Mass No. 2 (Bruckner)

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The Mass No. 2 in E minor for eight-part mixed choir and wind orchestra is a musical work by the Austrian composer Anton Bruckner ( WAB 27). During his life he composed several sacred works, among these sacred works there are also some masses, three of which are numbered: D minor (No. 1), E minor (No. 2) and F minor (No. 3 ).

Emergence

The mass in E minor was created in 1866 on the occasion of the opening of the votive chapel of Linz Cathedral and was premiered on September 29, 1869. Since the performance took place outdoors, Bruckner had to use a wind ensemble that was provided by the local military music at the time.

The work

The mass is based heavily on early church music tradition with a theme that is based on the intonation of Gregorian chant. The mass requires a mixed choir of up to eight voices and 13 wind instruments with the following scoring: 2 oboes, 2 clarinets, 2 bassoons, 4 horns, 2 trumpets, 3 trombones.

Compared to the other masses, it is the most delicate of his great choral works. Large sections are to be sung without accompaniment and Bruckner demands many slow, extremely strenuous passages from the voices. Especially the Sanctus, which begins a cappella , and which Bruckner wanted particularly slowly, can drop in pitch slightly, which is painfully noticed when the wind instruments are used (bar 26). In the first edition, therefore, wind instruments were used throughout, which is often an emergency solution today.

In contrast to the F minor Mass, the intonation for the Gloria and Credo must also be sung by the priest, a soloist or a schola. Bruckner had not set these lines of text to music. This is entirely in line with Catholic tradition.

Printed editions

The first printing left the choral movement almost unchanged; the interchanging of the soprano parts in bars in the Sanctus is actually very useful; but he made some changes to the orchestral setting that Bruckner had not approved.

The two editions in the complete edition of the second version are almost identical. Robert Haas and his assistant at the time, Leopold Nowak, had already published the score together in 1941. Nowak did not present the first version until 1977. But it is only performed very rarely. It is worth mentioning the organ part by Vincenz Goller, which enables choirs without wind instruments to perform in style. The first print did not completely disappear in practice, and Fritz Rieger still liked to use it.

Kyrie

The Kyrie is an eight-part, almost continuous a cappella singing . It starts gently in the female voices and gradually increases to forte and fortissimo in the eight-part choir.

Gloria

The Gloria begins with a chorale-like simplicity, but ends with a fugue.

Creed

The credo remains simple.

Sanctus & Benedictus

In the Sanctus , Bruckner uses a theme from the Missa Brevis by Palestrina . In none of his sacred works did Bruckner ever again take up a foreign topic.

Agnus Dei

In the Agnus Dei the work ends like a prayer of peace.

literature

  • Alfred Beaujean: Mass in E minor No. 2. In: Hans Gebhard (Ed.): Harenberg Chormusikführer . Harenberg, Dortmund 1999, ISBN 3-611-00817-6 , p. 177.
  • Franz Graefinger: Anton Bruckner. His life and his works. Gustav Bosse Verlag, Regensburg 1921, chapter “E minor mass” on pp. 89–93 ( PDF on abruckner.com).
  • Angela Pachovsky: Mass in E minor WAB 27. In: Silke Leopold , Ullrich Scheideler: Oratorio guide . Metzler, Stuttgart 2000, ISBN 3-476-00977-7 , pp. 104-106.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Gräflinger 1921, p. 90.