Maurice Duruflé composed the four motets in 1960, based on Gregorian themes, as he had done before in his Requiem of 1948. Duruflé dedicated the work to Auguste Le Guennant, the director of the Gregorian Institute of Paris. The motets were published in 1960 by Éditions Durand, Duruflé's primary publisher. The motets were first performed on 4 May 1961 at the church of Saint-Merri in Paris by the Chorale Stéphane Caillat.
The text for the third motet, Tu es Petrus ("Thou art Peter"), addressing Simon as Peter the Apostle, is taken from Matthew 16:18. In the four motets, Duruflé based his music on Gregorian chant. He combines the chant lines with a polyphonic setting. The chant is always present in one or more voices. The music has been described as "rich in subtle harmonies, well-written for voices, and reminiscent of impressionism". A reviewer notes: "Here Duruflé shows his particular genius for invoking the spiritual element of plainsong in a polyphonic context, achieving a suppleness of rhythm alongside strong characterization of each text."
"Thou art Peter; and upon this rock I will build my church,
and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it"
Commentaires