tice and the sufferings of
the condemned, and is found in combination throughout the whole work,
with melodic forms which express sentiments altogether different, as in
the 'Sanctus' and the 'Pie Jesu' in the 'Requiem,' which forms the first
part." It is first heard in the opening chorus, and for the last time in
the quartet of the third part. The second melodic form, expressive of
sorrow and tears, by the change of a single note and the use of the major
key is made to express consolation and joy. "The third," says Gounod, "by
means of threefold superposition, results in the interval of an augmented
fifth, and announces the awakening of the dead at the terrifying call of
the angelic trumpets, of which Saint Paul speaks in one of his epistles
to the Corinthians."

The oratorio is divided into a prologue and three parts, the Latin text
being used throughout. The first part is entitled "Mors," and opens with
the prologue, which is brief, followed by the "Requiem," interspersed
with texts of a reflective character commenting upon the sentiment. The
second part is entitled "Judicium" ("Judgment"), and includes (1) The
Sleep of the Dead; (2) The Trumpets at the Last Judgment; (3) The
Resurrection of the Dead; (4) The Judge; (5) The Judgment of the Elect;
(6) The Judgment of the Rejected. The third part is entitled "Vita," and
includes the vision of Saint John, the text being taken from the
Apocalypse; the work closing with an "Hosanna in Excelsis," exulting in
the glorious vision of the heavenly Jerusalem.

The prologue, which is sustained by the chorus and baritone solo,
declares the terrors of death and the judgment. The chorus intones the
words, "It is a Fearful Thing to fall into the Hands of the Living God,"
and in this phrase is heard the chief motive, heavily accented by the
percussion instruments,--the motive which typifies death both of the body
and of the unredeemed soul. Immediately after follows the baritone voice,
that of Jesus, in the familiar words, "I am the Resurrection and the
Life." The chorus repeats the declaration, and the Requiem Mass then
begins, divided into various sections, of which the "Dies Irae" is the
most important; this in turn subdivided in the conventional form. After
an adagio prelude and the intonation of the "Requiem aeternam," an
interpolated text occurs ("From the Morning Watch till the Evening"), set
as a double chorus without accompaniment, in the genuine Church style of
the old mast