20th Movement: Domine fac mihi
The twentieth movement of the Requiem, Domine fac mihi, is accompanied by a video tour of Saint Alban’s Cathedral in Saint Alban’s, England
Domine fac mihi, like each of the composition's 24 movements, was inspired by the beauty and grandeur of some of the world's great cathedrals and churches.
The Text Domine fac mihi (Lord make me, Psalm 39:4-7) Domine fac mihi is not included in the Latin liturgy of the Eucharist (Mass), but would have been appropriate as the Psalm reading at the liturgy of the Word in the Requiem service. Brahms used the verse in his German Requiem.
For consistency of language in the Requiem, I’ve included the verse in the Latin that would have been heard at the Roman Requiem Mass prior to the introduction of vernacular translations of the Bible.
The Composition In Psalm 39, the Psalmist speaks to the tenuousness of life (“Thou hast made my days as the breadth of a hand”), and acknowledges his anguish at not knowing “the measure of my days.” How or when we will die is in God’s hands alone, and unknowable.
I’ve tried to reflect some of this insecurity and tenuousness with rapid changes in the movement’s harmonic foundation. This includes unconventional chord progressions, unexpected changes in key, and absence of resolution: Domine fac mihi begins in the key of C# minor; within a few measures, it has transposed to F# minor, then D# minor, then G# minor, then D minor, then G minor. And then, matching the more confident tone of the text’s final words (“My hope is in Thee”), Domine fac mihi finally resolves on an F major chord.
The movement is scored for boys, tenors and bases; 24 violins, 8 violas, 8 cellos, 6 double basses; and 3 trumpets.
Latin Verse and English Translation
Domine, fac mihi Do mi ne finem, meum et mensuram dierum, meorum quae sit ut sciam quid mihi desit. Ecce, vos spiritum et numerum dierum meorum quis est de manibus; et mea tamquam nihilum ante te. Inanis est omnis homo ambulat verumtamen vane conturbatur: cumulus divitiarum et ignorat cui congregabit ea. Et nunc Domine, ut quid exspectatis amplius? Spes mea in vobis.
Lord, make me to know my end, and the measure of my days,
that I may know how frail I am.
Behold, Thou hast made my days as the breath of a hand;
and my age is as nothing before Thee.
Surely every man walks in a vain show: surely they are disquieted in vain: he heaps up riches, and knows not who shall gather them.
And now, Lord, what do I wait for? My hope is in Thee.
