choir re-joins to sing the text again. The “miserere nobis” is set in a weeping
fashion, framing the translation “have mercy on us”. The movement grows to include a tenor solo
over altos, tenors and basses before the sopranos join. The third setting of the text, which leads
towards the end of the traditional Agnus Dei grows in harmony and strength as the prayer is
affirmed. This major setting of the Agnus dei ends in B major, a sixth away from the original tonic of
D major.

Movement 10: In Paradisum: Lux aeterna. This movement combines two traditional texts that are
usually assumed in one movement but, as the title of the whole piece suggests, this is a movement
not only about eternal rest but about eternal light. Starting in C minor the soprano solo joins to add
the Lux aeterna text above the In paradisum. A slow moving choral line then grows whilst there is
some dialogue between the tenor and soprano soloists. The original, hopeful line moves on as the
text changes to embrace the “Libera me” (Deliever me). This grows before a reprise of the Recordare
from movement 7 sounds out above the orchestra. This is, what one might class as, large scale
pleading before the mood changes again to encompass the hymn from movement 4 in the tenor
solo. The choir joins in a unison verse of the hymn to symbolise unity and hope in the face of
despair. This changes once again to the original theme of the movement before the theme from
movement 1 starts an amalgamation of the main themes within this work, from the requiem, Do not
stand at my grave and weep, close thou mine eyes before the choir finishes with a setting of “et lux
perpetua luceat eis” – let perpetual light shine on them.