A
Canadian Reqium was composed over two summers: In August 2002 and
2003 in the home of Mrs. June Swenson, a resident of 108 Mile Ranch
in the Cariboo Country of British Columbia. The desire to write a requiem came as a result of the death of my father in 1993. Several years passed before I felt able to compose a setting of the Requiem text. For me a Requiem is for the grieving, a comfort for those who mourn the passing of a loved one. I have intentionally omitted the "Dies Irae" and the "In Paradisum" sections.
A Canadian Requiem is intended for concert performance. While several sections may satisfy the textual needs of the liturgy, additional text has been added to the traditional words in two movements. For stanzas of Emily Dickinson's poem.