This requiem is a concerted polychoral work modeled after those he had studied in Rome.

Messe pour les trépassés à 8 - H 2 with Dies irae H.12, Pie Jesu H.234, Motet pour les trépassés Miseremini mei H.311


♫ Kyrie
© Erato 2564 67523-9

This setting of psalm 129 includes the requiem parts 'Requiem aeternam' and 'Et lux perpetuam'.


♫ De Profundis (ps 129)
© Aparté Music AP097

This 'Dies irae' is an impressive polychoral setting; the opening section of which is based on the Gregorian sequence melody.


♫ Dies irae
© Erato 2564 67523-9

♫ Pie Jesu
© Alpha Classics 260

Two hypotheses can be proposed for this work:
1) The first goes as follows: Mme de Guise's little son died in March 1675, so this Pie Jesu cannot have been written for his funeral. But it could have been composed for his Bout de l'An. Actually, the child's funeral appears to have been conducted with little if any pomp, so we can just about rule out a re-use of the music written for his father and grandmother. In fact, since this child was a close cousin to the royal family, his funeral probably observed the same protocol as that observed after the death of Louis XIV's five-year-old daughter in 1672. The body lay in state for a day, surrounded by chanting priests. The next day it was embalmed and placed in a coffin, and the heart was placed in a silver or vermeil box. The body was then carried to its burial place and apparently was interred without the forty-day delay customary for high-ranking adults. Nor does the Guise child appear to have been given an elaborate Bout de l'An. In fact, I have found no mention of Mme de Guise's presence at Montmartre that day, not even in the correspondence of the gossipy Florentine agents! This would suggest that nothing special happened that day at Montmartre. Still, it would be surprising if Mme de Guise was not there, especially since she frequently went to see her sister, Mme de Toscane, who had recently returned from Florence and was a "prisoner" at Montmartre. Still, we should not rule out the possibility that this new Pie Jesu was composed specifically for the Guise singers and was intended for performance at a private Bout de l'An.
2) The second hypothesis goes as follows: Mme Du Bois died in May 1676, so Charpentier wrote a Pie Jesu to be performed by the Guise ensemble at her funeral service.

This requiem contains:
01. Kyrie
02. Dies irae
03. Sanctus
04. Pie Jesu H.269
05. Benedictus
06. Agnus Dei

♫ 01. Kyrie
© MBF 1108


♫ 02. Dies irae
© MBF 1108


♫ 03. Sanctus
© MBF 1108


♫ 04. Pie Jesu H.269
© MBF 1108


♫ 05. Benedictus
© MBF 1108


♫ 06. Agnus Dei
© MBF 1108

In Messe des morts à 4 voix et symphonie (H.10), the third mass for the dead, the orchestra occupies an all-important position, whether introducing or accompanying the vocal parts. There are interesting reminiscences of earlier works, such as the expressive ascending minor sixth in the prelude of the Kyrie, a characteristic of the De profundis (H.189) of 1683, or, at the start of the Christe, the first measures of the Magnificat à 3 voix (H.73), even though the imitation is on the fourth, ot on the octave, and on a different beaat. The Pie Jesu for two dessus, a marvel of religious fervor and vocal grace, recalls the opening of the mass by repeating the ascending minor sixth.
In the "Dies irae", the principal section of the mass, the full orchestra (strings, flutes, and oboes) aquires a truly dramatic role when introducing the powerful chorus Tuba mirum" with a sumtuous fanfare. If this "Dies irae" lacks the opulence and expressive force of Prose des morts (H.12), it nevertheless deserves our attention for the diversity of its textures, for its imaginative word-painting ("cum resurget", "quidquid latet", "voca me", and "lacrymosa"), as well as for certain harmonic strokes, like the bold anticipation of B-flat on "tantus labor" or the highly expressive cjromatic line in the first flute during the orchestral introduction to"Oro supplex".

This requiem contains:
01. Kyrie
02. Sanctus
03. Pie Jesu
04. Benedictus
05. Agnus Dei
06. De profundis

♫ 01. Kyrie
© Naxos 8.553173


♫ 02. Sanctus
© Naxos 8.553173


♫ 03. Pie Jesu
© Naxos 8.553173


♫ 04. Benedictus
© Naxos 8.553173


♫ 05. Agnus Dei
© Naxos 8.553173


♫ 06. De profundis
© Naxos 8.553173

This requiem is for four voices and is written between 1688 and 1698. Like his contemporaries, Charpentier composed a large number of motets for the Elevation of the Host, to be sung between the 'Sanctus' and the 'Benedictus'. In spite of its exceptional length, the Transfige, dulcissime Jesu keeps nevertheless, the intimate and devotional mood necessary for such a piece, something that can be heard again in the 'Pie Jesu' of the Messe des morts. This mass ends with the very fine psalm De Profundis (psalm 130), described in the French psalter as an example of how pardon should be sought from God for one's sins followed by the 'Requiem Aeternam', the first words of which are announced by voices in the lower register, in notes of long value and in a sombre mood, almost motionless. After the surprising dissonance underlining certain passages ("iniquitatibus ejus" and "requiem aeternam"), the 'Lux aeterna' affirms in solid counterpoint the promise of eternity.