Tuesday Evening Melody: “Trinity Requiem”
by Chris Heagle, technical director
As the tenth anniversary of the attacks of September 11th approaches, we’re continuing to plan for our event at St. Paul’s Chapel on September 6th. Co-produced with Trinity Wall Street, the public dialogue is called “Who Do We Want to Become? Remembering Forward a Decade After 9/11.” Three public intellectuals, Hendrik Hertzberg of The New Yorker, Serene Jones of Union Theological Seminary, and the author Pankaj Mishra, will speak with Krista for an hour and then answer questions from our in-house and online audiences.
And, so it was a pleasant coincidence that just after returning from a scouting trip to the chapel, a colleague handed me a CD of Robert Moran’s Trinity Requiem. Trinity commissioned the Denver-born composer to write a piece for their youth chorus commemorating 9/11. The result, which will be released September 6th, is a lush work for voice, organ, harp, and cello. The track above is actually two — the “Offertory” followed by “In Paradisum.”
The former is a variation on Pachelbel’s famous “Canon in D.” During the recording sessions in Trinity’s downtown sanctuary, as if on cue, a series of sirens can be heard passing by the church. The liner notes of the CD suggest this occurred during the best take and couldn’t be edited out. I would argue that they were meant to be there all along. Thanks to SoundCloud, you can preview the whole CD.
We’re looking for your reflections on 9/11 and specifically on how we pass on the narrative of those events to future generations. Share your thoughts with us and we’ll incorporate them into our discussion.
“Not Bad for an Atheist”
Trent Gilliss, Online Editor
We called out for your suggestions for the five-word acceptance speech at the Webby Awards. We received hundreds of suggestions on the blog and via e-mail. I had a few favorites — some slightly brash (“Two are better than one.”), others literate (“Our barbaric yawp was heard.”), and a few wise ones (“Knowledge speaks but wisdom listens”).
In the end, I was challenged by a trusted friend to practice what I preach to Krista and our staff: disclose and reveal. The Webbys are a tad irreverent, and, being a bit of a showman who aims to please the crowd, I opted for a humorous, somewhat ironic five words — knowing the sequencing progression from our 2005 win helped.
To be honest, I became a tad anxious after I delivered it, worrying that Krista or some of you might take offense. Thankfully, she was gracious upon my return; hopefully you will be too. I’d love to hear your comments.
The video above was taken with a digital phone and uploaded directly to our Vimeo account. As you can see, our table was only 20-odd rounders to the right of Stephen Colbert, David Byrne, will.i.am, and other celebs. “Just a bit outside…” (to quote Bob Ueker in Major League).
