Music for the Thirteenth Sunday after Pentecost

In the Middle Ages, the words of Christ to Peter in today’s gospel from Matthew were set into a votive antiphon for the feast of St. Peter. The melody you hear sung at the start of communion today (Tu es petrus) was a popular subject for both Mass settings and motets in the Renaissance, set by Palestrina, Clemens non Papa, Philips, Byrd, and Morales, among others. In the twentieth century, Saint-Saens, Dubois, and Duruflé all composed motets on the work for occasions celebrating the origins of the Church.

The setting for organ played as today’s closing voluntary was written in 1948 by the French virtuoso Jeanne Demessieux (1921-1968). It is uncharacteristically concise and straightforward compared with her other organ compositions, which are regarded as some of the most technically challenging in the repertory.

Demessieux was born in the south of France and achieved status as a child prodigy by the age of 8, winning prizes in solfège and piano from the conservatory in Montpellier. She entered the Paris Conservatory at the age of 12, where each entering class competed against each other for prizes and, most importantly, a spot in the returning class the following term. I can’t help but smile at the thought of a more typical student (perhaps an enterprising 21-year-old Parisian composer) sitting down in their first counterpoint class next to a small child in a pleated dress, only to be vastly outperformed by her in subsequent months.

Indeed, Demessieux achieved top rankings in harmony, piano, fugue, and counterpoint, was appointed as titulaire at the church of St-Ésprit at the age of 13, and went on to an illustrious solo career. She was the first woman organist to ever sign a record contract. Her students include Marie-Madeleine Duruflé, Louis Thiry, and Pierre Labric.

–Abraham Ross

Solemn Mass takes place at St. James’ Anglican Church, Vancouver at 10:30 am every Sunday.