I made it all the way through! The camera cut to the Crucifix at 2:45 was...significant.

I'm not prepared to say this was a BAD piece of music. I heard interesting structures. But it was so butt-ugly as to demand an act of reparation. It certainly isn't liturgical music, or even sacred music.

Glad I didn't waste my time with an entry. The judges are not interested in sacred music.

It's nice when they use all the notes.

I left that world at the Peabody Conservatory in 1981 and never looked back. They were throwing ping pong balls into the piano during composition master class. I got up and said "I'm afraid I haven't learned to compose music on the staff as of yet (they were using graph paper) so I will take a leave of you".

Beautiful! As a soundtrack to Dante's inferno.

That music is too ugly even for Hell. And the choir sounded not so good in some of the sections (or were they supposed to be so woefully out of tune). I did listen to the whole shebang and was immensely underwhelmed.

My condolences, ryand. It's a disappointment at the very least when ugliness is preferred to beauty. And when that ugliness is elevated as "sacred", it is a continuation of the tradition of preferring Barabbas to Christ.

I'm not even sure the intent was 12tET. But I'm sure not going to listen again to figure it out.
Ryan's experience reminds me of my entry for The Francesco Siciliani contest. The winners there weren't horrible like this, but they were all Italians. I paid money up the wazoo (warning: don't do bank drafts from a small town bank). Meanwhile, if anyone has a use for a 7' Pater Noster for professional choir and organ, let me know.

It's the Marian antiphon to conclude Second Vespers of the Apocalypse.

Apocalypse... yea, we are definitely in the middle of that! So in that regard, it is most fitting... however, I think Stravisnky's Rite of Spring is much better musically... even if it does conjure up demonic forces. Poor Igor. A magnificent talent and a lost soul. (hope he made it to the gates!)

Dallipiccola Lives!

Same genre and confusion as far as I can tell Richard. How do you describe the difference?

I'm not a huge fan of Dallapiccola, but I would say that the difference between Dallapiccola and the garbage in the original post is significant. The 'music' of the original post was (a) all about itself and its (perceived) theoretical cleverness, with no real attempt to make itself valuable to the listener; (b) as somebody said, 'butt-ugly' from start to finish -- I recall nary a moment of beauty in the entire debacle; (c) more or less aimless -- there were some vague attempts at a detectable structure, but not much more than that. In short, the piece was about itself and its composer, with no attempt to be comprehensible to others, much less beautiful.

On the contrary, I find this piece

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5AsaCNqfRAE

for example, sort of enjoyable and interesting, and in any case, whether one finds it to one's liking or not, it seems clear to me that the piece does not commit the musical sins (a)-(c) above. The piece tries to draw in the listener rather than putting itself on display. There are quite a few striking moments of sonic power, both harmonious and discordant (but discordant in an interesting and purposeful way, and it finds some resolution, not like throwing ping pong balls into a piano until the graph paper is full). It has a clear and meaningful structure.

I either hadn't heard or do not recall hearing the Canti di Prigionia that Richard Mix posted, but I listened to it just now. I also found it to be worth a listen. No doubt it is not to everybody's taste, but it is not just plain ugly, as the 'winner' in question here is.

I'm not claiming that any of this stuff is suitable for use in a sacred context. I'm inclined to think not, but I do worry that my view is born of some sort of unjustified prejudice on my part. All music was 'new' at some point. (Still, I'm very happy just to continue singing chant at mass and leave Dallapiccola to my late Tuesday night listening...)

Dallapiccola is one of the midcentury greats, not commensurable with a student effort. Mariné's piece is not too well thought out and we (I think I'm safe here) can't say how he could have gotten the opening idea from the text. I wouldn't go so far as to say there no beauties, though; the interlude at 1:10 (just after Irishtenor gave up) is a nice relief from the intonation difficulties, and for the third minute one feels that things are finally getting under way. The ending is pretty, but without a sense of payoff.

Ten times???

That Penderecki piece leaves one speechless.

Puccini

Ah! The Wagner of music.