Saint Cecilia or the violence of music

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Saint Cecilia or the violence of music is a story by Heinrich von Kleist . It was first published in the Berliner Abendblatt from November 15 to 17, 1810, with the dedication “To the baptism for Cäcilie M.”. The story was written as a godparent gift for Cäcilie Müller, Adam Müller's eldest daughter . In addition to Kleist, their godparents were Achim von Arnim and Henriette Vogel, among others . An expanded version, but without a dedication, appeared in Erzählungen , Volume 2, 1811.

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The historical background for the story is provided by an iconoclasm in the Netherlands, in which radical Calvinists devastated over 400 churches in August 1566.

Kleist describes the project by four brothers from Holland, at the time of the Reformation iconoclasm the Aachen Cathedral to devastate. The legendary tale describes a miracle that took place in Aachen Cathedral in the 16th century. Despite knowledge of the operation of the iconoclasts who celebrate nuns , the Feast of Corpus Christi in the Cathedral. The four brothers are so enchanted by the singing of the nuns that they abandon their plan. When the mother of the four brothers asked the abbess later, she learned that Sister Antonia, the nuns' cantor , was ill at the time of the service and was in her cell . The miracle is that St. Cecilia , the patron saint of church music , led the service instead of the cantor.

literature

  • Stefanie Tieste: Heinrich von Kleist. His works. Kleist-Archiv Sembdner, Heilbronn 2009, ISBN 978-3-940494-15-3 (Heilbronner Kleist materials for school and teaching, Volume 2. Ed. Günther Emig )
  • Reinhold Steig: Heinrich von Kleist's Berlin fights . Spemann, Berlin / Stuttgart 1901, pp. 530-536: 2. Saint Cecilia or the violence of music. textkritik.de