Conveying the transcendent
La Rocca told CNA that his period of contemplation for this work was “far more challenging” than with any of his previous work, so he kept “a kind of diary.”
As he composed, La Rocca sought for his music to reflect “how God sees [the forgotten].”
“The deepest need of the forgotten, like the rest of us, is not simply shelter but a home — and that ultimate home is the Church,” he reflected, quoting a note from his diary.
When asked how his Catholic faith impacts his work, La Rocca noted that “we are all seeking an encounter with the transcendent — with truth and beauty and goodness.”
“We can get a glimpse of that through the arts and — for some reason — especially music,” he continued.
History of the ‘musical Mass’
In the context of music history a “musical Mass” can be traced over time, going back to the medieval era with Gregorian chant.
“And so all of the major composers throughout music history have done their own versions of Masses and Requiems,” Carrillo explained.
But these compositions “began to shift away” from churches and moved “more into the concert stage” around the 1700s-1800s, Carrillo explained, adding that La Rocca is doing something new with this Requiem Mass that hasn’t been experienced for centuries.
“The fact that it’s not just a concert, but we’re doing that in the context of a Mass; that’s, I think, what truly makes it unique and special,” he said.
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“That’s part of what will give this credence when music historians look back in our era,” he reflected. “They will look to this, because it is something that is returning back to the original function of this musical genre.”
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