The Psyche in Psychedelic
Stephen Mo Hanan
Tikkun October 30, 2015 DOI: 10.1215/08879982-3328661 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Key points | Argues that Verdi's Requiem Mass can produce profound emotional responses—terror, awe, joy, and serenity—in listeners regardless of their religious beliefs or knowledge of Latin, as illustrated by the author's experience at a New York Philharmonic performance. |
Abstract
Earlier this year I joined some friends at a performance by the New York Philharmonic of Verdi’s Requiem Mass. Not one of us was Catholic or professed any creed threatening an afterlife of eternal suffering for the wicked. No perpetual willies over Judgment Day. Nevertheless, when the massed voices of chorus and orchestra unleashed their frenzy in the climactic “Dies irae” section, we four, like everyone in the packed house, were awestruck, transfixed, energized with a terror deeper than anything you could glean from Bible class. No knowledge of Latin was required to register the urgent pleading of “Libera me,” the joy of the “Sanctus,” or the profound serenity of the “Agnus Dei.”