In the eighteenth century, Gregorio Allegri’s Miserere mei Deus drew so many visitors to the Vatican, that the pope banned anyone from copying the secretly stored sheet music, on pain of excommunication.
However a 14-year-old boy called Wolfgang, on a trip to Rome with his father, Leopold, heard the piece, and was able to transcribe it from memory only hours later. His surname, was Mozart.
Next Friday, April 18, at 5pm, in Saint Nicholas’ Collegiate Church, Galway’s finest chamber choir Collegium, will present a programme of reflective music, including two versions of the great penitential psalm Miserere mei Deus, under the direction of Mark Duley. These are Allegri’s famous 17th century setting, and a contemporary, 2009, version by James MacMillan.
These extended works are framed by shorter motets by a variety of composers in which the voice of the crucified Christ addresses the penitent believer directly, and to which the Miserere settings act as a response.
Inviting believers of all faiths and none to come together on this important day of the Christian calendar, this has become one of the most popular events of the Music for Galway concert season.
Music for Galway has dedicated this concert to the memory of Seán and Norah Stewart, who supported the organisation in many ways over decades.
Standard tickets cost €18, with concessions costing €16, while €9 Social Inclusion tickets are also available to full-time students, asylum seekers, people in receipt of job-seekers’ allowance, and disability allowance.
