Allegri's Miserere is as famous as it is short. The a cappella composition is also shrouded in mystery, leading some to believe that the widely known version may not be the authentic one. (I have my doubts about the famous "high C" in the second half of the 4-voice falsobordone - it smacks of 19th century romanticism rather than the cooler 17th century.) But as it is, the music has an ethereal beauty. The piece is written for two choirs of five and four voices, singing alternately and coming together for the 9-part polyphonic conclusion.
"Miserere" refers to a setting of Psalm 51, one of the penitential psalms, which begins with "Have mercy on me, O God". According to tradition, the psalm was composed by David as a confession to God after his sin with Bathsheba. David's confession is seen as a model of repentance in both Judaism and Christianity, with the belief that those who confess their sins and pray to God, as David did, will be forgiven, while those who ignore their sins will be punished.
The Miserere was sung during the Tenebrae services of Holy Week and at Lauds in the three days before Easter. During the Tenebrae services, the candles in the chapel were gradually extinguished until the Miserere was sung in near darkness. Allegri's version of the piece alternates between plainchant and harmonized chant.
Gregorio Allegri (1582-1652), a singer in the Papal Chapel, is best known for his composition of the Miserere. The piece was commissioned by Pope Urban VIII and performed annually in the Sistine Chapel during the Tenebrae services of Holy Week. Its mystique has been enhanced by rumors of unwritten performance traditions and secret ornamentation. Several myths have grown up around the piece, such as the idea that the Pope forbade copying the work, punishable by excommunication. This is not true. Another myth is that the 14-year-old Mozart visited Rome and, after hearing the work performed, proved able to write out the text and composition. But the fame of the piece made it de rigeur for those on the Grand Tour in the 18th and 19th centuries to hear the work in the Sistine Chapel during Holy Week. Many have commented on the beauty and uniqueness of the piece. In fact, the work was transcribed by Felix Mendelssohn and Franz Liszt, and various other 18th and 19th century sources, with or without ornamentation, survive.
Allegri's Miserere remains one of the most widely known and beloved a cappella choral works in the canon.
Listen to the Tenebrae, directed by Nigel Short, and filmed at St. Bartholomew the Great, London.