The Mass in A major,
Op. 126, is a setting of the
mass ordinary
The ordinary, in Roman Catholic and other Western Christian liturgies, refers to the part of the Mass or of the canonical hours that is reasonably constant without regard to the date on which the service is performed. It is contrasted to the '' ...
in Latin by
Josef Rheinberger. He composed it in 1881, originally for a three-part choir (
SSA) with organ. When he conducted the first performance at the
Allerheiligen-Hofkirche in Munich on Christmas Eve, he added a flute and a
string quintet. He wrote a version with orchestra later.
History
Josef Rheinberger composed 14 masses, in addition to three Requiem masses and several youthful mass compositions. Most of these works were written during his tenure as Bavarian court composer in Munich, beginning in 1877, when liturgical music became his focus. All initial versions of these works use organ accompaniment.
He wrote the Mass in A major, subtitled "Missa in Nativitate Domini" (Mass for the Birth of the Lord) within a few days in June 1881 for the
Allerheiligen-Hofkirche of the
Munich Residenz
The Residenz (, ''Residence'') in central Munich is the former royal palace of the Wittelsbach monarchs of Bavaria. The Residenz is the largest city palace in Germany and is today open to visitors for its architecture, room decorations, and displ ...
. It was published the same year.
He conducted the first performance on Christmas Eve.
While he composed the work originally for a three-part choir (
SSA) with organ, he added a flute and a
string quintet in the premiere, played by members of the Hofkapelle.
The
manuscript autograph is held by the
Bayerische Staatsbibliothek München
The Bavarian State Library (german: Bayerische Staatsbibliothek, abbreviated BSB, called ''Bibliotheca Regia Monacensis'' before 1919) in Munich is the central " Landesbibliothek", i. e. the state library of the Free State of Bavaria, the bigg ...
.
The mass was published by
Carus-Verlag in 1994 as part of the complete edition of the composer's works.
Structure and music
Rheinberger set the parts of the mass ordinary in five
movements:
# Kyrie
# Gloria
# Credo
# Sanctus and Benedictus
# Agnus Dei
The lines of the voices are singable (''cantabile'') throughout the composition and avoid extreme registers. They are often in
homophony. The organ has a supporting function, without concertante elements. The main character of the music is lyrical and mellow.
A reviewer described the mass as a "highly optimistic yet profoundly reverent score".
Recordings
The mass was recorded in 2001, together with two other masses by Rheinberger, by the women's voices of the Renaissance Singers of
Blackburn Cathedral
Blackburn Cathedral, officially known as the Cathedral Church of Blackburn Saint Mary the Virgin with St Paul, is an Church of England, Anglican (Church of England) cathedral situated in the heart of Blackburn town centre, in Lancashire, England ...
, conducted by Richard Tanner, with organist
Greg Morris
Francis Gregory Alan Morris (September 27, 1933 – August 27, 1996) was an American actor. He was best known for portraying Barney Collier on '' Mission: Impossible'' and Lt. David Nelson on ''Vega$''.
Early life and career
Born in Clevela ...
.
References
External links
Missa, Op. 126 (Josef Rheinberger)ChoralWiki
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{{authority control
Rheinberger
Josef Gabriel Rheinberger (17 March 1839 – 25 November 1901) was a Liechtensteiner organist and composer, residing in Bavaria for most of his life.
Life
Josef Gabriel Rheinberger, whose father was the treasurer for Aloys II, Prince of Liech ...
1881 compositions
Compositions in A major