Tu Pauperum Refugium

The main body of this work consists of an extended invocation in the style of a polychoral motet, based on an anonymous Latin text, and ending with a plea for peace. This is preceded by a briefer introductory section, based on passages from the Old Testament, in which the horrors of violence and oppression are described. This section features the use of several extra-musical effects (whispering, hissing, finger- and tongue-clicks, foot-stamping and indeterminate clusters), most of which form part of the South African choral tradition.