The heart of Requiem is a song cycle for tenor and piano, supplemented by an ensemble of ten musicians and actor Porgy Franssen. Instead of the usual Latin requiem texts Hamel used a motley collection of the last words of famous figures, from Keats to Corot, and Schubert to Marx, to the transience of human shape. Hamels Requiem is a cross between concert ritual and theater, created specifically for the space of the monumental church in Amsterdam, the Dove.
Requiem; A theatrical ritual for 12 performers: Tenor, Actor, piano, flute/picc/afl/bfl, sopr/altosax, bassoon, trombone/tenor tuba, vl, kemence or viola, various perc, harp/portable harp, church organ. Opus 37 (2011-2012)
Duration: 100′; Commissioned by the Holland Festival; Published by: Donemus Publishing, The Hague.