Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Dies Irae
In George Frederic Handel's Hallelujah Chorus, the music grows from simple to complex, as in Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Dies Irae. Hallelujah, like many other masses, praises God's almightiness, and lets the audience feel the power of God. The piece starts off it a modest "hallelujah" sung in unison, where the music seems quite free. When the piece begins to praise God, the music enters a firmer, more commanding tone, as the choir sings, "for the Lord Omnipotent reigneth." When declaring the epithets for the God, such as "king of kings" and "lord of lords," the voices of the choir turn forte and there are consecutive flat tones, for emphasis. When the music enters into, "The kingdom of this world...," it is piano, symbolizing something unimportant. It grows louder with "is become the," and suddenly, it is forte with "the Kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ, and of His Christ," which symbolizes its importance. Handel pushes the repetition of "forever and ever" to make the meaning, God ruling for eternity, match the repetitive form, while the violin in the background adds complexity to the sound.