The Stanback Department of Sacred Music at the First United Methodist Church of Salisbury will host “A Service of Remembrance” at 7:30 p.m. Sunday in the church sanctuary.
Offered in thanksgiving for the many heroic sacrifices of veterans and other victims of global violence, the service will be centered around a rarely heard offering of the “Messe de Requiem, Op. 9” by the late 20th-century French composer, Maurice Duruflé.
Closing the service will be Timothy Rees’ hymn “God is Love: Let Heaven Adore Him” set to Cyril Vincent Taylor’s soaring tune, “Abbot’s Leigh.”
Organist Matthew Michael Brown will play Duruflé’s “Fugue sur le nom d’Alain” for the closing organ voluntary.
Duruflé’s setting of the Requiem was completed in 1947 and dedicated to his father’s memory.
It is based entirely on Gregorian chant themes, which Duruflé clothes in rich harmonies and colors, presenting them in a fresh and completely new fashion.
By connecting the old with the new, this deeply spiritual composer created a sense of the eternal.
The work’s nature is extremely personal, and its peaceful character is interrupted only to emphasize certain dramatic moments in the text.
Joining the choir of First Methodist will be the Chancel Choir of Charlotte’s Providence United Methodist Church.
Former First Church music director Adam Ward will return to conduct and Brown will accompany at the organ.
Intercessory prayers and other remembrances will be offered.
A reception provided by the Livingstone College’s hospitality management program will follow in the Parker Courtyard. The community is encouraged to attend this service.
The church is located at 217 S. Church St. in downtown Salisbury.
For more information, email Matthew Brown, director of music, at matthew@fumcsalisbury.org or call 704-636-3121, extension 104.