Maurice Duruflé

French classical composer and organist

Maurice Duruflé was a distinguished French composer, organist, and teacher, born on January 11, 1902, in Louviers, France, and passed away on June 16, 1986. He is best known for his choral and organ music that is deeply rooted in Gregorian chant, which he considered a central component of Western plainchant tradition. Duruflé's compositional output was relatively small, partly due to his perfectionist nature. Among his limited works, the "Requiem, Op. 9" stands out as his most famous and frequently performed piece. Composed in 1947 and published in 1948, the Requiem was commissioned by the French music publisher Durand and dedicated to the memory of Duruflé's father.