The ''Messe des pêcheurs de Villerville'' (Mass of the fishermen of

Villerville Villerville () is a commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region in northwestern France. The ''commune'' is located towards the eastern end of the coastline called the Côte Fleurie (Flowery Coast). In entertainment In the summ ...

) is a

missa brevis ; plural: Missae breves) usually refers to a mass (music), Mass composition that is short because part of the text of the Mass ordinary that is usually set to music in a full Mass (liturgy), Mass is left out, or because its execution time is rel ...

written by

Gabriel Fauré Gabriel Urbain Fauré (12 May 1845 – 4 November 1924) was a French composer, organist, pianist and teacher. He was one of the foremost French composers of his generation, and his musical style influenced many 20th-century composers. ...

in collaboration with his former pupil

André Messager André Charles Prosper Messager (; 30 December 1853 – 24 February 1929) was a French composer, organist, pianist and conductor. His compositions include eight ballets and thirty , opérettes and other stage works, among which his ballet (1 ...

. A later version, published as ''Messe basse'' contained only movements composed by Fauré.

''Messe des pêcheurs de Villerville'' (1881)

Fauré and Messager worked together on the mass in the summer of

1881 Events January * January 1– 24 – Siege of Geok Tepe: Russian troops under General Mikhail Skobelev defeat the Turkomans. * January 13 – War of the Pacific – Battle of San Juan and Chorrillos: The Chilean army ...

. The sections of the mass run as follows: # Kyrie (Messager) # Gloria (Fauré) # Sanctus (Fauré) # O Salutaris (Messager) # Agnus Dei (Fauré) The first performance took place in Villerville on 4 September 1881 accompanied by a harmonium and a violin. The concert was in aid of the fishermen's charitable association. Messager orchestrated the first four sections, and Fauré the last. A second performance, this time accompanied by orchestra, was given in Villerville the following year.

''Messe basse'' (published 1907)

1907 Events January * January 14 – 1907 Kingston earthquake: A 6.5 Moment magnitude scale, Mw earthquake in Kingston, Jamaica, kills between 800 and 1,000. February * February 9 – The "Mud March (suffragists), Mud March", the ...

, Heugel & Cie. published a version of the mass, removing Messager's sections and the Gloria (apart from a part of its music that was reused for the added Benedictus), and incorporating a new ''Kyrie'' by Fauré; this version, produced by Fauré in 1906, appeared under the title ''Messe basse''.Messe des pêcheurs de Villerville
at Bibliothèque nationale de France website

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Messe des pecheurs de Villerville Masses (music) Compositions by Gabriel Fauré Compositions by André Messager Collaborations in classical music 1881 compositions