The Cathedral was constructed close by the 12th century Alcázar de Segovia, thought by many architectural historians to be one of the most significant castles in the world.  The present cathedral was preceded by an earlier structure destroyed by Spanish rebels in the early 16th century. The Alcázar was of great strategic importance (it was home to 22 kings) and the earlier Cathedral had been garrisoned by soldiers defending the castle from Siege. As a consequence,  the old cathedral was destroyed by Comuneros insurgents in 1522.

For the text sung by the choir, I chose the Kyrie from the tradional Latin Mass, and I scored the piece for boys’ choir, altos, strings (11 violins, 10 cellos, 9 double basses), brass (2 trumpets, 6 French horns, 1 tuba); and woods (3 flutes, 1 English horn, 3 clarinets, 2 oboes, 2 bassoons).  A version of the Kyrie also appears in my Requiem Mass (2021), 2nd movement.

M.M. Ray and D. Ellicott Ray