Post by erik on Jun 27, 2015 18:07:41 GMT -5
Robert Schumann, because of his supposed inexperience in larger forms, only composed two works of the sacred/choral variety. But one of those two is in this week's Classical Works Spotlight, his single setting of the Latin Mass that has similarities to one by Mozart.
Schumann: MASS IN C MINOR, OP. 147
What bedeviled Robert Schumann throughout his entire working career as a composer was that, having created many fine pieces for the piano, many thought him to be severely deficient when it came to orchestral scoring. The fact that he created three concertos (one each for violin, piano, and cello), single-movement works for piano and orchestra, and four symphonies (with the shadows of the first Viennese school still hanging over him) did not seem to change critics’ minds, even though these works did become a substantial part of the repertoire. But an even trickier area for Schumann to navigate was in the field of sacred choral music that required orchestral forces of a fair size. He only composed two works of this kind that anybody knows of. One was the Requiem For Mignon, which he composed in 1850. The other one was the Mass In C Minor, composed two years later when he was principal music director in Dusseldorf, Germany, and before the final onset of mental illness did him in. Whether intentionally or unintentionally, the fact that Schumann’s singular setting of the traditional Latin Mass is in six movements, requires orchestral forces that include four trombones, and is in C Minor brings to mind the imposing C Minor Mass (#17) of Mozart, by that time more than six decades old. Schumann’s setting is about ten minutes shorter than Mozart’s, but does have an imposing structure and extremely coherent orchestration that pays homage to that work without being a blatant imitation of it. Unfortunately, Schumann’s Mass was not to see a first performance or publication until 1862, six years after the composer succumbed to mental illness. It would be almost another hundred and twenty-five years before any major orchestra or conductor anywhere would really make a serious go at this work in terms of a recording.
Soprano: MITSUKO SHIRAI
Tenor: PETER SIEFFERT
Bass: JAN-HENDRIK ROOTERING
Dusseldorf State Musikverein Chorus
Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra/WOLFGANG SAWALLISCH (EMI)
Schumann: MASS IN C MINOR, OP. 147
What bedeviled Robert Schumann throughout his entire working career as a composer was that, having created many fine pieces for the piano, many thought him to be severely deficient when it came to orchestral scoring. The fact that he created three concertos (one each for violin, piano, and cello), single-movement works for piano and orchestra, and four symphonies (with the shadows of the first Viennese school still hanging over him) did not seem to change critics’ minds, even though these works did become a substantial part of the repertoire. But an even trickier area for Schumann to navigate was in the field of sacred choral music that required orchestral forces of a fair size. He only composed two works of this kind that anybody knows of. One was the Requiem For Mignon, which he composed in 1850. The other one was the Mass In C Minor, composed two years later when he was principal music director in Dusseldorf, Germany, and before the final onset of mental illness did him in. Whether intentionally or unintentionally, the fact that Schumann’s singular setting of the traditional Latin Mass is in six movements, requires orchestral forces that include four trombones, and is in C Minor brings to mind the imposing C Minor Mass (#17) of Mozart, by that time more than six decades old. Schumann’s setting is about ten minutes shorter than Mozart’s, but does have an imposing structure and extremely coherent orchestration that pays homage to that work without being a blatant imitation of it. Unfortunately, Schumann’s Mass was not to see a first performance or publication until 1862, six years after the composer succumbed to mental illness. It would be almost another hundred and twenty-five years before any major orchestra or conductor anywhere would really make a serious go at this work in terms of a recording.
Soprano: MITSUKO SHIRAI
Tenor: PETER SIEFFERT
Bass: JAN-HENDRIK ROOTERING
Dusseldorf State Musikverein Chorus
Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra/WOLFGANG SAWALLISCH (EMI)
